You Are Here > Pro-Football-Reference.com > Teams > Detroit Lions > 1981 Starters, Roster, & Players
1981 Detroit Lions
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 8-8-0, Finished 2nd in NFC Central Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 397 points (24.8/g), 4th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 322 points (20.1/g), 13th.
Differential of 75 points (4.7/g), 6th.
Expected W-L: 9.9-6.1.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -4 (-0.2/g), 19th.
Coached by Monte Clark (8-8-0)
Promote your website or business by sponsoring this page for $10 per year on Pro-Football-Reference.com.
1981 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 | Eric Hipple | 24 | 1 | 10 | 140 for 279, 2,358 yards, 14 td, 15 int, & 41 rushes for 168 yards and 7 td | Detroit Lions / 4th / 85th pick / 1980 |
| RB | Billy Sims* | 26 | 1 | 14 | 296 rushes for 1,437 yards, 13 td, & 28 catches for 451 yards and 2 td | Detroit Lions / 1st / 1st pick / 1980 |
| FB | Dexter Bussey | 29 | 7 | 15 | 105 rushes for 446 yards, 0 td, & 18 catches for 92 yards and 0 td | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 65th pick / 1974 |
| WR | Freddie Scott | 29 | 7 | 15 | 53 catches for 1,022 yards, 5 td, & 7 rushes for 25 yards and 0 td | Baltimore Colts / 7th / 174th pick / 1974 |
| WR | Leonard Thompson | 29 | 6 | 16 | 30 catches for 550 yards, 3 td, & 10 rushes for 75 yards and 1 td | Detroit Lions / 8th / 194th pick / 1975 |
| TE | David Hill | 27 | 5 | 15 | 33 catches for 462 yards, 4 td | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 46th pick / 1976 |
| LT | Karl Baldischwiler | 25 | 3 | 16 | Miami Dolphins / 7th / 178th pick / 1978 |
|
| LG | Homer Elias | 26 | 3 | 16 | 2 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 4th / 107th pick / 1978 |
| C | Amos Fowler | 25 | 3 | 16 | 2 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 5th / 121st pick / 1978 |
| RG | Russ Bolinger | 27 | 5 | 16 | 2 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 68th pick / 1976 |
| RT | Keith Dorney | 24 | 2 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 1st / 10th pick / 1979 |
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Dave Pureifory | 32 | 9 | 15 | Green Bay Packers / 6th / 142nd pick / 1972 |
|
| LDT | William Gay | 26 | 3 | 14 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 55th pick / 1978 |
| RDT | Doug English* | 28 | 6 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 38th pick / 1975 |
| RDE | Al Baker | 25 | 3 | 11 | 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 40th pick / 1978 |
| LLB | Garry Cobb | 24 | 2 | 16 | 3 interceptions, 3 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 9th / 247th pick / 1979 |
| MLB | Ken Fantetti | 24 | 2 | 16 | 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 37th pick / 1979 |
| RLB | Stan White | 32 | 9 | 16 | 4 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Baltimore Colts / 17th / 438th pick / 1972 |
| LCB | Wayne Smith | 24 | 1 | 16 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 11th / 278th pick / 1980 |
| RCB | James Hunter | 27 | 5 | 12 | 1 interception, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 1st / 10th pick / 1976 |
| SS | Ray Oldham | 30 | 8 | 16 | 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Baltimore Colts / 8th / 189th pick / 1973 |
| FS | Jimmy Allen | 29 | 7 | 15 | 9 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Pittsburgh Steelers / 4th / 100th pick / 1974 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Eddie Murray | 25 | 1 | 0 | 25 of 35 field goals & 46 of 46 extra points | Detroit Lions / 7th / 166th pick / 1980 |
| P | Tom Skladany* | 26 | 3 | 0 | 64 punts for a 43.5 average, 0 blocked | Cleveland Browns / 2nd / 46th pick / 1977 |
| PR | Robbie Martin | 23 | Rook | 0 | 52 punt returns for a 8.7 average and 1 td | Pittsburgh Steelers / 4th / 100th pick / 1981 |
| KR | Alvin Hall | 23 | Rook | 1 | 25 kick returns for a 21.0 average and 0 td |
| Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jimmy Allen | 29 | DB | 15 | 15 | 194 | 6-2 | Pierce College (CA),UCLA | 3/6/1952 | 7 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 4th / 100th pick / 1974 |
| Al Baker | 25 | DE | 11 | 11 | 265 | 6-6 | Colorado State | 12/9/1956 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 40th pick / 1978 |
| Karl Baldischwiler | 25 | T | 16 | 16 | 265 | 6-5 | Oklahoma | 1/19/1956 | 3 | Miami Dolphins / 7th / 178th pick / 1978 |
| Russ Bolinger | 27 | G-T | 16 | 16 | 255 | 6-5 | California-Riverside,Long Beach State | 9/10/1954 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 68th pick / 1976 |
| Luther Bradley | 26 | DB | 16 | 0 | 195 | 6-2 | Notre Dame | 5/7/1955 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 11th pick / 1978 |
| Dexter Bussey | 29 | RB | 16 | 15 | 195 | 6-1 | Oklahoma,Texas-Arlington | 3/11/1952 | 7 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 65th pick / 1974 |
| Ken Callicutt | 26 | RB | 16 | 0 | 190 | 6-0 | Clemson | 8/20/1955 | 3 | |
| Garry Cobb | 24 | LB | 16 | 16 | 227 | 6-2 | USC | 3/16/1957 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 9th / 247th pick / 1979 |
| Curley Culp | 35 | DT-NT-G | 2 | 0 | 265 | 6-2 | Arizona State | 3/10/1946 | 13 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 31st pick / 1968 |
| Gary Danielson | 30 | QB | 6 | 4 | 195 | 6-2 | Purdue | 9/10/1951 | 5 | |
| Jeff Delaney | 25 | DB | 5 | 0 | 195 | 6-0 | Pittsburgh | 10/25/1956 | 1 | Los Angeles Rams / 7th / 190th pick / 1979 |
| Chris Dieterich | 23 | T-G | 16 | 0 | 262 | 6-3 | North Carolina State | 7/27/1958 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 140th pick / 1980 |
| Keith Dorney | 24 | T-G | 16 | 16 | 268 | 6-5 | Penn State | 12/3/1957 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 10th pick / 1979 |
| Joe Ehrmann | 32 | DT | 4 | 2 | 260 | 6-5 | Syracuse | 3/29/1949 | 8 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 10th pick / 1973 |
| Homer Elias | 26 | G-T | 16 | 16 | 255 | 6-3 | Tennessee State | 5/1/1955 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 4th / 107th pick / 1978 |
| Doug English* | 28 | DT-NT | 16 | 16 | 255 | 6-5 | Texas | 8/25/1953 | 6 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 38th pick / 1975 |
| Ken Fantetti | 24 | LB | 16 | 16 | 230 | 6-2 | Wyoming | 4/7/1957 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 37th pick / 1979 |
| Edgar Fields | 27 | DT-DE | 2 | 0 | 255 | 6-2 | Texas A&M | 3/10/1954 | 4 | Atlanta Falcons / 3rd / 63rd pick / 1977 |
| Amos Fowler | 25 | C-G | 16 | 16 | 250 | 6-3 | Southern Miss | 2/11/1956 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 121st pick / 1978 |
| Steve Furness | 31 | DT-DE | 9 | 2 | 255 | 6-4 | Rhode Island | 12/5/1950 | 9 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 5th / 113th pick / 1972 |
| William Gay | 26 | DE-DT-TE | 16 | 14 | 250 | 6-5 | USC | 5/28/1955 | 3 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 55th pick / 1978 |
| Tommie Ginn | 23 | C-G | 13 | 0 | 253 | 6-3 | Arkansas | 1/25/1958 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 120th pick / 1980 |
| Hector Gray | 24 | DB | 16 | 4 | 192 | 6-1 | Florida State | 1/2/1957 | Rook | |
| Curtis Green | 24 | DE-DT-NT | 14 | 4 | 256 | 6-3 | Alabama State | 6/3/1957 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 46th pick / 1981 |
| Alvin Hall | 23 | DB | 16 | 1 | 193 | 5-10 | Miami (OH) | 8/12/1958 | Rook | |
| James Harrell | 24 | LB | 16 | 0 | 224 | 6-1 | Florida | 7/19/1957 | 2 | |
| David Hill | 27 | TE | 15 | 15 | 229 | 6-2 | Texas A&M-Kingsville | 1/1/1954 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 46th pick / 1976 |
| Eric Hipple | 24 | QB | 16 | 10 | 196 | 6-2 | Utah State | 9/16/1957 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 4th / 85th pick / 1980 |
| James Hunter | 27 | DB | 12 | 12 | 195 | 6-3 | Grambling State | 3/8/1954 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 10th pick / 1976 |
| Rick Kane | 27 | RB | 16 | 2 | 200 | 5-11 | Oregon,San Jose State | 11/12/1954 | 4 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 69th pick / 1977 |
| Horace King | 28 | RB | 16 | 0 | 208 | 5-10 | Georgia | 3/5/1953 | 6 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 141st pick / 1975 |
| Jeff Komlo | 25 | QB | 3 | 2 | 200 | 6-2 | Delaware | 7/30/1956 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 9th / 231st pick / 1979 |
| Larry Lee | 22 | G-C | 16 | 0 | 265 | 6-2 | UCLA | 9/10/1959 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 5th / 129th pick / 1981 |
| Robbie Martin | 23 | WR | 16 | 0 | 179 | 5-8 | Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo | 12/3/1958 | Rook | Pittsburgh Steelers / 4th / 100th pick / 1981 |
| Eddie Murray | 25 | K | 16 | 0 | 177 | 5-10 | Tulane | 8/29/1956 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 7th / 166th pick / 1980 |
| Mark Nichols | 22 | WR | 12 | 0 | 210 | 6-2 | San Jose State | 10/29/1959 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 1st / 16th pick / 1981 |
| Bob Niziolek | 23 | TE | 4 | 0 | 220 | 6-4 | Colorado | 6/30/1958 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 8th / 211th pick / 1981 |
| Ulysses Norris | 24 | TE | 12 | 2 | 230 | 6-4 | Georgia | 1/15/1957 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 4th / 88th pick / 1979 |
| Ray Oldham | 30 | DB | 16 | 16 | 200 | 6-0 | Middle Tenn. State | 2/23/1951 | 8 | Baltimore Colts / 8th / 189th pick / 1973 |
| Tracy Porter | 22 | WR | 12 | 0 | 196 | 6-2 | LSU | 6/1/1959 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 4th / 99th pick / 1981 |
| Dave Pureifory | 32 | DE-DT | 15 | 15 | 260 | 6-1 | Eastern Michigan | 7/12/1949 | 9 | Green Bay Packers / 6th / 142nd pick / 1972 |
| Freddie Scott | 29 | WR | 16 | 15 | 180 | 6-2 | Amherst | 8/5/1952 | 7 | Baltimore Colts / 7th / 174th pick / 1974 |
| Billy Sims* | 26 | RB | 14 | 14 | 212 | 6-0 | Oklahoma | 9/18/1955 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 1st pick / 1980 |
| Tom Skladany* | 26 | P | 16 | 0 | 192 | 6-0 | Ohio State | 6/29/1955 | 3 | Cleveland Browns / 2nd / 46th pick / 1977 |
| Wayne Smith | 24 | DB | 16 | 16 | 171 | 6-0 | Purdue,Wisconsin-LaCrosse | 5/9/1957 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 11th / 278th pick / 1980 |
| Terry Tautolo | 27 | LB | 11 | 0 | 232 | 6-2 | UCLA | 8/30/1954 | 5 | Philadelphia Eagles / 13th / 353rd pick / 1976 |
| Leonard Thompson | 29 | WR-HB | 16 | 16 | 192 | 5-11 | Oklahoma State | 7/28/1952 | 6 | Detroit Lions / 8th / 194th pick / 1975 |
| Vince Thompson | 24 | RB | 13 | 1 | 230 | 6-0 | Villanova | 2/21/1957 | Rook | |
| Tom Turnure | 24 | C-G | 16 | 0 | 250 | 6-4 | Washington | 7/9/1957 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 57th pick / 1980 |
| Charlie Weaver | 32 | LB | 7 | 0 | 220 | 6-2 | USC | 7/12/1949 | 10 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 48th pick / 1971 |
| Stan White | 32 | LB | 16 | 16 | 225 | 6-1 | Ohio State | 10/24/1949 | 9 | Baltimore Colts / 17th / 438th pick / 1972 |
| Team Total | 26.3 | 16 | 222.9 | 6-1.9 | 3.6 |