This product includes all game parts.

In a first for Strat-O-Matic old-timer football seasons, six teams will be physically carded but customers will also receive a PDF file to download the remaining 22 teams. Gamers can print off the other teams as needed from the file which can be found in the “Downloads” section of their account on the Strat-O-Matic website. The six carded teams are Cincinnati, Dallas, Miami, Philadelphia, San Diego, and San Francisco.

1981 PRO FOOTBALL: 49ERS BEGIN A DYNASTY IN SEASON FILLED WITH CLASSIC MOMENTS

The 1981 pro football season marked the beginning of a new era. After finishing just 6-10 one year earlier, the San Francisco 49ers surged to a 13-3 record and captured the first championship in franchise history. Their opponent in Super Bowl XVI, the Cincinnati Bengals, completed an equally impressive turnaround, improving from 6-10 to 12-4 and winning their first conference title.

San Francisco’s rise was led by head coach Bill Walsh and quarterback Joe Montana. Walsh’s precision passing offense began to change the way football was played, while Montana established himself as one of the game’s best young quarterbacks. Dwight Clark caught 85 passes for 1,105 yards, Freddie Solomon added 969 receiving yards, and running back Ricky Patton led a balanced backfield.

The rebuilt defense was just as important. Rookie defensive backs Ronnie Lott, Eric Wright and Carlton Williamson joined third-year player Dwight Hicks to form a secondary that helped the 49ers allow the second-fewest points in the league.

San Francisco’s defining moment came in the conference championship game against Dallas. Trailing 27-21 late in the fourth quarter, Montana directed an 89-yard drive and found Clark in the back of the end zone for the winning touchdown. The play became forever known simply as “The Catch.”

Cincinnati was led by league MVP Ken Anderson, who completed 62.6 percent of his passes for 3,754 yards and 29 touchdowns. Rookie receiver Cris Collinsworth caught 67 passes for 1,009 yards, while tight end Dan Ross added 71 receptions. The Bengals reached the Super Bowl by defeating San Diego in the bitter cold of the AFC Championship Game, remembered as “The Freezer Bowl.”

San Diego’s “Air Coryell” system produced the league’s most explosive offense, averaging nearly 30 points per game. Dan Fouts led the NFL with 4,802 passing yards, while Charlie Joyner and Kellen Winslow each surpassed 1,000 receiving yards. Before falling to Cincinnati, the Chargers defeated Miami, 41-38 in overtime, in one of the most exciting playoff games ever played.
The season also introduced one of football’s greatest defensive stars. Rookie linebacker Lawrence Taylor helped lead the New York Giants to their first playoff appearance since 1963 and was named both Defensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. The New York Jets also returned to the postseason for the first time since 1969.

New Orleans rookie George Rogers led the league with 1,674 rushing yards, Atlanta’s Alfred Jenkins topped all receivers with 1,358 yards and 13 touchdowns, and Dallas won 12 games to win the NFC East then walloped Tampa Bay 38-0 in the Divisional Round before its dramatic loss in San Francisco.

The Individual Defensive Squares will be included as a PDF download with the purchase of this game or card set.

Powered by official averages and stats with exclusive Strat-O ratings; 

Enhanced by hundreds of hours of unique Strat-O research and stat