1979 Philadelphia Eagles season

The 1979 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's 47th season in the National Football League (NFL).

1979 Philadelphia Eagles season
Owner	Leonard Tose
General manager	Jim Murray
Head coach	Dick Vermeil
Home field	Veterans Stadium
Results
Record	11–5
Division place	2nd NFC East
Playoff finish	Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Bears) 27–17 Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Buccaneers) 17–24
← 1978 Eagles seasons 1980 →

The Eagles playing against the Buccaneers in the 1979 NFC Divisional Playoff Game.

They appeared in the postseason for the second consecutive year, an attainment that the team had not achieved for three decades. They would make the playoffs again in the following two seasons before a six-year drought. The Eagles managed to host and win their first playoff game since 1960. They would ultimately fall in the divisional round to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by a score of 24–17.

Offseason

After going 9–7 in the 1978 season and making the playoffs, the Eagles found themselves having to follow rule 3 of the draft – "Teams that made the playoffs are then ordered by which round of the playoffs they are eliminated" – meaning four teams with a record the same or better than the Eagles would pick in front of them.

NFL Draft

The 1979 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1979 in New York City. As was started with the 1977 NFL Draft, this was 12 rounds.

The Philadelphia Eagles got the 19th to the 21st picks in the 12 rounds. They had overcome the traded-away draft picks of the Mike McCormack era. The Eagles had waited but they finally had a first-round pick and other low-round draft picks. They would use these and build a team as 7 of the 10 draft picks made the team for the coming years.

The draft began with first overall pick of Tom Cousineau, linebacker from Ohio State, by the Buffalo Bills. With the number 7 pick the New York Giants selected Phil Simms, a quarterback from Morehead State. The crowd, made up of mostly New York fans, voiced their displeasure of his selection.

Player selections

The table shows the Eagles selections and what picks they had that were traded away and the team that ended up with that pick. It is possible the Eagles' pick ended up with this team via another trade the Eagles made. Not shown are acquired picks that the Eagles traded away.

= Pro Bowler [1]

= Hall of Famer

Round	Pick	Player	Position	School
1	21	Jerry Robinson	LB	UCLA
2	48	Petey Perot	G	Northwestern State University
3	74	Tony Franklin	Kicker	Texas A & M
4	94	Ben Cowins	RB	Arkansas
5	126	Scott Fitzkee	TE	Penn State
6	158	Pick Traded to New York Giants
7	178	Don Swafford	OT	Florida
7	185	Curtis Bunche	DT	Albany State
8	196	Chuck Correal	C	Penn State
8	211	Max Runager	Punter	South Carolina
9		Pick Traded to
10		Pick Traded to
11	296	Al Chesley	LB	Pittsburgh
12		Pick Traded to

Roster

1979 Philadelphia Eagles roster

Quarterbacks (QB)  7 Ron Jaworski 10 John Walton Running backs (RB) 38 Larry Barnes 37 Billy Campfield KR 33 Louie Giammona 20 Leroy Harris FB 31 Wilbert Montgomery Wide receivers (WR) 17 Harold Carmichael 81 Scott Fitzkee 89 Wally Henry 82 Jerrold McRae 85 Charlie Smith Tight ends (TE) 84 Keith Krepfle 88 John Spagnola

Offensive linemen (OL) 72 Wade Key G 79 Rufus Mayes G 50 Guy Morriss C 69 Woody Peoples G 62 Petey Perot G 76 Jerry Sisemore T 61 Mark Slater C 75 Stan Walters T Defensive linemen (DL) 67 Lem Burnham DE 71 Ken Clarke NT 78 Carl Hairston DE 68 Dennis Harrison DE 87 Claude Humphrey DE 65 Charlie Johnson NT 79 Manny Sistrunk DT

Linebackers (LB) 95 John Bunting OLB 59 Al Chesley ILB 55 Frank LeMaster ILB 52 Ray Phillips OLB 56 Jerry Robinson OLB 58 Terry Tautolo OLB 51 Reggie Wilkes OLB Defensive backs (DB) 27 Richard Blackmore CB 46 Herman Edwards CB 23 Bob Howard CB 29 Al Latimer CB 41 Randy Logan SS 24 Henry Monroe CB 26 John Sanders 21 John Sciarra 22 Brenard Wilson FS Special teams  1 Tony Franklin K  4 Max Runager P

Reserve 66 Bill Bergey ILB (IR) -- Curtis Bunche DE (IR) 73 Steve Kenney T (IR) Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Attendance
1	September 2, 1979	New York Giants	W 23–17	1–0	67,366
2	September 10, 1979	Atlanta Falcons	L 14–10	1–1	66,935
3	September 16, 1979	at New Orleans Saints	W 26–14	2–1	54,212
4	September 23, 1979	at New York Giants	W 17–13	3–1	74,265
5	September 30, 1979	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 17–14	4–1	70,352
6	October 7, 1979	Washington Redskins	W 28–17	5–1	69,142
7	October 14, 1979	at St. Louis Cardinals	W 24–20	6–1	48,367
8	October 21, 1979	at Washington Redskins	L 17–7	6–2	54,442
9	October 28, 1979	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 37–13	6–3	42,036
10	November 4, 1979	Cleveland Browns	L 24–19	6–4	69,019
11	November 12, 1979	at Dallas Cowboys	W 31–21	7–4	62,417
12	November 18, 1979	St. Louis Cardinals	W 16–13	8–4	70,235
13	November 25, 1979	at Green Bay Packers	W 21–10	9–4	50,023
14	December 2, 1979	Detroit Lions	W 44–7	10–4	66,128
15	December 8, 1979	Dallas Cowboys	L 24–17	10–5	71,434
16	December 16, 1979	at Houston Oilers	W 26–20	11–5	49,407

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

^[2]

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	7	0	7	14
Eagles	0	7	10	0	17

Game information
Steelers Terry Bradshaw 12/26, 176 Yds, TD, 2 INT Sidney Thornton 16 Rush, 88 Yds, TD John Stallworth 5 Rec, 102 Yds, TD Eagles Ron Jaworski 11/20, 158 Yds, 2 INT Wilbert Montgomery 28 Rush, 98 Yds, TD Keith Krepfle 4 Rec, 95 Yds

Week 5: Pittsburgh Steelers at Philadelphia Eagles

at Veterans Stadium • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Date: September 30, 1979
• Game time: 1:00 p.m.
• Game attendance: 70,352
• Referee: Cal Lepore
• TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones and Len Dawson
• Pro-Football-Reference.com

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP PIT PHI 2 Steelers Thornton 7-yard touchdown run, Bahr kick good 7 0 2 Eagles Harris 1-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 7 7 3 Eagles 48-yard field goal by Franklin 7 10 3 Eagles Montgomery 1-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 7 17 4 Steelers Stallworth 37-yard touchdown reception from Bradshaw, Bahr kick good 14 17 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 14 17

Week 6

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Redskins	0	7	0	10	17
Eagles	7	7	14	0	28

Game information
Redskins Joe Theismann 19/32, 165 Yds, TD, INT John Riggins 23 Rush, 115 Yds, TD Johnnie McDaniel 4 Rec, 35 Tds Eagles Ron Jaworski 8/12, 143 Yds, TD Wilbert Montgomery 22 Rush, 127 Yds, 3 TD Keith Krepfle 3 Rec, 79 Yds

Week 6: Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles

at Veterans Stadium • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Date: October 7, 1979
• Game time: 1:00 p.m.
• Game attendance: 69,142
• TV announcers (CBS): Gary Bender and Sonny Jurgensen
• Pro-Football-Reference.com

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP WSH PHI 1 Eagles Montgomery 8-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 0 7 2 Eagles Montgomery 11-yard touchdown reception from Jaworski, Franklin kick good 0 14 3 Eagles Montgomery 5-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 7 21 3 Eagles Montgomery 4-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 7 28 4 Redskins 37-yard field goal by Moseley 10 28 4 Redskins Riggins 1-yard touchdown run, Moseley kick good 17 28 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 17 28

Week 7

Week 8

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	0	0	0	7	7
Redskins	0	7	7	3	17

Game information
Eagles Ron Jaworski 12/27, 192 Yds, TD, 2 INT Wilbert Montgomery 11 Rush, 33 Yds Keith Krepfle 4 Rec, 81 Yds Redskins Joe Theismann 15/24, 136 Yds, 2 INT John Riggins 19 Rush, 120 Yds Clarence Harmon 3 Rec, 33 Yds

Week 8: Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Redskins

at RFK Stadium • Washington, D.C.

• Date: October 21, 1979
• Game time: 1:00 p.m.
• Game attendance: 54,442
• TV announcers (CBS): Vin Scully and George Allen
• Pro-Football-Reference.com

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP PHI WSH 2 Redskins Malone 10-yard touchdown run, Moseley kick good 0 7 3 Redskins Theismann 1-yard touchdown run, Moseley kick good 0 14 4 Redskins 23-yard field goal by Moseley 0 17 4 Eagles Krepfle 40-yard touchdown reception from Jaworski, Franklin kick good 7 17 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 7 17

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	7	10	7	7	31
Cowboys	7	0	0	14	21

Game information
Eagles Ron Jaworski 12/29, 145 Yds, 2 TD Wilbert Montgomery 25 Rush, 127 Yds, TD Harold Carmichael 4 Rec, 69 Yds Cowboys Roger Staubach 17/28, 308 Yds, 3 TD Tony Dorsett 13 Rush, 53 Yds Tony Hill 7 Rec, 213 Yds, 2 TD

Week 11: Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys

at Texas Stadium • Irving, Texas

• Date: November 12, 1979
• Game time: 9:00 p.m.
• Game attendance: 62,417
• Referee: Gene Barth
• TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell and Don Meredith
• Pro-Football-Reference.com

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP PHI DAL 1 Cowboys Hill 48-yard touchdown reception from Staubach, Septien kick good 0 7 1 Eagles Carmichael 32-yard touchdown reception from Jaworski, Franklin kick good 7 7 2 Eagles Smith 29-yard touchdown reception from Walton, Franklin kick good 14 7 2 Eagles 59-yard field goal by Franklin 17 7 3 Eagles Carmichael 13-yard touchdown reception from Jaworski, Franklin kick good 24 7 4 Cowboys Hill 75-yard touchdown reception from Staubach, Septien kick good 24 14 4 Cowboys DuPree 5-yard touchdown reception from Staubach, Septien kick good 24 21 4 Eagles Montgomery 37-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 31 21 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 31 21

Week 12

Week 13

Week 14

Week 15

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	10	0	7	7	24
Eagles	3	7	0	7	17

Game information
Cowboys Roger Staubach 11/21, 105 Yds, TD Robert Newhouse 12 Rush, 68 Yds, TD Tony Hill 3 Rec, 33 Yds Eagles Ron Jaworski 13/36, 216 Yds, TD, INT Wilbert Montgomery 23 Rush, 65 Yds, TD Wilbert Montgomery 4 Rec, 93 Yds, TD

Week 15: Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles

at Veterans Stadium • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Date: December 8, 1979
• Game time: 12:30 p.m.
• Game attendance: 71,434
• Referee: Jim Tunney
• TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall, Tom Brookshier, Frank Glieber and Irv Cross
• Pro-Football-Reference.com

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP DAL PHI 1 Cowboys Laidlaw 1-yard touchdown run, Septien kick good 7 0 1 Eagles 27-yard field goal by Franklin 7 3 1 Cowboys 40-yard field goal by Septien 10 3 2 Eagles Montgomery 14-yard touchdown reception from Jaworski, Franklin kick good 10 10 3 Cowboys Newhouse 17-yard touchdown run, Septien kick good 17 10 4 Cowboys Johnson 17-yard touchdown reception from Staubach, Septien kick good 24 10 4 Eagles Montgomery 1-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 24 17 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 24 17

Week 16

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	9	3	7	7	26
Oilers	0	10	0	10	20

Game information
Eagles Ron Jaworski 12/21, 163 Yds Billy Campfield 7 Rush, 68 Yds Wilbert Montgomery 5 Rec, 51 Yds Oilers Dan Pastorini 7/14, 85 Yds, TD, 2 INT Earl Campbell 16 Rush, 134 Yds, TD Mike Renfro 3 Rec, 67 Yds, TD

Week 16: Philadelphia Eagles at Houston Oilers

at Astrodome • Houston, Texas

• Date: December 16, 1979
• Game time: 4:00 p.m.
• Game attendance: 49,407
• TV announcers (CBS): Gary Bender and Sonny Jurgensen
• Pro-Football-Reference.com

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP PHI HOU 1 Eagles Jaworski 4-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick no good 6 0 1 Eagles 22-yard field goal by Franklin 9 0 2 Oilers Campbell 6-yard touchdown run, Fritsch kick good 9 7 2 Eagles 41-yard field goal by Franklin 12 7 2 Oilers 44-yard field goal by Fritsch 12 10 3 Eagles Harris 1-yard touchdown run, Franklin kick good 19 10 4 Oilers Renfro 7-yard touchdown reception from Pastorini, Fritsch kick good 19 17 4 Eagles Fitzkee 4-yard touchdown reception from Walton, Franklin kick good 26 17 4 Oilers 37-yard field goal by Fritsch 26 20 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 26 20

Standings

NFC East
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Dallas Cowboys(1)	11	5	0	.688	6–2	10–2	371	313	W3
Philadelphia Eagles(4)	11	5	0	.688	6–2	9–3	339	282	W1
Washington Redskins	10	6	0	.625	5–3	8–4	348	295	L1
New York Giants	6	10	0	.375	1–7	5–9	237	323	L3
St. Louis Cardinals	5	11	0	.313	2–6	4–8	307	358	L1

Playoffs

Round	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
Wildcard	December 23, 1979	Chicago Bears	W 27–17	69,397
Divisional	December 29, 1979	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 24–17	71,402

Wild card

Divisional

Awards and honors