| Team: | New York Jets |
| Year: | 1981 |
| Record: | 10–5–1 |
| Division Place: | 2nd AFC East |
| Coach: | Walt Michaels |
| Owner: | Leon Hess |
| Stadium: | Shea Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Bills) 27–31 |
| Pro Bowlers: | C Joe Fields T Marvin Powell DE Joe Klecko DE Mark Gastineau |
| Shortnavlink: | Jets seasons |
The 1981 New York Jets season was the 22nd season for the franchise and its twelfth in the National Football League (NFL). It began with the team trying to improve upon its 4–12 record from 1980 under head coach Walt Michaels. The Jets sputtered early, starting 0–3 and (combined with the previous season's 4–12 finish) fueling a quarterback controversy and altercation between quarterback Richard Todd and sports writer Steve Serby and speculation about Michaels’ job. After the 0–3 start, however, the Jets would catch fire, and go on a 10–2–1 run. The team ultimately finished the season with a record of 10–5–1 and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1969, breaking a twelve-season drought. In the playoffs, however, they fell to their division rivals, the Buffalo Bills, 31–27.
See main article: article and 1981 NFL draft.
| Todd Benson | Linebacker | Maryland | |
| Ted Blackwell | Running back | Rutgers | |
| Kent Clausen | Linebacker | Montana | |
| Gary England | Guard | Nebraska | |
| Scott Fanz | Guard | Maryland | |
| John Nitti | Running back | Yale | |
| John Wojtowicz | Guard | Penn State |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 6 | at Buffalo Bills | L 0–31 | 0–1 | Rich Stadium | 79,754 | ||
| 2 | September 13 | Cincinnati Bengals | L 30–31 | 0–2 | Shea Stadium | 49,454 | ||
| 3 | September 20 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 10–38 | 0–3 | Three Rivers Stadium | 52,973 | ||
| 4 | September 27 | Houston Oilers | W 33–17 | 1–3 | Shea Stadium | 50,309 | ||
| 5 | October 4 | at Miami Dolphins | T 28–28 | 1–3–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 68,723 | ||
| 6 | October 11 | New England Patriots | W 28–24 | 2–3–1 | Shea Stadium | 55,093 | ||
| 7 | October 18 | Buffalo Bills | W 33–14 | 3–3–1 | Shea Stadium | 54,607 | ||
| 8 | October 25 | Seattle Seahawks | L 3–19 | 3–4–1 | Shea Stadium | 49,678 | ||
| 9 | November 1 | at New York Giants | W 26–7 | 4–4–1 | Giants Stadium | 74,740 | ||
| 10 | November 8 | at Baltimore Colts | W 41–14 | 5–4–1 | Memorial Stadium | 31,521 | ||
| 11 | November 15 | at New England Patriots | W 17–6 | 6–4–1 | Schaefer Stadium | 45,342 | ||
| 12 | November 22 | Miami Dolphins | W 16–15 | 7–4–1 | Shea Stadium | 59,962 | ||
| 13 | November 29 | Baltimore Colts | W 25–0 | 8–4–1 | Shea Stadium | 53,593 | ||
| 14 | December 6 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 23–27 | 8–5–1 | Kingdome | 53,105 | ||
| 15 | at Cleveland Browns | W 14–13 | 9–5–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 56,866 | |||
| 16 | December 20 | Green Bay Packers | W 28–3 | 10–5–1 | Shea Stadium | 56,340 | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||||
See main article: 1981–82 NFL playoffs.
TV Announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones, Len Dawson