The 1981 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 12th season in the National Football League and 22nd overall.

Looking to improve on two consecutive winning seasons under head coach Ron Erhardt, including a 10–6 mark in 1980, the Patriots instead regressed significantly and ended the season with a record of two wins and fourteen losses, and finished tied for last in the AFC East Division with the Baltimore Colts, with whom they also tied for the worst record in the league. A porous defensive line and linebacking corps was the chief weakness: in one game against the Steelers the Patriot secondary made 27 of the team's 33 tackles. The 2–14 record resulted in Erhardt losing his job at the end of the season.

The Patriots lost their first four games, and then ten of their last eleven, including the last nine games of the season. Eight of their losses were by margins of seven or fewer points; the largest margin of defeat was only 14 points. The Patriots were defeated in both the first and last games of the season by the Baltimore Colts; the Patriots' bookend losses proved to be Baltimore's only two wins of the 1981 season. It was known that the loser of that last game would have the first pick in the 1982 NFL draft, and the game was nicknamed “The Stupor Bowl.” With the Patriots’ defeat, the team had the first pick, choosing University of Texas defensive end Kenneth Sims, an eventual “draft bust” as first overall pick in the NFL draft. 22 years later, in their Super Bowl XXXVIII-winning season, the Patriots went 14–2, becoming the second franchise in NFL history to have both a 2–14 season and a 14–2 season.The San Francisco 49ers had 2–14 seasons in 1978 and 1979, and 14–2 seasons in 1989, 1990 and 1992.

Offseason NFL draft

Undrafted free agents

+ 1981 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeBill BurkeRunning BackAICMike BushWide receiverCal PolyRich CamarilloPunterWashingtonCharles CassidyTackleMnsflid St.(PA)Russ ComptonCenterIndianaCharles CookDefensive endMiami (FL)Reggie EcclestonWide receiverConnecticutTim GoldenLinebackerFloridaColin McCartyDefensive tackleTempleMark RossPunterNE OklahomaTim RossLinebackerBowling GreenTony SidorTight EndSyracuseKyle StevensRunning BackWashingtonRonald TateRunning backNorth Carolina CentralJohn TautoloGuardUCLABob ReganTackleYaleJim RillCenterDartmouthRich VillellaRunning BackBrownLea WalkerRunning BackTexas SouthernJohn WebbDefensive backConnecticutDarrell Wilson Defensive back Connecticut

Staff New England Patriots 1981 staff Front office President – Billy Sullivan Executive vice president – Chuck Sullivan General manager – Bucko Kilroy Assistant general manager – Patrick Sullivan Director of player development – Dick Steinberg Director of college scouting – Joe Mendes Director of pro scouting – Bill McPeak

Head coaches Head coach – Ron Erhardt

Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/offensive line – Jim Ringo Quarterbacks – Babe Parilli Offensive backs – Bobby Grier Receivers – Raymond Berry Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator/defensive line – Fritz Shurmur Linebackers – Rick Lantz Defensive backs – Dick Roach

Special teams coaches Special teams – Gino Cappelletti

Roster

Season summary Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 6 Baltimore Colts L 28–29 0–1 Schaefer Stadium 49,572 2 September 13 at Philadelphia Eagles L 3–13 0–2 Veterans Stadium 71,089 3 Dallas Cowboys L 21–35 0–3 Schaefer Stadium 60,311 4 September 27 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 21–27 0–4 Three Rivers Stadium 53,344 5 October 4 Kansas City Chiefs W 33–17 1–4 Schaefer Stadium 55,931 6 October 11 at New York Jets L 24–28 1–5 Shea Stadium 55,093 7 October 18 Houston Oilers W 38–10 2–5 Schaefer Stadium 60,474 8 October 25 at Washington Redskins L 22–24 2–6 RFK Stadium 50,394 9 November 1 at Oakland Raiders L 17–27 2–7 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 44,246 10 November 8 Miami Dolphins L 27–30 2–8 Schaefer Stadium 60,436 11 November 15 New York Jets L 6–17 2–9 Schaefer Stadium 45,342 12 November 22 at Buffalo Bills L 17–20 2–10 Rich Stadium 71,593 13 November 29 St. Louis Cardinals L 20–27 2–11 Schaefer Stadium 39,946 14 December 6 at Miami Dolphins L 14–24 2–12 Miami Orange Bowl 50,421 15 December 13 Buffalo Bills L 10–19 2–13 Schaefer Stadium 42,549 16 December 20 at Baltimore Colts L 21–23 2–14 Memorial Stadium 17,073 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

See also List of New England Patriots seasons

Notes

References