| Team: | Atlanta Falcons |
| Year: | 1981 |
| Record: | 7–9 |
| Division Place: | 2nd NFC West |
| Coach: | Leeman Bennett |
| General Manager: | Eddie LeBaron |
| Owner: | Rankin M. Smith Sr. |
| Stadium: | Fulton County Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | RB William Andrews QB Steve Bartkowski WR Alfred Jenkins C Jeff van Note T Mike Kenn TE Junior Miller G R. C. Thielemann |
| Shortnavlink: | Falcons seasons |
The 1981 Atlanta Falcons season was the Falcons' 16th season. The Falcons got off to a solid 3–0 start, but lost three key starters for the season in a 34–17 win at Fulton County Stadium over the San Francisco 49ers. The Falcons would go on to finish the season with a 7–9 record, losing seven games by five points or less, thus missing the playoffs for the first time since 1979.
See main article: article and 1981 NFL draft. [1]
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 6 | New Orleans Saints | W 27–0 | 1–0 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 57,406 | ||
| 2 | September 13 | at Green Bay Packers | W 31–17 | 2–0 | Lambeau Field | 55,382 | ||
| 3 | September 20 | San Francisco 49ers | W 34–17 | 3–0 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 56,653 | ||
| 4 | September 27 | at Cleveland Browns | L 17–28 | 3–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 78,283 | ||
| 5 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 13–16 | 3–2 | Veterans Stadium | 71,488 | |||
| 6 | October 11 | Los Angeles Rams | L 35–37 | 3–3 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 57,841 | ||
| 7 | October 18 | St. Louis Cardinals | W 41–20 | 4–3 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 51,428 | ||
| 8 | October 25 | New York Giants | L 24–27 | 4–4 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 48,410 | ||
| 9 | November 1 | at New Orleans Saints | W 41–10 | 5–4 | Louisiana Superdome | 63,637 | ||
| 10 | November 8 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 14–17 | 5–5 | Candlestick Park | 59,127 | ||
| 11 | November 15 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 20–34 | 5–6 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 57,485 | ||
| 12 | Minnesota Vikings | W 31–30 | 6–6 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 54,086 | |||
| 13 | November 29 | at Houston Oilers | W 31–27 | 7–6 | Houston Astrodome | 40,201 | ||
| 14 | December 6 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 23–24 | 7–7 | Tampa Stadium | 69,221 | ||
| 15 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 16–21 | 7–8 | Anaheim Stadium | 57,054 | |||
| 16 | December 20 | Cincinnati Bengals | L 28–30 | 7–9 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 35,972 | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||||