Monday Night Football Early Years (1979

Before we jump into Monday Night Football from 1979 thru 1984, if you haven’t checked it out yet, we recommend reading the articles covering 70′-73′ and 74′-78′ first. You can also listen to Mark and Dave on Yesterday’s Sports reliving MNF throughout the years. Below is part 1 of the conversation.

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1979

Recently retired Fran Tarkenton served as a color commentator a few times for Don Meredith and continued in that role for the next three years.

Week Five: This game was memorable because it was the first Monday Night game played at Lambeau Field. Many people are unaware that, until 1995, the Packers continued to play some of their home games at Milwaukee County Stadium. New England outgained the Packers 401 yards to 317, but Steve Grogan was sacked five times and the Patriots turned the ball over six times. Green Bay pulled off the upset 27–14, but finished the season with a disappointing 5–11 record.

Week Fifteen: After losing to Pittsburgh 34-5 in the 1978 AFC Championship and 38–7 in Week Two of the 1979 season, the Oilers were eager for revenge, and they achieved it with a 20–17 victory on Monday Night. Houston played a game of ball control, with Earl Campbell carrying the ball 33 times for 109 yards. The two teams met again in the AFC Championship game, with Pittsburgh winning 27–13.

1980

Week Fourteen: In a tough defensive game, the Patriots took a 13–6 lead in the fourth quarter when Matt Cavanaugh connected with Russ Francis for a 38-yard touchdown. However, the Dolphins responded with a touchdown of their own to tie the game. Miami won in overtime when Uwe Von Schamann kicked a 23-yard field goal. The game is best remembered for Howard Cosell announcing that former Beatle John Lennon had been shot and killed.

Week Fifteen: In a game the Cowboys needed to win to stay tied with the Eagles for first place in the Eastern Division, they played their worst game of the season, losing 38–14. The Rams gained 517 yards against the Doomsday Defense. Jewerl Thomas ran for 147 yards on just 16 carries, while Billy Waddy gained 124 yards receiving.

Vince Ferragamo completed 15 of 25 passes for 275 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. The Cowboys turned the tables on LA just two weeks later, beating the Rams 34–13 in the Wild Card playoff game.

1981

Week Thirteen: The defending NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles faced the Miami Dolphins in a tough, defensive contest. Both teams needed a win to stay in the playoff chase. The Eagles led 10–3 going into the fourth quarter, but the Dolphins came back to win 13–10.

The two teams combined for just 421 yards. Durial Harris gained over half of the Dolphins’ yardage, catching nine passes for 114 yards and scoring a touchdown. Both teams made the playoffs but were eliminated in the first round.

1982

Only 12 of the 22 scheduled Monday Night Football games were played due to the players’ strike.

Week Seventeen: The Cowboys took a 10–0 lead, but the Vikings responded with seventeen unanswered points. With the Cowboys trailing 24–13 in the fourth quarter, Tony Dorsett ran 99 yards to narrow the gap to 24–20. It remains the longest run in NFL history. Another touchdown by Ron Springs put Dallas ahead 27–24, but the Vikings ultimately won 31–27.

1983

O.J. Simpson replaced Fran Tarkenton as a backup for Don Meredith and also filled in for Howard Cosell when Cosell was covering the baseball playoffs.

Week One: The Cowboys vs. Redskins game was a rematch of the 1982 NFC Championship, which the Redskins won 31–17. The defending Super Bowl Champion Redskins, jumped out to a 23–3 halftime lead, but the Cowboys mounted one of the biggest comebacks in Monday Night Football history.

In the second half, Dallas scored four touchdowns and held on for a 31–30 victory. The game featured some outstanding offensive performances. Tony Dorsett gained 151 yards on just 14 carries. Danny White completed only nine passes, but they totaled 193 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Two of those touchdown passes were caught by Tony Hill, one for 51 yards and another for 75 yards.

Joe Theismann completed 28 of 38 passes for 325 yards, with two touchdowns and just one interception. Alvin Garrett caught ten of those passes for 101 yards. The Cowboys were 12–2 after fourteen weeks but were beaten 31–10 by the Redskins in week fifteen. They never recovered, losing their next two games, including a playoff game against the Rams.

Week Seven: The 5–1 Redskins faced off against the 3–3 Packers at Lambeau Field, with the Redskins needing a win to stay on pace with the 7–0 Cowboys. Fans of high-scoring offensive shootouts loved this game, as both teams combined for over 1,000 yards gained. The teams exchanged scores in the first half, with the Packers holding a 24–20 lead at the halftime break.

Early in the third quarter, Green Bay extended its lead to 31–20, but Washington fought back to take a 33–31 lead. The lead kept changing hands until a field goal by Jan Stenerud finally gave the Packers a 48–47 victory. At the time, it was the highest-scoring game ever on Monday Night Football. Joe Theismann completed 27 of 39 passes for 398 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

Lynn Dickey was 22 of 31 for 387 yards, with three touchdowns and just one interception. Art Monk, Paul Coffman, and Gary Ellis each had over 100 receiving yards. The Packers finished the season with an 8–8 record and missed the playoffs. After losing to Green Bay, the Redskins won eleven straight games before losing in the Super Bowl, 38–9, to the Oakland Raiders.

1984

O.J. Simpson replaced Howard Cosell, who decided he’d had enough of Monday Night Football. Some fans said they didn’t like Cosell, but ratings dropped after he left.

Week Seven: This game stands out to me for two reasons. #1 — It was played at Mile High Stadium in Denver during a major snowstorm. This wouldn’t be unusual except for the fact that it was October 15th, only three weeks into fall. The second reason was that it was the first time I ever watched a game on a VCR.

In 1984, VCRs were still relatively new and quite expensive. A basic model ranged from $400 to $750, with more advanced ones costing over $1,000. I didn’t buy my first VCR until 1990, when prices dropped to around $125. But a coworker had one, and he asked if I wanted to watch the game with him. Our shift started at 9:30 pm Eastern time, so I had stopped watching Monday Night Football regularly. But with his VCR recording the game for us, we could watch Tuesday Morning Football. We started watching around 6:00 am.

It was definitely unusual to watch football on a Tuesday morning, but we were excited. The best part was being able to fast-forward through all the commercials. When we turned on the game, we thought we were seeing things. Snow in the middle of October? The Packers completely outplayed the Broncos, outgaining them 423 yards to 193, yet they still lost 17–14 due to five turnovers.

Despite the weather, Lyn Dickey completed 27 of 37 passes for 371 yards with one touchdown and just one interception. His main target, James Lofton, caught eleven passes for 206 yards and a touchdown.

Mark Morthier is the host of Yesterday’s Sports, a podcast dedicated to reliving memorable sports moments from his childhood days and beyond. He grew up in New Jersey just across from New York City, so many of his episodes revolve around the great sport’s teams of the 70s for the New York area.

He is also an author of No Nonsense, Old School Weight Training (Second Edition): A Guide for People with Limited Time and Running Wild: (Growing Up in the 1970s)