1981 Chicago Bears season

1981 Chicago Bears season
Head coach	Neill Armstrong
General manager	Jim Finks
Owner	George Halas
Home field	Soldier Field
Results
Record	6–10
Division place	5th NFC Central
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1981 Chicago Bears season was their 62nd regular season completed in the National Football League. The club posted a 6–10 record under fourth year coach Neill Armstrong, who was fired at the end of the season.

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 6, 1981	Green Bay Packers	L 16–9	62,411
2	September 13, 1981	at San Francisco 49ers	L 28–17	49,520
3	September 20, 1981	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 28–17	60,130
4	September 28, 1981	Los Angeles Rams	L 24–7	62,461
5	October 4, 1981	at Minnesota Vikings	L 24–21	43,827
6	October 11, 1981	Washington Redskins	L 24–7	57,683
7	October 19, 1981	at Detroit Lions	L 48–17	71,273
8	October 25, 1981	San Diego Chargers	W 20–17	52,906
9	November 1, 1981	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 20–10	63,688
10	November 8, 1981	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 16–13	60,605
11	November 15, 1981	at Green Bay Packers	L 21–17	55,338
12	November 22, 1981	Detroit Lions	L 23–7	50,082
13	November 26, 1981	at Dallas Cowboys	L 10–9	63,499
14	December 6, 1981	Minnesota Vikings	W 10–9	50,766
15	December 13, 1981	at Oakland Raiders	W 23–6	40,384
16	December 20, 1981	Denver Broncos	W 35–24	40,125

Game summaries

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total Buccaneers 7 0 7 3 17 • Bears 0 14 7 7 28 Date: September 20 Location: Soldier Field, Chicago, IL Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 58°F; wind 8

Scoring summary Q1 TB Washington 29 yard interception return (Yepremian kick) TB 7–0 Q2 CHI Suhey 1 yard run (Nielsen kick) Tie 7–7 Q2 CHI Fisher 88 yard interception return (Nielsen kick) CHI 14–7 Q3 TB House 11 yard pass from Williams (Yepremian kick) Tie 14–14 Q3 CHI Evans 8 yard run (Nielsen kick) CHI 21–14 Q4 TB Yepremian 32 yard field goal CHI 21–17 Q4 CHI Williams 18 yard pass from Evans (Nielsen kick) CHI 28–17

Week 8

1 2 3 4 OT Total Chargers 0 3 0 14 0 17 • Bears 7 3 0 7 3 20 Date: October 25 Location: Soldier Field, Chicago, IL Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game weather: 39°F; wind 9

Scoring summary Q1 CHI Suhey 7 yard run (Roveto kick) CHI 7–0 Q2 SD Benirschke 18 yard field goal CHI 7–3 Q2 CHI Roveto 31 yard field goal CHI 10–3 Q4 SD Joiner 22 yard pass from Fouts (Benirschke kick) Tie 10–10 Q4 CHI Payton 2 yard run (Roveto kick) CHI 17–10 Q4 SD Chandler 39 yard pass from Fouts (Benirschke kick) Tie 17–17 OT CHI Roveto 26 yard field goal CHI 20–17

Week 16

1 2 3 4 Total Broncos 3 0 14 7 24 • Bears 0 14 14 7 35 Date: December 20 Location: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois Game start: 12:00 p.m. Game weather: 6°F, wind 11 Referee: Gordon McCarter TV announcers (NBC): Bob Costas and Bob Trumpy

Scoring summary 1 DEN Fred Steinfort 46 yard field goal Broncos 3–0 2 CHI Walter Payton 19 yard pass from Vince Evans (John Roveto kick) Bears 7–3 2 CHI Roland Harper 4 yard run (John Roveto kick) Bears 14–3 3 CHI Gary Fencik 69 yard interception return (John Roveto kick) Bears 21–3 3 DEN Riley Odoms 6 yard pass from Craig Morton (Fred Steinfort kick) Bears 21–10 3 CHI Al Harris 44 yard interception return (John Roveto kick) Bears 28–10 3 DEN Rick Upchurch 25 yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Fred Steinfort kick) Bears 28–17 4 CHI Walter Payton 7 yard pass from Vince Evans (John Roveto kick) Bears 35–17 4 DEN Rick Upchurch 39 yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Fred Steinfort kick) Bears 35–24

Standings

NFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Tampa Bay Buccaneers(3)	9	7	0	.563	6–2	9–3	315	268	W1
Detroit Lions	8	8	0	.500	4–4	6–6	397	322	L1
Green Bay Packers	8	8	0	.500	4–4	7–7	324	361	L1
Minnesota Vikings	7	9	0	.438	4–4	6–6	325	369	L5
Chicago Bears	6	10	0	.375	2–6	2–10	253	324	W3

External links

• 1981 Chicago Bears Season at www.bearshistory.com