| Team: | Oakland Raiders |
| Year: | 1981 |
| Record: | 7–9 |
| Division Place: | 4th AFC West |
| Owner: | Al Davis |
| General Manager: | Al Davis |
| Coach: | Tom Flores |
| Stadium: | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Next: | 1982 (Los Angeles) |
| Shortnavlink: | Raiders seasons |
The 1981 season was the Oakland Raiders' 22nd since they were founded, their 12th in the National Football League and their third under head coach Tom Flores. The team failed to improve on their 11–5 record from 1980, and the Raiders went 7–9 and became the fourth team in NFL history to enter a season as the defending Super Bowl champions and miss the playoffs. The 1981 Raiders set an NFL record by being shut out three consecutive times. The passing game fell off badly, being 26th and throwing 28 interceptions. After the defense led the NFL in interceptions and takeaways in 1980, they were dead last in 1981 and were –16 in turnover differential. It was also their last season in Oakland until 1995 and their losing record snapped a streak of 16 consecutive winning seasons. This was the only season from 1965 to 1986 where the Raiders finished with a losing record.
See main article: article and 1981 NFL Draft.
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 | Ted Watts | CB | Texas Tech |
| 1 | 23 | Curt Marsh | OT | Washington |
| 2 | 48 | Howie Long | DE | Villanova |
| 4 | 111 | Johnny Robinson | DT | Louisiana Tech |
| 5 | 118 | James Davis | CB | Southern |
| 9 | 248 | Curt Mohl | OT | UCLA |
| 10 | 276 | Frank Hawkins | HB | Nevada |
| 11 | 304 | Chester Willis | HB | Auburn |
| 12 | 332 | Phil Nelson | TE | Delaware |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 6 | at Denver Broncos | L 7–9 | 0–1 | Mile High Stadium | 74,796 | |
| 2 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 36–10 | 1–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 47,186 | ||
| 3 | September 20 | Seattle Seahawks | W 20–10 | 2–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 45,725 | |
| 4 | September 27 | at Detroit Lions | L 0–16 | 2–2 | Pontiac Silverdome | 77,819 | |
| 5 | October 4 | Denver Broncos | L 0–17 | 2–3 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 51,035 | |
| 6 | October 11 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 0–27 | 2–4 | Arrowhead Stadium | 76,543 | |
| 7 | October 18 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 18–16 | 3–4 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 42,288 | |
| 8 | October 25 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 17–28 | 3–5 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 42,914 | |
| 9 | November 1 | New England Patriots | W 27–17 | 4–5 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 44,246 | |
| 10 | November 8 | at Houston Oilers | L 16–17 | 4–6 | Houston Astrodome | 45,519 | |
| 11 | November 15 | at Miami Dolphins | W 33–17 | 5–6 | Miami Orange Bowl | 61,777 | |
| 12 | November 22 | San Diego Chargers | L 21–55 | 5–7 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 50,199 | |
| 13 | November 29 | at Seattle Seahawks | W 32–31 | 6–7 | Kingdome | 57,147 | |
| 14 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 30–27 | 7–7 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 51,769 | ||
| 15 | December 13 | Chicago Bears | L 6–23 | 7–8 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 40,384 | |
| 16 | at San Diego Chargers | L 10–23 | 7–9 | San Diego Stadium | 52,279 | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||