1981 Dallas Cowboys
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 12-4-0, Finished 1st in NFC East Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 367 points (22.9/g), 6th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 277 points (17.3/g), 7th.
Differential of 90 points (5.6/g), 4th.
Expected W-L: 10.6-5.4.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential +18 (1.1/g), 2nd.
Simple Rating System: Total 6.1, Offense: 2.9, Defense: 3.2, SoS: 0.5, versus averages of 0.0.
Coached by
Tom Landry (12-4-0)
Training Camp: California Lutheran College (Thousand Oaks, California)
Sponsor this page for $50 and help Pro-Football-Reference.com provide this service. Your message will replace this ad.
Starters
ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+),Hide Non-primary Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | ||||||
| QB | Danny White | 29 | 5 | 15 | 223 for 391, 3,098 yards, 22 td, 13 int, & 38 rushes for 104 yards and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1974 |
| RB | Tony Dorsett*+ | 27 | 4 | 16 | 342 rushes for 1,646 yards, 4 td, & 32 catches for 325 yards and 2 td | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1977 |
| FB | Ron Springs | 25 | 2 | 13 | 172 rushes for 625 yards, 10 td, & 46 catches for 359 yards and 2 td | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 136th pick / 1979 |
| WR | Tony Hill | 25 | 4 | 9 | 46 catches for 953 yards, 4 td, & 1 rush for -3 yards and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1977 |
| WR | Drew Pearson | 30 | 8 | 16 | 38 catches for 614 yards, 3 td, & 3 rushes for 31 yards and 0 td | |
| WR | Butch Johnson | 27 | 5 | 7 | 25 catches for 552 yards, 5 td | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 87th pick / 1976 |
| TE | Billy Joe DuPree | 31 | 8 | 15 | 19 catches for 214 yards, 2 td, & 1 rush for 12 yards and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 20th pick / 1973 |
| TE | Jay Saldi | 27 | 5 | 5 | 8 catches for 82 yards, 1 td | |
| LT | Pat Donovan* | 28 | 6 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 90th pick / 1975 |
| LG | Herbert Scott*+ | 28 | 6 | 16 | Dallas Cowboys / 13th / 330th pick / 1975 | |
| C | Tom Rafferty | 27 | 5 | 15 | 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 119th pick / 1976 |
| RG | Kurt Petersen | 24 | 1 | 14 | 2 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 105th pick / 1980 |
| RT | Jim Cooper | 26 | 4 | 16 | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 164th pick / 1977 | |
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Too Tall Jones* | 30 | 7 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 1st pick / 1974 |
| LDT | John Dutton | 30 | 7 | 16 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 5th pick / 1974 | |
| RDT | Randy White*+ | 28 | 6 | 16 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1975 | |
| RDE | Harvey Martin | 31 | 8 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1973 |
| LLB | Mike Hegman | 28 | 5 | 10 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 173rd pick / 1975 | |
| LLB | Guy Brown | 26 | 4 | 6 | 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 108th pick / 1977 |
| MLB | Bob Breunig | 28 | 6 | 16 | 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 70th pick / 1975 |
| RLB | D.D. Lewis | 36 | 13 | 16 | 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 159th pick / 1968 |
| LCB | Everson Walls* | 22 | Rook | 12 | 11 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | |
| RCB | Dennis Thurman | 25 | 3 | 16 | 9 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 11th / 306th pick / 1978 |
| SS | Charlie Waters | 33 | 11 | 16 | 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 66th pick / 1970 |
| FS | Michael Downs | 22 | Rook | 15 | 7 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Rafael Septien*+ | 28 | 4 | 0 | 27 of 35 field goals & 40 of 40 extra points | New Orleans Saints / 10th / 258th pick / 1977 |
| P | Danny White | 29 | 5 | 15 | 79 punts for a 40.8 average, 0 blocked | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1974 |
| PR | James Jones | 23 | 1 | 0 | 33 punt returns for a 5.7 average and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 80th pick / 1980 |
| KR | James Jones | 23 | 1 | 0 | 27 kick returns for a 19.1 average and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 80th pick / 1980 |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Benny Barnes | 30 | DB | 16 | 1 | 190 | 6-1 | Stanford | 3/3/1951 | 9 | |
| 76 | Larry Bethea | 25 | DT-DE | 16 | 0 | 251 | 6-2 | Michigan St. | 7/21/1956 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 28th pick / 1978 |
| 53 | Bob Breunig | 28 | LB | 16 | 16 | 226 | 6-2 | Arizona St. | 7/4/1953 | 6 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 70th pick / 1975 |
| 59 | Guy Brown | 26 | LB | 16 | 6 | 223 | 6-4 | Houston | 6/1/1955 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 108th pick / 1977 |
| 18 | Glenn Carano | 26 | QB | 5 | 1 | 201 | 6-3 | UNLV | 11/18/1955 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 54th pick / 1977 |
| 61 | Jim Cooper | 26 | T-C-G | 16 | 16 | 262 | 6-5 | Temple | 9/28/1955 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 164th pick / 1977 |
| 84 | Doug Cosbie | 25 | TE | 16 | 0 | 236 | 6-6 | Holy Cross,Santa Clara | 3/27/1956 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 76th pick / 1979 |
| 51 | Anthony Dickerson | 24 | LB | 16 | 0 | 220 | 6-2 | SMU | 6/9/1957 | 1 | |
| 83 | Doug Donley | 22 | WR | 11 | 0 | 175 | 6-0 | Ohio St. | 2/6/1959 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 53rd pick / 1981 |
| 67 | Pat Donovan* | 28 | T | 16 | 16 | 253 | 6-5 | Stanford | 7/1/1953 | 6 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 90th pick / 1975 |
| 33 | Tony Dorsett*+ | 27 | RB | 16 | 16 | 192 | 5-11 | Pittsburgh | 4/7/1954 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1977 |
| 26 | Michael Downs | 22 | DB | 15 | 15 | 205 | 6-3 | Rice | 6/9/1959 | Rook | |
| 89 | Billy Joe DuPree | 31 | TE | 16 | 15 | 225 | 6-4 | Michigan St. | 3/7/1950 | 8 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 20th pick / 1973 |
| 78 | John Dutton | 30 | DT-DE | 16 | 16 | 266 | 6-6 | Nebraska | 2/6/1951 | 7 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 5th pick / 1974 |
| 27 | Ron Fellows | 23 | DB | 16 | 0 | 178 | 6-0 | Missouri | 11/7/1958 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 173rd pick / 1981 |
| 71 | Andy Frederick | 27 | T | 16 | 0 | 257 | 6-6 | New Mexico | 7/25/1954 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 137th pick / 1977 |
| 58 | Mike Hegman | 28 | LB | 11 | 10 | 227 | 6-1 | Alabama A&M,Tennessee St. | 1/17/1953 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 173rd pick / 1975 |
| 80 | Tony Hill | 25 | WR | 16 | 9 | 199 | 6-2 | Stanford | 6/23/1956 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1977 |
| 14 | Gary Hogeboom | 23 | QB | 1 | 0 | 205 | 6-4 | Central Michigan | 8/21/1958 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 133rd pick / 1980 |
| 86 | Butch Johnson | 27 | WR | 16 | 7 | 187 | 6-1 | California-Riverside | 5/28/1954 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 87th pick / 1976 |
| 23 | James Jones | 23 | RB | 16 | 0 | 200 | 5-10 | Mississippi St. | 12/6/1958 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 80th pick / 1980 |
| 72 | Too Tall Jones* | 30 | DE | 16 | 16 | 271 | 6-9 | Tennessee St. | 2/23/1951 | 7 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 1st pick / 1974 |
| 57 | Angelo King | 23 | LB | 15 | 0 | 224 | 6-1 | South Carolina St. | 2/10/1958 | Rook | |
| 50 | D.D. Lewis | 36 | LB | 16 | 16 | 225 | 6-1 | Mississippi St. | 10/16/1945 | 13 | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 159th pick / 1968 |
| 79 | Harvey Martin | 31 | DE-DT | 16 | 16 | 260 | 6-5 | Texas A&M-Commerce | 11/16/1950 | 8 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1973 |
| 44 | Robert Newhouse | 31 | RB | 16 | 0 | 209 | 5-10 | Houston | 1/9/1950 | 9 | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 35th pick / 1972 |
| 30 | Timmy Newsome | 23 | RB | 15 | 0 | 232 | 6-1 | Winston-Salem St. | 5/17/1958 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 162nd pick / 1980 |
| 88 | Drew Pearson | 30 | WR | 16 | 16 | 184 | 6-0 | Tulsa | 1/12/1951 | 8 | |
| 65 | Kurt Petersen | 24 | G | 16 | 14 | 264 | 6-4 | Missouri | 6/17/1957 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 105th pick / 1980 |
| 64 | Tom Rafferty | 27 | C-G | 16 | 15 | 256 | 6-3 | Penn St. | 8/2/1954 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 119th pick / 1976 |
| 70 | Howard Richards | 22 | G-T | 16 | 0 | 263 | 6-6 | Missouri | 8/7/1959 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 26th pick / 1981 |
| 87 | Jay Saldi | 27 | TE-WR | 16 | 5 | 225 | 6-3 | South Carolina | 10/8/1954 | 5 | |
| 68 | Herbert Scott*+ | 28 | G-T | 16 | 16 | 254 | 6-2 | Virginia Union | 1/18/1953 | 6 | Dallas Cowboys / 13th / 330th pick / 1975 |
| 1 | Rafael Septien*+ | 28 | K | 16 | 0 | 176 | 5-10 | La-Lafayette | 12/12/1953 | 4 | New Orleans Saints / 10th / 258th pick / 1977 |
| 52 | Robert Shaw | 25 | C-G | 3 | 3 | 245 | 6-4 | Tennessee | 10/15/1956 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 27th pick / 1979 |
| 60 | Don Smerek | 24 | DT-DE | 2 | 0 | 255 | 6-7 | Nevada-Reno | 12/20/1957 | Rook | |
| 55 | Danny Spradlin | 22 | LB | 16 | 0 | 235 | 6-1 | Tennessee | 3/3/1959 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 137th pick / 1981 |
| 20 | Ron Springs | 25 | RB | 16 | 13 | 213 | 6-0 | Ohio St. | 11/4/1956 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 136th pick / 1979 |
| 77 | Bruce Thornton | 23 | DE-DT | 12 | 0 | 263 | 6-5 | Illinois | 2/14/1958 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 8th / 219th pick / 1979 |
| 32 | Dennis Thurman | 25 | DB | 16 | 16 | 176 | 5-11 | USC | 4/13/1956 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 11th / 306th pick / 1978 |
| 63 | Glen Titensor | 23 | G-C | 16 | 0 | 263 | 6-4 | UCLA,BYU | 2/21/1958 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 81st pick / 1981 |
| 24 | Everson Walls* | 22 | DB | 16 | 12 | 194 | 6-1 | Grambling St. | 12/28/1959 | Rook | |
| 41 | Charlie Waters | 33 | DB | 16 | 16 | 193 | 6-1 | Clemson | 9/10/1948 | 11 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 66th pick / 1970 |
| 11 | Danny White | 29 | QB-P | 16 | 15 | 193 | 6-2 | Arizona St. | 2/9/1952 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1974 |
| 54 | Randy White*+ | 28 | DT-LB-DE | 16 | 16 | 257 | 6-4 | Maryland | 1/15/1953 | 6 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1975 |
| 45 | Steve Wilson | 24 | DB-WR | 16 | 4 | 195 | 5-10 | Howard | 8/24/1957 | 2 | |
| 73 | Steve Wright | 22 | T-G-TE | 16 | 0 | 271 | 6-6 | Northern Iowa | 4/8/1959 | Rook | |
| Team Total | 26.2 | 16 | 225.0 | 6-2.5 | 3.8 |