1980 New York Giants season
OwnerTimothy J. Mara
Wellington Mara
General managerGeorge Young
Head coachRay Perkins
Home fieldGiants Stadium
Results
Record4–12
Division place5th NFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersLB Brad Van Pelt
P Dave Jennings

The 1980 New York Giants season was the franchise's 56th season in the National Football League.[1] The Giants finished in last place in the National Football Conference East Division with a 4–12 record.[2]

In the 1980 NFL Draft, the Giants selected defensive back Mark Haynes with their first-round pick, which was eighth overall.[3] New York won its opening game of the season against the St. Louis Cardinals, 41–35, behind a five-touchdown performance by quarterback Phil Simms. Four of those touchdown passes were to Earnest Gray, who set a single-game franchise record for touchdown receptions.[4] The Giants lost the following game to Washington by two points, the start of an eight-game losing streak. A Week 10 win over the Dallas Cowboys snapped the streak; a subsequent win over the Green Bay Packers was followed by a pair of defeats.[5] A shoulder injury caused Simms to miss the last three games of the season. Scott Brunner took over as the starting quarterback for those games, during which the Giants went 1–2.[6]

Simms threw for 2,321 yards in his 13 appearances, and had 15 touchdown passes and 19 interceptions. Brunner threw for four touchdowns and had six interceptions. New York's leading rusher was Billy Taylor, who ran for 580 yards and four touchdowns. Gray had a team-leading 10 touchdown receptions during the season, and caught 52 passes for 777 yards. On defense, Mike Dennis led the Giants with five interceptions.[2] Two Giants players, Dave Jennings and Brad Van Pelt, were selected for the 1981 Pro Bowl.[7]

Offseason

NFL Draft

See also: 1980 NFL Draft
1980 New York Giants draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 8 Mark Haynes *  Cornerback Colorado
3 64 Myron Lapka  Nose tackle USC
4 90 Danny Pittman  Wide receiver Wyoming
5 118 Tony Blount  Defensive back Virginia
6 145 Scott Brunner  Quarterback Delaware
7 179 Bud Hebert  Defensive back Oklahoma
7 181 Chris Linnin  Defensive end Washington
8 200 Ken Harris  Running back Alabama
9 229 Otis Wonsley  Running back Alcorn State
10 256 Joe Sanford  Tackle Washington
11 285 Steve Bernish  Defensive end South Carolina
12 312 Mike Lansford  Kicker Washington
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[8]

Personnel

Staff

1980 New York Giants staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches


Roster

1980 New York Giants roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 7 at St. Louis Cardinals W 41–35 1–0 Busch Memorial Stadium 49,122
2 September 14 Washington Redskins L 21–23 1–1 Giants Stadium 73,343
3 September 22 at Philadelphia Eagles L 3–35 1–2 Veterans Stadium 70,767
4 September 28 Los Angeles Rams L 7–28 1–3 Giants Stadium 73,414
5 October 5 at Dallas Cowboys L 3–24 1–4 Texas Stadium 59,126
6 October 12 Philadelphia Eagles L 16–31 1–5 Giants Stadium 71,051
7 October 19 at San Diego Chargers L 7–44 1–6 San Diego Stadium 50,397
8 October 26 Denver Broncos L 9–14 1–7 Giants Stadium 67,598
9 November 2 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 13–30 1–8 Tampa Stadium 68,256
10 November 9 Dallas Cowboys W 38–35 2–8 Giants Stadium 68,343
11 November 16 Green Bay Packers W 27–21 3–8 Giants Stadium 76,609
12 November 23 at San Francisco 49ers L 0–12 3–9 Candlestick Park 38,574
13 November 30 St. Louis Cardinals L 7–23 3–10 Giants Stadium 65,852
14 December 7 at Seattle Seahawks W 27–21 4–10 Kingdome 51,617
15 December 13 at Washington Redskins L 13–16 4–11 RFK Stadium 44,443
16 December 21 Oakland Raiders L 17–33 4–12 Giants Stadium 61,287

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Season summary

Week 1: at St. Louis Cardinals

1 234Total
• Giants 7 71710 41
Cardinals 7 7147 35
Scoring summary
Q1STLMorris 5 yard run (Little kick)STL 7–0
Q1NYGGray 10 yard pass from Simms (Danelo kick)Tie 7–7
Q2NYGGray 37 yard pass from Simms (Danelo kick)NYG 14–7
Q2STLMorris 9 yard run (Little kick)Tie 14–14
Q3NYGDanelo 28 yard field goalNYG 17–14
Q3STLAnderson 24 yard run (Little kick)STL 21–17
Q3NYGPerkins 58 yard pass from Simms (Danelo kick)NYG 24–21
Q3NYGGray 42 yard pass from Simms (Danelo kick)NYG 31–21
Q3STLMarsh 7 yard pass from Hart (Little kick)NYG 31–28
Q4NYGGray 20 yard pass from Simms (Danelo kick)NYG 38–28
Q4STLTilley 42 yard pass from Hart (Little kick)NYG 38–35
Q4NYGDanelo 33 yard field goalNYG 41–35

Week 10 vs Cowboys

Week Ten: Dallas Cowboys (7–2) at New York Giants (1–8)
Period 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 7 14 14035
Giants 7 21 01038

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Game information

Standings

NFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Philadelphia Eagles(2) 12 4 0 .750 6–2 9–3 384 222 L1
Dallas Cowboys(4) 12 4 0 .750 6–2 9–3 454 311 W1
Washington Redskins 6 10 0 .375 4–4 5–7 261 293 W3
St. Louis Cardinals 5 11 0 .313 2–6 4–10 299 350 L2
New York Giants 4 12 0 .250 2–6 3–9 249 425 L2

See also

References

  1. ^ "New York Giants Franchise Encyclopedia". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "1980 New York Giants". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 13, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2009.
  3. ^ "1980 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  4. ^ Whittingham, Richard (2005). Illustrated History of the New York Giants. Chicago: Triumph Books. p. 191. ISBN 1-57243-641-7.
  5. ^ "1980 New York Giants Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  6. ^ Whittingham, pp. 191–192.
  7. ^ "1980 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  8. ^ "1980 New York Giants Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "New York Giants at St. Louis Cardinals – September 7th, 1980". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  10. ^ "All Matchups, New York Giants vs. Dallas Cowboys". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 8, 2022.


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