| 1971 New Orleans Saints season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | John W. Mecom, Jr. |
| General manager | Vic Schwenk |
| Head coach | J. D. Roberts |
| Home field | Tulane Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 4–8–2 |
| Division place | 4th NFC West |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | None |
The 1971 New Orleans Saints season was the Saints' fifth season. The Saints drafted Archie Manning with their first round pick, the second overall.
Manning led the Saints to their first opening day victory in franchise history, scoring a touchdown run on a rollout on the final play of a 24–20 victory over the Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans' first over Los Angeles following four consecutive losses, including the Saints' inaugural game in 1967. Four weeks later, Manning engineered a 24–14 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, who would return to Tulane Stadium in January and win Super Bowl VI over the Miami Dolphins.
| 1971 New Orleans Saints draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Archie Manning * | Quarterback | Mississippi | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
|
Quarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
| Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
| Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB)
| Practice squad
Reserve
|
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 19 | Los Angeles Rams | W 24–20 | 1–0 | Tulane Stadium | 70,915 |
| 2 | September 26 | San Francisco 49ers | L 20–38 | 1–1 | Tulane Stadium | 81,595 |
| 3 | October 3 | at Houston Oilers | T 13–13 | 1–1–1 | Astrodome | 47,966 |
| 4 | October 10 | at Chicago Bears | L 14–35 | 1–2–1 | Soldier Field | 55,049 |
| 5 | October 17 | Dallas Cowboys | W 24–14 | 2–2–1 | Tulane Stadium | 83,088 |
| 6 | October 24 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 6–28 | 2–3–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 58,850 |
| 7 | October 31 | at Washington Redskins | L 14–24 | 2–4–1 | RFK Stadium | 53,041 |
| 8 | November 7 | Oakland Raiders | T 21–21 | 2–4–2 | Tulane Stadium | 83,102 |
| 9 | November 14 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 26–20 | 3–4–2 | Candlestick Park | 45,138 |
| 10 | November 21 | Minnesota Vikings | L 10–23 | 3–5–2 | Tulane Stadium | 83,130 |
| 11 | November 28 | at Green Bay Packers | W 29–21 | 4–5–2 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 48,035 |
| 12 | December 5 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 28–45 | 4–6–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 73,610 |
| 13 | December 12 | Cleveland Browns | L 17–21 | 4-7-2 | Tulane Stadium | 72,794 |
| 14 | December 19 | Atlanta Falcons | L 20–24 | 4-8-2 | Tulane Stadium | 75,954 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||
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| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| San Francisco 49ers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 2–4 | 7–4 | 300 | 216 | W2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 4–1–1 | 7–3–1 | 313 | 260 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 3–2–1 | 4–6–1 | 274 | 277 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 4 | 8 | 2 | .333 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 266 | 347 | L3 |
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