# 1981 Miami Dolphins season

The 1981 Miami Dolphins season was the 16th year of existence for the Miami Dolphins franchise and 12th in the National Football League (NFL). After a mediocre season in 1980, where the team finished at 8–8 and missed the playoffs, the Dolphins made a return to the playoffs, winning the AFC East with an 11–4–1 record.

## Season summary

With the retirement of Bob Griese, not much was expected out of the Dolphins. The Dolphins Defense became known as the Killer Bees because of the number of players whose last name began with the letter B; Bill Barnett, Bob Baumhauer, Lyle Blackwood, Kim Bokamper, and Bob Brudzinski anchored a strong team. Don Shula reached a milestone by winning his 200th game of his coaching career. In the Divisional Playoffs against the San Diego Chargers the Dolphins fell behind 24–0 early in front of a sold-out crowd at the Orange Bowl. With time running out in the first half, the Dolphins desperately needed a score to get back in the game. Out of nowhere the Dolphins ran the old schoolyard hook and lateral play to success. On the play, Quarterback Don Strock threw a pass over the middle to WR Duriel Harris, who lateraled to HB Tony Nathan, who ran the ball in for a touchdown. The play sparked the Dolphins, who came back and took a lead in the 4th Quarter. However, the Killer Bees could not contain Chargers QB Dan Fouts, who tied the game and forced overtime, where the Chargers won the game 41–38 on a Rolf Benirschke field goal in the 14th minute of overtime. If it had not been for the player's strike of the following season (where they went 7–2, which would have put them at the top of the AFC East), this would have been the first of five consecutive AFC East titles for the Dolphins.
As of the 2022 season, this marks the last time the Dolphins played in a tie game.

## Offseason

* July 1, 1981: Linebacker Rusty Chambers, the Miami Dolphins leading tackler in 1978 and 1979, died in an automobile accident.

### NFL draft

1981 Miami Dolphins draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 13 | David Overstreet | Running back | Oklahoma |
| 2 | 56 | Andra Franklin * | Running back | Nebraska |
| 4 | 84 | Sam Greene | Wide receiver | UNLV |
| 4 | 96 | Brad Wright | Quarterback | New Mexico |
| 5 | 126 | Ken Poole | Defensive end | Louisiana–Monroe |
| 5 | 138 | Tommy Vigorito | Running back | Virginia |
| 6 | 152 | Mack Moore | Defensive end | Texas A&M |
| 6 | 154 | Fulton Walker | Defensive back | West Virginia |
| 7 | 179 | Mike Daum | Offensive tackle | Cal Poly |
| 8 | 208 | William Judson | Defensive back | South Carolina State |
| 9 | 235 | John Noonan | Wide receiver | Nebraska |
| 10 | 261 | Steve Folsom | Tight end | Utah |
| 11 | 291 | Jim Jensen | Wide receiver | Boston University |
| 12 | 318 | John Alford | Defensive tackle | South Carolina State |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

## Regular season

The Dolphins won the AFC East title behind second-year quarterback David Woodley and a running attack that managed 2,173 yards and 18 touchdowns. In their eight divisional games they swept the Colts and Patriots but split with Buffalo and went winless against a resurgent Jets squad; they tied the Jets 28–28 at Miami then lost at Shea Stadium 16–15. They won their last four games of the season to finish 11–4–1.

### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 6 | at St. Louis Cardinals | W 20–7 | 1–0 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 50,351 |
| 2 | September 10 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 30–10 | 2–0 | Miami Orange Bowl | 75,059 |
| 3 | September 20 | at Houston Oilers | W 16–10 | 3–0 | Houston Astrodome | 47,379 |
| 4 | September 27 | at Baltimore Colts | W 31–28 | 4–0 | Memorial Stadium | 41,630 |
| 5 | October 4 | New York Jets | T 28–28 (OT) | 4–0–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 68,723 |
| 6 | October 12 | at Buffalo Bills | L 21–31 | 4–1–1 | Rich Stadium | 78,576 |
| 7 | October 18 | Washington Redskins | W 13–10 | 5–1–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 47,367 |
| 8 | October 25 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 27–28 | 5–2–1 | Texas Stadium | 64,221 |
| 9 | November 1 | Baltimore Colts | W 27–10 | 6–2–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 46,061 |
| 10 | November 8 | at New England Patriots | W 30–27 (OT) | 7–2–1 | Schaefer Stadium | 60,436 |
| 11 | November 15 | Oakland Raiders | L 17–33 | 7–3–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 61,777 |
| 12 | November 22 | at New York Jets | L 15–16 | 7–4–1 | Shea Stadium | 59,962 |
| 13 | November 30 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 13–10 | 8–4–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 67,797 |
| 14 | December 6 | New England Patriots | W 24–14 | 9–4–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 50,421 |
| 15 | December 13 | at Kansas City Chiefs | W 17–7 | 10–4–1 | Arrowhead Stadium | 57,407 |
| 16 | December 19 | Buffalo Bills | W 16–6 | 11–4–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 72,956 |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

### Standings

AFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Miami Dolphins$^{(2)}$ | 11 | 4 | 1 | .719 | 5–2–1 | 8–3–1 | 345 | 275 | W4 |
| New York Jets$^{(4)}$ | 10 | 5 | 1 | .656 | 6–1–1 | 8–5–1 | 355 | 287 | W2 |
| Buffalo Bills$^{(5)}$ | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 6–2 | 9–3 | 311 | 276 | L1 |
| Baltimore Colts | 2 | 14 | 0 | .125 | 2–6 | 2–10 | 259 | 533 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 2 | 14 | 0 | .125 | 0–8 | 2–10 | 322 | 370 | L9 |

## Playoffs

The Dolphins returned to the playoffs after a one-year absence, hosting the "Air Coryell" Chargers in one of the greatest playoff games in NFL history.
| Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| Divisional | January 2, 1982 | San Diego Chargers (3) | L 38–41 (OT) | 0–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 73,735 |