1980 Houston Oilers season
OwnerBud Adams
General managerBum Phillips
Head coachBum Phillips
Home fieldHouston Astrodome
Results
Record11–5
Division place2nd AFC Central
Playoff finishLost Wild Card Playoffs
(at Raiders) 7–27

The 1980 Houston Oilers season was the franchise's 21st overall and the 11th in the National Football League (NFL). The team scored 295 points while the defense gave up 251 points. Their record of 11 wins and 5 losses resulted in a second-place finish in the AFC Central Division. The Oilers appeared twice on Monday Night Football. In their first appearance on Monday Night Football, the Oilers beat the Cleveland Browns 16–7. In their second appearance, the Oilers defeated the New England Patriots 38–34. Earl Campbell led the NFL in rushing for the third consecutive year and had four 200-yard rushing games.

This was the third season in a row that the Oilers made the playoffs. The team lost in the AFC Wild Card Round to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Oakland Raiders. The Oilers would not make it back to the playoffs again until 1987.

The last remaining active member of the 1980 Houston Oilers was defensive lineman Mike Stensrud, who retired after the 1989 season.

3rd year fullback Earl Campbell had the best season of his career rushing for 1,934 yards and scored 13 touchdowns.

Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 1980 NFL draft
1980 Houston Oilers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
2 38 Angelo Fields  Tackle Michigan State
2 52 Daryle Skaugstad  Defensive tackle California
3 79 Tim Smith  Wide receiver Nebraska
4 106 Chris Combs  Tight end New Mexico
5 134 John Corker  Linebacker Oklahoma State
7 182 Craig Bradshaw  Quarterback Utah State
8 217 Harold Bailey  Wide receiver Oklahoma State
9 244 Ed Harris  Running back Bishop
11 301 Ed Preston  Wide receiver Western Kentucky
12 328 Wiley Pitts  Wide receiver Temple
      Made roster  

[1]

Personnel

Staff

1980 Houston Oilers staff

Front office

Head coaches

  • Head coach – Bum Phillips

Offensive coaches

  • Quarterbacks/Receivers – King Hill
  • Offensive Backs – Andy Bourgeois
  • Offensive Line – Joe Bugel
 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special Teams – John Paul Young


Roster

1980 Houston Oilers roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Regular season

Earl Campbell

Date Opponent Attempts Yards Touchdowns
Oct 19 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 33 203 0
Oct 26 Cincinnati Bengals 27 202 2
Nov 16 Chicago Bears 31 206 0
Dec 21 Minnesota Vikings 29 203 1

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 September 7 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 17–31 0–1 Three Rivers Stadium Recap
2 September 15 at Cleveland Browns W 16–7 1–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium Recap
3 September 21 Baltimore Colts W 21–16 2–1 Astrodome Recap
4 September 28 at Cincinnati Bengals W 13–10 3–1 Riverfront Stadium Recap
5 October 5 Seattle Seahawks L 7–26 3–2 Astrodome Recap
6 October 12 at Kansas City Chiefs L 20–21 3–3 Arrowhead Stadium Recap
7 October 19 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 20–14 4–3 Astrodome Recap
8 October 26 Cincinnati Bengals W 23–3 5–3 Astrodome Recap
9 November 2 at Denver Broncos W 20–16 6–3 Mile High Stadium Recap
10 November 10 New England Patriots W 38–34 7–3 Astrodome Recap
11 November 16 at Chicago Bears W 10–6 8–3 Soldier Field Recap
12 November 23 at New York Jets L 28–31 8–4 Shea Stadium Recap
13 November 30 Cleveland Browns L 14–17 8–5 Astrodome Recap
14 December 4 Pittsburgh Steelers W 6– 0 9–5 Astrodome Recap
15 December 14 at Green Bay Packers W 22–3 10–5 Lambeau Field Recap
16 December 21 Minnesota Vikings W 20–16 11–5 Astrodome Recap

[2]

Standings

AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Cleveland Browns(2) 11 5 0 .688 4–2 8–4 357 310 W1
Houston Oilers(5) 11 5 0 .688 4–2 7–5 295 251 W3
Pittsburgh Steelers 9 7 0 .563 2–4 5–7 352 313 L1
Cincinnati Bengals 6 10 0 .375 2–4 4–8 244 312 L1

Postseason

AFC Wild Card

Oakland Raiders 27, Houston Oilers 7
Period 1 2 34Total
Oilers 7 0 007
Raiders 3 7 01727

at Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, California

Even though the Oilers recorded more yards, more first downs, and more time of possession, the Raiders scored on big plays to win, 27–7. This would be Ken Stabler's final playoff game.

Awards and records

Milestones

References

  1. ^ "1980 Houston Oilers draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  2. ^ "1980 Houston Oilers Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com.

External links

Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans seasons
1980 NFL season
Categories