# 1980 Green Bay Packers season

The 1980 Green Bay Packers season was their 62nd season overall and their 60th in the National Football League (NFL). The team posted a 5–10–1 record under coach Bart Starr, earning them a fifth-place finish in the NFC Central division.
Before the 1980 season even began, first-round draft pick Bruce Clark bolted directly for the Canadian Football League, never playing a down for the Packers. He forced a trade to the New Orleans Saints upon returning to the United States. Green Bay regrouped and started strong by outlasting the Chicago Bears in an overtime thriller in the season opener. But with 27 players on injured reserved during the course of the year, the team was unable to replenish its roster and Green Bay suffered their 7th losing season in 8 years.
Exactly three months after the opener at Lambeau Field, The Packers would rematch with the Bears. However, Chicago exacted revenge by embarrassing the Packers 61–7 at Soldier Field, causing the Packers to be eliminated from the playoffs for the 8th straight season.

## Offseason
### NFL draft

1980 Green Bay Packers draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Bruce Clark * | Defensive end | Penn State | |
| 1 | 26 | George Cumby | Linebacker | Oklahoma | from San Diego |
| 2 | 34 | Mark Lee | Cornerback | Washington | |
| 3 | 61 | Syd Kitson | Guard | Wake Forest | |
| 4 | 87 | Fred Nixon | Wide receiver | Oklahoma | |
| 6 | 143 | Karl Swanke | Offensive tackle | Boston College | |
| 7 | 169 | Buddy Aydelette | Offensive tackle | Alabama | |
| 8 | 199 | Tim Smith | Cornerback | Oregon State | |
| 9 | 226 | Kelly Saalfeld | Center | Nebraska | |
| 10 | 253 | Jafus White | Defensive back | Texas A&I | |
| 11 | 283 | Ricky Skiles | Linebacker | Louisville | |
| 12 | 310 | James Stewart | Cornerback | Memphis State | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

### Undrafted free agents

1980 Undrafted Free Agents of note :
| Player | Position | College |
| Tom Bell | Guard | BYU |
| Jerry Bey | Running back | Western Illinois |
| Kurt Christensen | Kicker | Concordia |
| Paul Columbia | Tight End | Villanova |
| Mike Kennedy | Quarterback | Oregon |
| Mark Murphy | Safety | West Liberty State |
| Joe Odom | Guard/Center | Wichita State |
| Dave Schwab | Defensive line | South Dakota |
| Steve Turk | Quarterback | Eastern Illinois |
| Joe Verria | Defensive tackle | Bridgewater State |
| Tom Virgl | Linebacker | Kearney State |
| Mark Williquette | Defensive back | Wisconsin–La Crosse |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap |
| 1 | September 7 | Chicago Bears | W 12–6 (OT) | 1–0 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 2 | September 14 | Detroit Lions | L 7–29 | 1–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | Recap |
| 3 | September 21 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 21–51 | 1–2 | Anaheim Stadium | Recap |
| 4 | September 28 | Dallas Cowboys | L 7–28 | 1–3 | Milwaukee County Stadium | Recap |
| 5 | October 5 | Cincinnati Bengals | W 14–9 | 2–3 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 6 | October 12 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | T 14–14 (OT) | 2–3–1 | Tampa Stadium | Recap |
| 7 | October 19 | at Cleveland Browns | L 21–26 | 2–4–1 | Cleveland Stadium | Recap |
| 8 | October 26 | Minnesota Vikings | W 16–3 | 3–4–1 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 9 | November 2 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 20–22 | 3–5–1 | Three Rivers Stadium | Recap |
| 10 | November 9 | San Francisco 49ers | W 23–16 | 4–5–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | Recap |
| 11 | November 16 | at New York Giants | L 21–27 | 4–6–1 | Giants Stadium | Recap |
| 12 | November 23 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 25–13 | 5–6–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | Recap |
| 13 | November 30 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 17–20 | 5–7–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | Recap |
| 14 | December 7 | at Chicago Bears | L 7–61 | 5–8–1 | Soldier Field | Recap |
| 15 | December 14 | Houston Oilers | L 3–22 | 5–9–1 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 16 | December 21 | at Detroit Lions | L 3–24 | 5–10–1 | Pontiac Silverdome | Recap |

### Standings

NFC Central :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Minnesota Vikings$^{(3)}$ | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 5–3 | 8–4 | 317 | 308 | L1 |
| Detroit Lions | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 5–3 | 9–5 | 334 | 272 | W2 |
| Chicago Bears | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 5–3 | 7–5 | 304 | 264 | W1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5 | 10 | 1 | .344 | 1–6–1 | 4–7–1 | 271 | 341 | L3 |
| Green Bay Packers | 5 | 10 | 1 | .344 | 3–4–1 | 4–7–1 | 231 | 371 | L4 |

### Game summaries
#### Week 1: vs. Chicago Bears

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Bears | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Packers | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 12 |
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
* Date: September 7, 1980
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: Overcast, 65 °F (18 °C)
* Referee: Jim Tunney
* TV announcers (CBS): Lindsey Nelson and Sonny Jurgensen
Game information :
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
CHI – Mike Phipps – 17/30, 174 yards, 3 INT
GB – Lynn Dickey – 10/22, 138 yards, 1 INT
Top rushers
CHI – Walter Payton – 31 rushes, 65 yards
GB – Eddie Lee Ivery – 15 rushes, 73 yards
Top receivers
CHI – James Scott – 5 receptions, 59 yards
GB – James Lofton – 5 receptions, 77 yards :

#### Week 2: vs. Detroit Lions

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lions | 3 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 29 |
| Packers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
* Date: September 14, 1980
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: Overcast, 64 °F (18 °C)
* Referee: Bob Frederic
* TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach
Game information :
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
DET – Gary Danielson – 11/17, 246 yards, 1 TD
GB – Lynn Dickey – 16/30, 174 yards, 1 INT
Top rushers
DET – Billy Sims – 20 rushes, 134 yards, 1 TD
GB – Eddie Lee Ivery – 10 rushes, 31 yards, 1 TD
Top receivers
DET – Dexter Bussey – 5 receptions, 74 yards
GB – James Lofton – 4 receptions, 73 yards :

#### Week 3 vs. Los Angeles Rams

* date=September 21, 1980
* TV: CBS
* TV Announcers: Gary Bender and John Madden

#### Week 4: vs. Dallas Cowboys

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cowboys | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Packers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
* Date: September 28, 1980
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: Overcast, 55 °F (13 °C)
* Referee: Fred Silva
* TV announcers (CBS): Lindsey Nelson and Sonny Jurgensen
Game information :
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
DAL – Danny White – 16/20, 217 yards, 2 TD
GB – Lynn Dickey – 11/26, 141 yards, 1 INT
Top rushers
DAL – Tony Dorsett – 22 rushes, 77 yards, 1 TD
GB – Eddie Lee Ivery – 9 rushes, 58 yards
Top receivers
DAL – Tony Hill – 5 receptions, 71 yards
GB – Aundra Thompson – 5 receptions, 77 yards :

### Week 11 vs. New York Giants
## Awards and records
### Hall of Famers

In 1980 Packer great Herb Adderley was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame