Personnel
Staff
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches | Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
|
| 1980 Houston Oilers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Bud Adams |
| General manager | Bum Phillips |
| Head coach | Bum Phillips |
| Home field | Houston Astrodome |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–5 |
| Division place | 2nd AFC Central |
| Playoff finish | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Raiders) 7–27 |
The 1980 Houston Oilers season was the franchise's 21st overall and the 11th in the National Football League (NFL). The team scored 295 points while the defense gave up 251 points. Their record of 11 wins and 5 losses resulted in a second-place finish in the AFC Central Division. The Oilers appeared twice on Monday Night Football. In their first appearance on Monday Night Football, the Oilers beat the Cleveland Browns 16–7. In their second appearance, the Oilers defeated the New England Patriots 38–34. Earl Campbell led the NFL in rushing for the third consecutive year and had four 200-yard rushing games.
This was the third season in a row that the Oilers made the playoffs. The team lost in the AFC Wild Card Round to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Oakland Raiders. The Oilers would not make it back to the playoffs again until 1987.
The last remaining active member of the 1980 Houston Oilers was defensive lineman Mike Stensrud, who retired after the 1989 season.
3rd year fullback Earl Campbell had the best season of his career rushing for 1,934 yards and scored 13 touchdowns.
| 1980 Houston Oilers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 38 | Angelo Fields | Tackle | Michigan State | |
| 2 | 52 | Daryle Skaugstad | Defensive tackle | California | |
| 3 | 79 | Tim Smith | Wide receiver | Nebraska | |
| 4 | 106 | Chris Combs | Tight end | New Mexico | |
| 5 | 134 | John Corker | Linebacker | Oklahoma State | |
| 7 | 182 | Craig Bradshaw | Quarterback | Utah State | |
| 8 | 217 | Harold Bailey | Wide receiver | Oklahoma State | |
| 9 | 244 | Ed Harris | Running back | Bishop | |
| 11 | 301 | Ed Preston | Wide receiver | Western Kentucky | |
| 12 | 328 | Wiley Pitts | Wide receiver | Temple | |
| Made roster | |||||
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches | Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
|
| Date | Opponent | Attempts | Yards | Touchdowns |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 19 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 33 | 203 | 0 |
| Oct 26 | Cincinnati Bengals | 27 | 202 | 2 |
| Nov 16 | Chicago Bears | 31 | 206 | 0 |
| Dec 21 | Minnesota Vikings | 29 | 203 | 1 |
| AFC Central | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Cleveland Browns (2) | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 4–2 | 8–4 | 357 | 310 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers (5) | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 4–2 | 7–5 | 295 | 251 | W3 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 2–4 | 5–7 | 352 | 313 | L1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 2–4 | 4–8 | 244 | 312 | L1 |
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oilers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Raiders | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 27 |
at Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, California
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