1979 New Orleans Saints season

1979 New Orleans Saints season
1979 New Orleans Saints season
Head coach	Dick Nolan
Home field	Louisiana Superdome
Results
Record	8–8
Division place	2nd NFC West
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	5 TE Henry Childs; QB Archie Manning; RB Chuck Muncie; WR Wes Chandler; FS Tom Myers;
	← 1978; Saints seasons; 1980 →;

The 1979 New Orleans Saints season was the team's thirteenth season in the National Football League. The Saints finished the season at 8–8, the franchise's first non-losing season. After starting 0–3, New Orleans won seven of its next 10 and was tied for first place with the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West with three weeks to play, but the season unraveled in a Monday Night Football contest at home vs. the Oakland Raiders, when the Saints squandered a 35–14 lead and lost, 42–35. The Raiders returned to the Superdome a little over a year later and won Super Bowl XV.

The Saints were eliminated from playoff contention in week 15 when they were blown out 35–0 at home by the San Diego Chargers, but defeated the NFC West champion Los Angeles Rams in the regular season finale in what was the Rams' last game in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum until 2016. While the Rams went on to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XIV, the Saints ended their season with a record of 8-8, the first time in the history of the franchise that the team finished with a non-losing record. Not counting the 1976 expansion Seattle Seahawks, New Orleans was one of three franchises which failed to make the playoffs in the 1970s, joined by the Giants and the Jets (the other 1976 expansion team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, won the NFC Central Division in 1979).

Following the season, running back Chuck Muncie was named Most Valuable Player of the ensuing Pro Bowl.

Offseason

NFL draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1979 New Orleans Saints draft
1	11	Russell Erxleben	Punter	Texas
2	38	Reggie Mathis	Linebacker	Oklahoma
4	93	Jim Kovach	Linebacker	Kentucky
5	120	Harlan Huckleby	Linebacker	Michigan
6	146	Ricky Ray	Cornerback	Norfolk State
7	176	Stan Sytsma	Linebacker	Minnesota
8	202	Doug Panfil	Guard	Tulsa
11	285	David Hall	Wide receiver	Missouri-Rolla
12	311	Kelsey Finch	Running back	Tennessee
Made roster

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Personnel

Staff

**1979 New Orleans Saints staff**
	Front office President – John W. Mecom Jr. Executive Vice President – Eddie Jones Vice President of Player Personnel – Harry Hulmes Head coaches Head Coach – Dick Nolan Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Ed Hughes Quarterbacks/Receivers – Lamar McHan Offensive Line – Dick Stanfel			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Paul Wiggin Defensive Line – Tom Pratt Linebackers – Ed Beard Defensive Backs – Chet Franklin Special teams coaches Special Teams – Whitey Campbell Strength and conditioning Conditioning – Bob Hill

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Roster

**1979 New Orleans Saints roster**
Quarterbacks (QB) 11 Ed Burns 8 Archie Manning 12 Bobby Scott Running backs (RB) 34 Tony Galbreath FB 45 Jack Holmes 42 Chuck Muncie 33 Mike Strachan Wide receivers (WR) 89 Wes Chandler 82 Ike Harris 84 Rich Mauti 83 Tinker Owens Tight ends (TE) 85 Henry Childs 87 Larry Hardy 88 Brooks Williams		Offensive linemen (OL) 66 Conrad Dobler G 61 Roger Finnie T 62 John Hill C 64 Dave Lafary G 68 Fred Sturt G 71 J. T. Taylor T 65 Robert Woods T 79 Emanuel Zanders G Defensive linemen (DL) 63 Barry Bennett DE 73 Joe Campbell DE 72 Mike Fultz DT 78 Elois Grooms DE 74 Derland Moore DT 75 Elex Price DT 60 Don Reese DE		Linebackers (LB) 50 Ken Bordelon 58 Joe Federspiel 54 Pat Hughes 52 Jim Kovach 56 Reggie Mathis 57 Jim Merlo Defensive backs (DB) 27 Ray Brown S 26 Clarence Chapman CB 20 Eric Felton CB 21 David Gray 49 Ralph McGill CB 37 Tom Myers FS 22 Ricky Ray CB 48 Don Schwartz Special teams 17 Rick Partridge P 1 Garo Yepremian K				Reserve 14 Russell Erxleben P (IR) 77 Doug Panfl G (IR) 53 Stan Sytsma LB (IR) -- John Wilson T (IR) Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 2	Atlanta Falcons	L 34–40	0–1	Louisiana Superdome	70,940
2	September 9	at Green Bay Packers	L 19–28	0–2	Milwaukee County Stadium	53,184
3	September 16	Philadelphia Eagles	L 14–26	0–3	Louisiana Superdome	54,212
4	September 23	at San Francisco 49ers	W 30–21	1–3	Candlestick Park	39,727
5	September 30	New York Giants	W 24–14	2–3	Louisiana Superdome	51,543
6	October 7	Los Angeles Rams	L 17–35	2–4	Louisiana Superdome	68,986
7	October 14	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 42–14	3–4	Tampa Stadium	67,640
8	October 21	Detroit Lions	W 17–7	4-4	Louisiana Superdome	57,428
9	October 28	at Washington Redskins	W 14–10	5–4	RFK Stadium	52,133
10	November 4	at Denver Broncos	L 3–10	5–5	Mile High Stadium	74,482
11	November 11	San Francisco 49ers	W 31–20	6–5	Louisiana Superdome	65,551
12	November 18	at Seattle Seahawks	L 24–38	6–6	Kingdome	60,055
13	November 25	at Atlanta Falcons	W 37–6	7–6	Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium	42,815
14	December 3	Oakland Raiders	L 35–42	7–7	Louisiana Superdome	65,541
15	December 9	San Diego Chargers	L 0–35	7–8	Louisiana Superdome	61,059
16	December 16	at Los Angeles Rams	W 29–14	8–8	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	53,879
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

NFC West
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Los Angeles Rams⁽³⁾	9	7	0	.563	5–1	7–5	323	309	L1
New Orleans Saints	8	8	0	.500	4–2	8–4	370	360	W1
Atlanta Falcons	6	10	0	.375	2–4	5–7	300	388	W1
San Francisco 49ers	2	14	0	.125	1–5	2–10	308	416	L1

Season summary

Week Four: New Orleans Saints (0–3) at San Francisco 49ers (0–3)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	0	13	14	3	30
49ers	7	7	0	7	21

at Candlestick Park, San Francisco, California

Date: September 23
Game time: 4:00 p.m.
Game weather: 79 °F (26 °C)
Game attendance: 39,727
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

First quarter

SF – Freddie Solomon 17-yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Ray Wersching kick). 49ers 7–0.

Second quarter

NO – Tony Galbreath 1-yard run (kick failed). 49ers 7–6.
NO – Wes Chandler 5-yard pass from Archie Manning (Garo Yepremian kick). Saints 13–7.
SF – Freddie Solomon 25-yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Ray Wersching kick). 49ers 14–13.

Third quarter

NO – Larry Hardy 3-yard pass from Archie Manning (Garo Yepremian kick). Saints 20–14.
NO – Tony Galbreath 1-yard run (Garo Yepremian kick). Saints 27–14.

Fourth quarter

SF – Paul Hofer 2-yard run (Ray Wersching kick). Saints 27–21.
NO – Garo Yepremian 18-yard field goal. Saints 30–21.

Top passers

NO – Archie Manning – 20/28, 355 yards, 2 TD
SF – Steve DeBerg – 18/33, 263 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT

Top rushers

NO – Chuck Muncie – 18 rushes, 98 yards
SF – O. J. Simpson – 7 rushes, 25 yards
Wilbur Jackson – 6 rushes, 25 yards

Top receivers

NO – Wes Chandler – 4 receptions, 127 yards, TD
SF – Freddie Solomon – 8 receptions, 144 yards, 2 TD

Week 14

Week Fourteen: Oakland Raiders (7–6) at New Orleans Saints (7–6)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Raiders	7	7	7	21	42
Saints	0	28	7	0	35

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Date: December 3, 1979
Game time: 8:00 p.m.
Game weather: Indoors (dome)
Game attendance: 71,323
TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Don Meredith, and Howard Cosell
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

First quarter

OAK – Raymond Chester 3-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Jim Breech kick). – Raiders 7–0. Drive: 15 plays, 78 yards.

Second quarter

NO – Tony Galbreath 2-yard run (Garo Yepremian kick). – Tie 7–7. Drive: 13 plays, 89 yards.
NO – Tony Galbreath 17-yard pass from Archie Manning (Garo Yepremian kick). – Saints 14–7. Drive: 3 plays, 19 yards.
NO – Chuck Muncie 1-yard run (Garo Yepremian kick). – Saints 21–7. Drive: 8 plays, 68 yards.
NO – Henry Childs 28-yard pass from Archie Manning (Garo Yepremian kick). – Saints 28–7. Drive: 1 play, 28 yards.
OAK – Arthur Whittington 1-yard run (Jim Breech kick). – Saints 28–14. Drive:

Third quarter

NO – Ken Bordelon 19-yard interception return (Garo Yepremian kick), 6:24. – Saints 35–14.
OAK – Mark van Eeghen 1-yard run (Jim Breech kick). – Saints 35–21. Drive:

Fourth quarter

OAK – Derrick Ramsey 17-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Jim Breech kick). – Saints 35–28. Drive:
OAK – Cliff Branch 66-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Jim Breech kick). – Tie 35–35. Drive:
OAK – Cliff Branch 8-yard pass from Ken Stabler (Jim Breech kick), 1:54. – Raiders 42–35. Drive: 3 plays, 13 yards.

Top passers

OAK – Ken Stabler – 26/44, 295 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT
NO – Archie Manning – 12/23, 154 yards, 2 TD, INT

Top rushers

OAK – Arthur Whittington – 14 rushes, 67 yards, TD
NO – Chuck Muncie – 21 rushes, 128 yards, TD

Top receivers

OAK – Cliff Branch – 7 receptions, 126 yards, 2 TD
NO – Tony Galbreath – 7 receptions, 106 yards, TD

Awards and records

Chuck Muncie, Pro Bowl Most Valuable Player ^[3]

References

^ "1979 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 November 5, 2014.
^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 368

[1] "1979 New Orleans Saints draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 10, 2014.

[2] "All-Time Roster". NewOrleansSaints.com. Archived from the original on June 18, 2012. Retrieved November 5, 2014.

[3] NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 368

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v t e New Orleans Saints
Founded in 1967 Based in New Orleans, Louisiana Headquartered in Metairie, Louisiana
Franchise	Franchise Seasons History All-time roster Coaches Expansion draft First-round draft picks Starting quarterbacks Broadcasters
Stadiums	Tulane Stadium Caesars Superdome Temporary home venues in 2005 due to Hurricane Katrina: Alamodome Giants Stadium Tiger Stadium
Culture	Gumbo Sir Saint Saintsations Who Dat? Tom Benson Effect of Hurricane Katrina Buddy D "When the Saints Go Marching In" Home Team Number One A Saintly Switch
Lore	"Aints" (1–15) Dempsey's 63-yard field goal Dome Patrol Ricky Williams trade River City Relay Steve Gleason's blocked punt Beast Quake Bountygate Minneapolis Miracle NOLA No-Call
Rivalries	Atlanta Falcons Carolina Panthers Los Angeles Rams Minnesota Vikings Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Wild card berths (5)	1987 1990 1992 2010 2013
Division championships (9)	1991 2000 2006 2009 2011 2017 2018 2019 2020
Conference championships (1)	2009
League championships (1)	2009 (XLIV)
Retired numbers	31 81
Ring of Honor	Andersen Benson Jackson Manning Mills Roaf Smith
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: South Division

v t e New Orleans Saints seasons
1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Bold indicates Super Bowl victory