1981 Denver Broncos season

The 1981 Denver Broncos season was the team's 22nd year in professional football and its 12th with the National Football League (NFL). Led by first-year head coach Dan Reeves,[1] the Broncos were 10–6, tied for first in the AFC West, but failed to make the postseason again due to their loss to the Buffalo Bills, who gained the final berth.

1981 Denver Broncos season
OwnerEdgar Kaiser
Head coachDan Reeves
General managerGrady Alderman
Home fieldMile High Stadium
Results
Record10–6
Division place2nd AFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The Broncos were undefeated at home in 1981,[2] but had six road losses. After a promising 8–3 start, Denver lost three of their final five games, including a critical loss at Cincinnati in week 12. Entering the season finale at Chicago, they had a one-game lead over the San Diego Chargers in the AFC West,[2] but the loss at Soldier Field ended their season, losing the tiebreakers for the division and wild card berths.[3][4]

Prior to this season, ownership changed in February; coaching and front office changes were made in March.[1][5][6][7]

NFL Draft
Main article: 1981 NFL Draft
1981 Denver Broncos draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 15 Dennis Smith *  S USC
2 42 Clay Brown  TE BYU
4 106 Mark Herrmann  QB Purdue
5 125 Ken Lanier  T Florida State
6 151 Alvin Lewis  RB Colorado State
7 181 Steve Busick  LB USC
9 234 Rusty Olsen  DE Washington
11 290 Pat Walker  WR Miami (FL)
12 317 John Hankerd  LB Notre Dame
12 321 Mandel Robinson  RB Wyoming
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff
1981 Denver Broncos staff
Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special Teams – Reed Johnson
Source:[8]

Roster
1981 Denver Broncos roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Source:

Regular season
Main article: 1981 NFL season

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site Attendance
1 September 6 Oakland Raiders W 9–7 1–0 Mile High Stadium
74,796
2 September 13 at Seattle Seahawks L 10–13 1–1 Kingdome
58,513
3 September 20 Baltimore Colts W 28–10 2–1 Mile High Stadium
74,804
4 September 27 San Diego Chargers W 42–24 3–1 Mile High Stadium
74,822
5 October 4 at Oakland Raiders W 17–0 4–1 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
51,035
6 October 11 Detroit Lions W 27–21 5–1 Mile High Stadium
74,816
7 October 18 at Kansas City Chiefs L 14–28 5–2 Arrowhead Stadium
74,672
8 October 25 at Buffalo Bills L 7–9 5–3 Rich Stadium
77,757
9 November 2 Minnesota Vikings W 19–17 6–3 Mile High Stadium
74,834
10 November 8 Cleveland Browns W 23–20 OT 7–3 Mile High Stadium
74,859
11 November 15 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 24–7 8–3 Tampa Stadium
64,518
12 November 22 at Cincinnati Bengals L 21–38 8–4 Riverfront Stadium
57,207
13 November 29 at San Diego Chargers L 17–34 8–5 Jack Murphy Stadium
51,533
14 December 6 Kansas City Chiefs W 16–13 9–5 Mile High Stadium
74,744
15 December 13 Seattle Seahawks W 23–13 10–5   Mile High Stadium
74,527
16 December 20 at Chicago Bears L 24–35 10–6   Soldier Field
40,125

Standings
AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
San Diego Chargers(3) 10 6 0 .625 6–2 8–4 478 390 W2
Denver Broncos 10 6 0 .625 5–3 7–5 321 289 L1
Kansas City Chiefs 9 7 0 .563 5–3 7–5 343 290 W1
Oakland Raiders 7 9 0 .438 2–6 5–7 273 343 L2
Seattle Seahawks 6 10 0 .375 2–6 6–8 322 388 W1

References
  1. Zimmerman, Paul (October 19, 1981). "Denver is standing mile-high once again". Sports Illustrated. p. 48.
  2. Mossman, John (December 14, 1981). "Broncos snow Seahawks, 23-13". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. p. 17.
  3. "Bears, 35-24". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 21, 1981. p. 3C.
  4. "Bears bust Broncos, damage Denver's hopes". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 21, 1981. p. C2.
  5. "Red is out, Reeves in at Denver". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 10, 1981. p. 19.
  6. Reid, Ron (March 10, 1981). "Miller out, Reeves in as Broncos coach". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 13.
  7. "Reeves hired as new Bronco coach". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). Associated Press. March 11, 1981. p. G2.
  8. 2010 Denver Broncos Media Guide. p. 365. Retrieved March 6, 2011.
  9. "Viking comeback falls just short". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. November 3, 1981. p. 18.
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