NFL team season
The1981 Dallas Cowboys seasonleague . The team matched theirprevious output of 12–4, winning their fifth division title in six years.[ 1]
The season began with four straight victories, followed by two losses (including a surprising 45–14 blowout loss to the 49ers in week six). The Cowboys rebounded to win 8 of their last 9 games to clinch the NFC East but had to settle for the conference's number two seed behind the 49ers.
The Cowboys easily defeated Tampa Bay in the divisional playoff to earn a rematch with the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The game was much closer this time, and the Cowboys still held a 27–21 lead with less than a minute to play. However, Joe Montana led a late drive and hit Dwight Clark in the famous "Catch " to give San Francisco a 28–27 lead. On the ensuing Cowboys possession, Danny White completed a pass to Drew Pearson, and was only an arms length away from breaking free from Eric Wright and most likely scoring a touchdown. Jim Stuckey recovered a White fumble on the next play, then the 49ers ran out the clock for the win.
Undrafted free agents [ edit ] Week Date Opponent Result Record Game Site Attendance Recap 1 September 6 atWashington Redskins W 26–101–0 RFK Stadium 55,045 Recap 2 September 13 St. Louis Cardinals W 30–172–0 Texas Stadium 63,602 Recap 3 September 21 atNew England Patriots W 35–213–0 Schaefer Stadium 60,311 Recap 4 September 27 New York Giants W 18–104–0 Texas Stadium 63,449 Recap 5 October 4 atSt. Louis Cardinals L 17–204–1 Busch Memorial Stadium 49,477 Recap 6 October 11 atSan Francisco 49ers L 14–454–2 Candlestick Park 57,574 Recap 7 October 18 Los Angeles Rams W 29–175–2 Texas Stadium 64,649 Recap 8 October 25 Miami Dolphins W 28–276–2 Texas Stadium 64,221 Recap 9 November 1 atPhiladelphia Eagles W 17–147–2 Veterans Stadium 72,111 Recap 10 November 9 Buffalo Bills W 27–148–2 Texas Stadium 62,583 Recap 11 November 15 atDetroit Lions L 24–278–3 Pontiac Silverdome 79,694 Recap 12 November 22 Washington Redskins W 24–109–3 Texas Stadium 64,587 Recap 13 November 26 Chicago Bears W 10–910–3 Texas Stadium 63,499 Recap 14 December 6 atBaltimore Colts W 37–1311–3 Memorial Stadium 54,871 Recap 15 December 13 Philadelphia Eagles W 21–1012–3 Texas Stadium 64,955 Recap 16 December 19 atNew York Giants L 10–13(OT) 12–4 Giants Stadium 73,009 Recap
Division opponents are inbold text
Date: Sunday Sept 6, 1981Location: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 55,045Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C), wind 8 mph (13 km/h)Referee: Gene Barth TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach
1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 7 7 0 3 17 • Cowboys 14 13 3 0 30
Date: Sunday Sep 13, 1981Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 63,602Game weather: 82 °F (28 °C), wind 9 mph (14 km/h)Referee: Pat Haggerty TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach
1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 7 10 7 11 35 Patriots 7 7 7 0 21
Date: Monday Sept 21, 1981Location: Schaefer Stadium Game start: 9:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 60,311Game weather: 62 °F (17 °C), wind 13 mph (21 km/h)Referee: Jerry Markbreit TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Don Meredith & Howard Cosell
1 2 3 4 Total Giants 0 3 0 7 10 • Cowboys 7 3 0 8 18
Date: Sunday Sep 27, 1981Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 63,449Game weather: 82 °F (28 °C), wind 10 mph (16 km/h)TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall & Hank Stram
1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 3 7 0 17 • Cardinals 10 0 7 3 20
1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 7 0 7 14 • 49ers 21 3 14 7 45
Date: Sunday Oct 11, 1981Location: Candlestick Park Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 57,574Game weather: Sunny; 58 °F (14 °C), wind 18 mph (29 km/h)Referee: Jim Tunney TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
1 2 3 4 Total Rams 0 10 7 0 17 • Cowboys 12 14 0 3 29
Date: Sunday Oct 18, 1981Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 9:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 64,649Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C), humidity 55%Referee: Gene Barth TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Fran Tarkenton, and Don Meredith
1 2 3 4 Total Dolphins 0 6 7 14 27 • Cowboys 7 7 0 14 28
Date: Sunday Oct 25, 1981Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 64,221Game weather: 54 °F (12 °C), humidity 74%Referee: Fred Wyant TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen
1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 0 3 0 14 17 Eagles 0 7 7 0 14
Date: Sunday Nov 1, 1981Location: Veterans Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 72,111Game weather: 53 °F (12 °C), wind 6 mph (9.7 km/h)Referee: Jerry Seeman TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall & John Madden
1 2 3 4 Total Bills 7 7 0 0 14 • Cowboys 7 0 20 0 27
[ 2]
1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 10 0 7 24 • Lions 0 7 10 10 27
Date: Sunday Nov 15, 1981Location: Pontiac Silverdome Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 79,694Game weather: DomeReferee: Fred Silva TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
1 2 3 4 Total Redskins 0 7 3 0 10 • Cowboys 7 3 7 7 24
Date: Sunday, November 22, 1981Location: Texas Stadium ,Irving, Texas Game start: 3:00 p.m.Game attendance: 64,587Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C); wind 7 mph (11 km/h)Referee: Dick Jorgensen TV announcers (CBS): Tom Brookshier and Roger Staubach
[ 3]
1 2 3 4 Total Bears 0 3 0 6 9 • Cowboys 3 0 0 7 10
Date: Thursday Nov, 26 1981Location: Texas Stadium ,Irving, Texas Game start: 4:00 p.m.Game attendance: 63,499Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C); humidity 62%Referee: Chuck Heberling TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 17 10 0 10 37 Colts 6 0 7 0 13
Date: Sunday Dec 6, 1981Location: Memorial Stadium ,Baltimore, Maryland Game start: 2:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 54,871Game weather: 39 °F (4 °C), wind 20 mph (32 km/h), wind chill 29 °F (−2 °C)Referee: Ben Dreith TV announcers (CBS): Jim Kelly & John Dockery
1 2 3 4 Total Eagles 3 7 0 0 10 • Cowboys 0 7 7 7 21
Date: Sunday Dec 13, 1981Location: Texas Stadium ,Irving, Texas Game start: 4:00 p.m.EST Game attendance: 64,955Game weather: 44 °F (7 °C), humidity 83%, wind 9 mph (14 km/h)Referee: Jerry Markbreit TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
1 2 3 4 OT Total Cowboys 0 0 0 10 0 10 •Giants 0 0 7 3 3 13
1 2 3 4 Total Bucs 0 0 0 0 0 • Cowboys 0 10 21 7 38
Conference Championship [ edit ] 1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 10 7 0 10 27 •49ers 7 7 7 7 28
Dallas Cowboys 1981 roster Quarterbacks Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
Offensive linemen Defensive linemen
Linebackers Defensive backs
Special teams
Reserve lists Rookies in italics
Franchise Stadiums Culture Lore Rivalries Division championships (25) Conference championships (10) League championships (5) Media Current league affiliations
