The 1971 New Orleans Saints season was the Saints' fifth season. The Saints drafted Archie Manning with their first round pick, the second overall.
| 1971 New Orleans Saints season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | John W. Mecom, Jr. |
| General manager | Vic Schwenk |
| Head coach | J. D. Roberts |
| Home field | Tulane Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 4–8–2 |
| Division place | 4th NFC West |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | None |
Manning led the Saints to their first opening day victory in franchise history, scoring a touchdown run on a rollout on the final play of a 24–20 victory over the Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans' first over Los Angeles following four consecutive losses, including the Saints' inaugural game in 1967. Four weeks later, Manning engineered a 24–14 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, who would return to Tulane Stadium in January and win Super Bowl VI over the Miami Dolphins.
Offseason
editNFL draft
edit| 1971 New Orleans Saints draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Archie Manning * | Quarterback | Mississippi | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Personnel
editStaff
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Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
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Defensive coaches
|
Roster
editQuarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
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Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
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Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB)
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Practice squad
Reserve
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Regular season
editSchedule
edit| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 19 | Los Angeles Rams | W 24–20 | 1–0 | Tulane Stadium | 70,915 |
| 2 | September 26 | San Francisco 49ers | L 20–38 | 1–1 | Tulane Stadium | 81,595 |
| 3 | October 3 | at Houston Oilers | T 13–13 | 1–1–1 | Astrodome | 47,966 |
| 4 | October 10 | at Chicago Bears | L 14–35 | 1–2–1 | Soldier Field | 55,049 |
| 5 | October 17 | Dallas Cowboys | W 24–14 | 2–2–1 | Tulane Stadium | 83,088 |
| 6 | October 24 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 6–28 | 2–3–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 58,850 |
| 7 | October 31 | at Washington Redskins | L 14–24 | 2–4–1 | RFK Stadium | 53,041 |
| 8 | November 7 | Oakland Raiders | T 21–21 | 2–4–2 | Tulane Stadium | 83,102 |
| 9 | November 14 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 26–20 | 3–4–2 | Candlestick Park | 45,138 |
| 10 | November 21 | Minnesota Vikings | L 10–23 | 3–5–2 | Tulane Stadium | 83,130 |
| 11 | November 28 | at Green Bay Packers | W 29–21 | 4–5–2 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 48,035 |
| 12 | December 5 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 28–45 | 4–6–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 73,610 |
| 13 | December 12 | Cleveland Browns | L 17–21 | 4-7-2 | Tulane Stadium | 72,794 |
| 14 | December 19 | Atlanta Falcons | L 20–24 | 4-8-2 | Tulane Stadium | 75,954 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||
Game summaries
editWeek 1
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Standings
edit| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| San Francisco 49ers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 2–4 | 7–4 | 300 | 216 | W2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 4–1–1 | 7–3–1 | 313 | 260 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 3–2–1 | 4–6–1 | 274 | 277 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 4 | 8 | 2 | .333 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 266 | 347 | L3 |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
References
edit- ^ "1971 New Orleans Saints draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 10, 2014.
- ^ "All-Time Roster". NewOrleansSaints.com. Archived from the original on June 18, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
- ^ "Scouting Report ... New Orleans Saints". Corsicana Daily Sun. Corsicana, Texas. October 14, 1971. p. 27. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
- ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com
External links
edit
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