You Are Here > Pro-Football-Reference.com > Teams > St. Louis Cardinals > 1979 Starters, Roster, & Players
1979 St. Louis Cardinals
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 5-11-0, Finished 5th in NFC East Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 307 points (19.2/g), 17th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 358 points (22.4/g), 21st.
Differential of -51 points (-3.2/g), 20th.
Expected W-L: 6.6-9.4.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -8 (-0.5/g), 21st.
Coached by Larry Wilson (2-1-0) and Bud Wilkinson (3-10-0)
Sponsor this page for $15 per year and help Pro-Football-Reference.com provide this service.
1979 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
Starters
Glossary · ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+), · CSV · PRE · Hide Non-primary Starters| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Jim Hart | 35 | 13 | 13 | 194 for 378, 2,218 yards, 9 td, 20 int, & 6 rushes for 11 yards and 0 td | |
| RB | Ottis Anderson*+ | 22 | Rook | 16 | 331 rushes for 1,605 yards, 8 td, & 41 catches for 308 yards and 2 td | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 8th pick / 1979 |
| FB | Wayne Morris | 25 | 3 | 15 | 106 rushes for 387 yards, 8 td, & 35 catches for 237 yards and 1 td | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 141st pick / 1976 |
| WR | Mel Gray | 31 | 8 | 13 | 25 catches for 447 yards, 1 td, & 4 rushes for 41 yards and 0 td | St. Louis Cardinals / 6th / 147th pick / 1971 |
| WR | Pat Tilley | 26 | 3 | 16 | 57 catches for 938 yards, 6 td | St. Louis Cardinals / 4th / 114th pick / 1976 |
| TE | Gary Parris | 29 | 6 | 0 | 14 catches for 174 yards, 0 td | San Diego Chargers / 15th / 372nd pick / 1973 |
| LT | Keith Wortman | 29 | 7 | 0 | 2 fumbles recovered | Green Bay Packers / 10th / 242nd pick / 1972 |
| LG | Bob Young*+ | 37 | 13 | 0 | 1 fumble recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 19th / 261st pick / 1964 |
| C | Tom Banks | 31 | 8 | 0 | St. Louis Cardinals / 8th / 189th pick / 1970 |
|
| RG | Terry Stieve | 25 | 3 | 14 | New Orleans Saints / 6th / 160th pick / 1976 |
|
| RT | Joe Bostic | 22 | Rook | 14 | St. Louis Cardinals / 3rd / 64th pick / 1979 |
|
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Bob Pollard | 31 | 8 | 0 | New Orleans Saints / 11th / 262nd pick / 1971 |
|
| NT | Charles Davis | 28 | 5 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Pittsburgh Steelers / 9th / 229th pick / 1974 |
| RDE | Mike Dawson | 26 | 3 | 15 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 22nd pick / 1976 |
|
| LOLB | Eric D. Williams | 24 | 2 | 16 | 1 interception, 2 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 8th / 216th pick / 1977 |
| LILB | Steve Neils | 28 | 5 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 111th pick / 1974 |
| LILB | Tim Kearney | 29 | 7 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 83rd pick / 1972 |
| RILB | Kurt Allerman | 24 | 2 | 11 | 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 3rd / 78th pick / 1977 |
| ROLB | Mark Arneson | 30 | 7 | 0 | 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1972 |
| ROLB | Calvin Favron | 22 | Rook | 7 | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 46th pick / 1979 |
|
| LCB | Carl Allen | 24 | 2 | 12 | 5 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Cincinnati Bengals / 11th / 299th pick / 1977 |
| RCB | Roger Wehrli* | 32 | 10 | 0 | 2 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 19th pick / 1969 |
| SS | Ken Greene | 23 | 1 | 16 | 3 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 19th pick / 1978 |
| FS | Ken Stone | 29 | 6 | 0 | 6 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Washington Redskins / 10th / 245th pick / 1973 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Steve Little | 23 | 1 | 0 | 10 of 19 field goals & 24 of 32 extra points | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 15th pick / 1978 |
| P | Steve Little | 23 | 1 | 0 | 79 punts for a 38.7 average, 2 blocked | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 15th pick / 1978 |
| PR | Willard Harrell | 27 | 4 | 0 | 32 punt returns for a 6.4 average and 0 td | Green Bay Packers / 3rd / 58th pick / 1975 |
| KR | Roy Green | 22 | Rook | 0 | 41 kick returns for a 24.5 average and 1 td | St. Louis Cardinals / 4th / 89th pick / 1979 |
| Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carl Allen | 24 | DB | 15 | 12 | 185 | 6-0 | Southern Miss | 12/21/1955 | 2 | Cincinnati Bengals / 11th / 299th pick / 1977 |
| Kurt Allerman | 24 | LB | 16 | 11 | 222 | 6-3 | Penn State | 8/30/1955 | 2 | St. Louis Cardinals / 3rd / 78th pick / 1977 |
| Ottis Anderson*+ | 22 | RB | 16 | 16 | 220 | 6-2 | Miami (FL) | 1/19/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 8th pick / 1979 |
| Mark Arneson | 30 | LB | 11 | 0 | 220 | 6-2 | Arizona | 9/9/1949 | 7 | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 32nd pick / 1972 |
| Tom Banks | 31 | C-G | 14 | 0 | 245 | 6-1 | Auburn | 8/20/1948 | 8 | St. Louis Cardinals / 8th / 189th pick / 1970 |
| John Barefield | 24 | LB | 15 | 0 | 224 | 6-2 | Texas A&M-Kingsville | 3/23/1955 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1978 |
| Joe Bostic | 22 | G-T | 16 | 14 | 265 | 6-3 | Clemson | 4/20/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 3rd / 64th pick / 1979 |
| Tom Brahaney | 28 | C | 16 | 4 | 245 | 6-2 | Oklahoma | 10/23/1951 | 6 | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 109th pick / 1973 |
| Chuck Brown | 22 | C-G | 4 | 0 | 235 | 6-1 | Houston | 3/15/1957 | Rook | |
| Theotis Brown | 22 | RB | 16 | 1 | 225 | 6-2 | UCLA | 4/20/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 35th pick / 1979 |
| Al Chandler | 29 | TE | 8 | 0 | 233 | 6-2 | Oklahoma | 11/18/1950 | 6 | Cincinnati Bengals / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1973 |
| Jimmy Childs | 23 | WR | 13 | 0 | 194 | 6-2 | Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo | 8/9/1956 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 4th / 97th pick / 1978 |
| Sean Clancy | 23 | LB | 10 | 0 | 218 | 6-4 | Amherst | 10/22/1956 | 1 | Miami Dolphins / 8th / 217th pick / 1978 |
| George Collins | 24 | T-G | 15 | 3 | 257 | 6-2 | Georgia | 12/9/1955 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 4th / 96th pick / 1978 |
| Charles Davis | 28 | DT-NT | 16 | 0 | 269 | 6-1 | TCU | 11/17/1951 | 5 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 9th / 229th pick / 1974 |
| Mike Dawson | 26 | DT-NT-DE | 16 | 15 | 270 | 6-4 | Arizona | 10/16/1953 | 3 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 22nd pick / 1976 |
| Dan Dierdorf | 30 | T-G-C | 2 | 0 | 275 | 6-3 | Michigan | 6/29/1949 | 8 | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1971 |
| Calvin Favron | 22 | LB | 16 | 7 | 225 | 6-1 | Southeastern Louisiana | 7/3/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 2nd / 46th pick / 1979 |
| Chris Garlich | 22 | LB | 9 | 0 | 220 | 6-1 | Missouri | 7/17/1957 | Rook | |
| Mel Gray | 31 | WR | 13 | 13 | 175 | 5-9 | Missouri | 9/28/1948 | 8 | St. Louis Cardinals / 6th / 147th pick / 1971 |
| Roy Green | 22 | WR-DB | 16 | 0 | 195 | 6-0 | Henderson State | 6/30/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 4th / 89th pick / 1979 |
| Ken Greene | 23 | DB | 16 | 16 | 203 | 6-3 | Washington State | 5/8/1956 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 19th pick / 1978 |
| Willard Harrell | 27 | RB | 14 | 0 | 162 | 5-8 | Pacific | 9/16/1952 | 4 | Green Bay Packers / 3rd / 58th pick / 1975 |
| Jim Hart | 35 | QB | 14 | 13 | 215 | 6-1 | Southern Illinois | 4/29/1944 | 13 | |
| Steve Henry | 22 | DB | 8 | 0 | 190 | 6-2 | Emporia State | 3/5/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 118th pick / 1979 |
| Tim Kearney | 29 | LB | 5 | 0 | 227 | 6-2 | Northern Michigan | 11/5/1950 | 7 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 83rd pick / 1972 |
| Steve Little | 23 | K | 16 | 0 | 180 | 6-0 | Arkansas | 2/19/1956 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 15th pick / 1978 |
| Thomas Lott | 22 | RB | 10 | 0 | 205 | 5-11 | Oklahoma | 8/1/1957 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 6th / 144th pick / 1979 |
| Randy Love | 23 | RB | 4 | 0 | 208 | 6-1 | Houston | 9/30/1956 | Rook | New England Patriots / 8th / 216th pick / 1979 |
| Wayne Morris | 25 | RB | 15 | 15 | 207 | 6-0 | SMU | 5/3/1954 | 3 | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 141st pick / 1976 |
| Bill Murrell | 23 | TE | 12 | 0 | 220 | 6-3 | Winston-Salem State | 6/14/1956 | Rook | Pittsburgh Steelers / 6th / 157th pick / 1979 |
| Steve Neils | 28 | LB | 9 | 0 | 217 | 6-2 | Minnesota | 5/2/1951 | 5 | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 111th pick / 1974 |
| Lee Nelson | 25 | DB | 16 | 0 | 185 | 5-10 | Florida State | 1/30/1954 | 3 | St. Louis Cardinals / 15th / 420th pick / 1976 |
| Brad Oates | 26 | T-G | 11 | 0 | 274 | 6-6 | BYU,Duke | 9/30/1953 | 3 | St. Louis Cardinals / 3rd / 83rd pick / 1976 |
| Richard Osborne | 26 | TE | 7 | 0 | 230 | 6-3 | Texas A&M | 10/31/1953 | 3 | Philadelphia Eagles / 9th / 248th pick / 1976 |
| Gary Parris | 29 | TE | 9 | 0 | 226 | 6-2 | Florida State | 6/13/1950 | 6 | San Diego Chargers / 15th / 372nd pick / 1973 |
| Rod Phillips | 27 | RB | 11 | 0 | 220 | 6-0 | Cincinnati,Jackson State | 12/23/1952 | 4 | |
| Steve Pisarkiewicz | 26 | QB | 6 | 3 | 205 | 6-2 | Missouri | 11/10/1953 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 19th pick / 1977 |
| Bob Pollard | 31 | DE-DT | 16 | 0 | 250 | 6-3 | Texas Southern,Weber State | 12/30/1948 | 8 | New Orleans Saints / 11th / 262nd pick / 1971 |
| Jim Ramey | 22 | DE | 7 | 0 | 261 | 6-4 | Kentucky | 3/9/1957 | Rook | Cleveland Browns / 3rd / 70th pick / 1979 |
| Bob Rozier | 24 | DE | 6 | 0 | 240 | 6-3 | California | 7/28/1955 | Rook | St. Louis Cardinals / 9th / 228th pick / 1979 |
| Keith Simons | 25 | DT-NT | 16 | 0 | 254 | 6-3 | Minnesota | 4/26/1954 | 3 | Kansas City Chiefs / 3rd / 63rd pick / 1976 |
| Perry Smith | 28 | DB | 16 | 4 | 195 | 6-1 | Colorado State,Mesa | 3/29/1951 | 6 | Oakland Raiders / 4th / 92nd pick / 1973 |
| Dave Stief | 23 | WR-DB | 16 | 4 | 195 | 6-3 | Portland State | 1/29/1956 | 1 | St. Louis Cardinals / 7th / 181st pick / 1978 |
| Terry Stieve | 25 | G | 14 | 14 | 256 | 6-2 | Wisconsin | 3/10/1954 | 3 | New Orleans Saints / 6th / 160th pick / 1976 |
| Ken Stone | 29 | DB-WR | 16 | 0 | 179 | 6-1 | Vanderbilt | 9/14/1950 | 6 | Washington Redskins / 10th / 245th pick / 1973 |
| Pat Tilley | 26 | WR | 16 | 16 | 178 | 5-10 | Louisiana Tech | 2/15/1953 | 3 | St. Louis Cardinals / 4th / 114th pick / 1976 |
| Roger Wehrli* | 32 | DB | 16 | 0 | 190 | 6-0 | Missouri | 11/26/1947 | 10 | St. Louis Cardinals / 1st / 19th pick / 1969 |
| Eric D. Williams | 24 | LB | 16 | 16 | 227 | 6-2 | USC | 6/17/1955 | 2 | St. Louis Cardinals / 8th / 216th pick / 1977 |
| Mike Wood | 25 | K | 3 | 0 | 199 | 5-11 | Southeast Missouri State | 9/3/1954 | 1 | Minnesota Vikings / 8th / 204th pick / 1978 |
| Keith Wortman | 29 | T-G-C | 13 | 0 | 260 | 6-2 | Nebraska | 7/20/1950 | 7 | Green Bay Packers / 10th / 242nd pick / 1972 |
| Ron Yankowski | 33 | DE | 16 | 0 | 244 | 6-5 | Kansas State | 10/23/1946 | 8 | St. Louis Cardinals / 8th / 199th pick / 1971 |
| Bob Young*+ | 37 | G-DE-DT | 13 | 0 | 270 | 6-1 | Howard Payne,Texas,Texas State | 9/3/1942 | 13 | St. Louis Cardinals / 19th / 261st pick / 1964 |
| John Zook | 32 | DE | 5 | 0 | 243 | 6-4 | Kansas | 9/24/1947 | 10 | Los Angeles Rams / 4th / 99th pick / 1969 |
| Team Total | 26.2 | 16 | 222.8 | 6-1.6 | 3.6 |