1961 Philadelphia Eagles season
| 1961 Philadelphia Eagles season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Nick Skorich |
| Owner | Happy Hundred |
| Home field | Franklin Field |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–4 |
| Division place | 2nd NFL Eastern |
| Playoff finish | Lost NFL Playoff Bowl (vs. Lions) 10-38 |
Off-season
Since 1951 the Eagles have held their training camp at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
NFL Draft
The 1961 NFL Draft and the 1961 AFL Draft were separate drafts, and players could end up being drafted by both leagues.
The NFL Draft of 20 rounds with 14 teams picking were separate drafts for college players and took place on December 27–28, 1960. The Eagles would pick last by going 10–2 in the 1960 season. As was the rule then, teams picked by previous season record, with that Cleveland Browns pick ahead of 1960 NFL Championship Game loser Green Bay Packers. This draft was also the first regular draft for the Dallas Cowboys as they had participated only in the 1960 NFL Expansion Draft that year. The Cowboys held the worst record in the NFL the previous season, but selected second in this draft because of the entry of the Minnesota Vikings into the league. The league would later hold an expansion draft for the Vikings' expansion franchise, and the Vikings were also awarded the first selection position in this draft.
The AFL draft was held on 2 dates 2 weeks apart at the end of the 1960 college season but before the bowl games. The first was a six-round draft held by phone. The second was held December 5 and 6, 1960 for rounds 7 through 30. The Denver Broncos selected New Mexico State's Bob Gaiters as the overall first draft pick.
The Philadelphia Eagles lost their first-round pick to the AFL for the second year. About half of the Eagles' 19 picks either signed with the AFL or remained in college to play their last year of eligibility.
Player selections
| = Pro Bowler [1] | = AFL All-Star [2] | = Hall of Famer |
| Rd | PICK | PLAYER | POS | SCHOOL | AFL | Rd | Pick | Signed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | Art Baker | Fullback | Syracuse | Buffalo Bills from New York | 3rd | Buffalo | ||
| 2 | 28 | Bo Strange | Center | Louisiana State | Denver Broncos | 3rd | |||
| 3 | 31 | Jim Wright | Quarterback | Memphis State | New York | 1 | Dallas Texans | ||
| 3 | 42 | Don Oakes | Tackle | Virginia Tech | Boston Patriots | 21 | 162 | Eagles | |
| 4 | 53 | Dan Ficca | Guard | USC | San Diego | 29 | 162 | Oakland Raiders | |
| 4 | 56 | Pick taken by Green Bay | |||||||
| 5 | 70 | Pick taken by Detroit Lions | |||||||
| 6 | 84 | Ben Balme | Guard | Yale | |||||
| 7 | 98 | Irv Cross | Back | Northwestern | New York | 15 | 117 | Eagles | |
| 8 | 112 | Jim Beaver | Guard | Florida | |||||
| 9 | 126 | Wayne Fontes [3] | Running back | Michigan State | New York | 22 | 173 | New York Titans | |
| 10 | 140 | Luther Hayes | End | USC | San Diego | 27 | 215 | San Diego Chargers | |
| 11 | 154 | L.E. Hicks | Tackle | Florida | |||||
| 12 | 168 | Billy Majors [4] | Back | Tennessee | Buffalo Bills | 9 | 67 | Buffalo | |
| 13 | 180 | Don Jonas | Quarterback | Penn State | Eagles 1962 season then career in CFL | ||||
| 14 | 196 | Willie Fleming | Running back | Iowa | signed with BC Lions of CFL in 1959 | ||||
| 15 | 210 | Bobby Richards | Tackle | Louisiana State | Eagles 1962 season | ||||
| 16 | 224 | G. W. Clapp | Guard | Auburn | |||||
| 17 | 238 | Larry Lavery | Tackle | Illinois | |||||
| 18 | 252 | Nick Maravich | Tackle | North Carolina State | |||||
| 19 | 266 | Dick Wilson | Center | Penn State | |||||
| 20 | 280[5] | Jacque MacKinnon[6] | Back | Colgate | |||||
Preseason
- August 4, Chicago All-Star Game: Eagles 28, All-Stars 14 [7]
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 17, 1961 | Cleveland Browns | W 27–20 | |
| 2 | September 24, 1961 | Washington Redskins | W 14–7 | |
| 3 | October 1, 1961 | St. Louis Cardinals | L 30–27 | |
| 4 | October 8, 1961 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 21–16 | |
| 5 | October 15, 1961 | at St. Louis Cardinals | W 20–7 | |
| 6 | October 22, 1961 | at Dallas Cowboys | W 43–7 | |
| 7 | October 29, 1961 | at Washington Redskins | W 27–24 | |
| 8 | November 5, 1961 | Chicago Bears | W 16–14 | |
| 9 | November 12, 1961 | at New York Giants | L 38–21 | |
| 10 | November 19, 1961 | at Cleveland Browns | L 45–24 | |
| 11 | November 26, 1961 | Dallas Cowboys | W 35–13 | |
| 12 | December 3, 1961 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 35–24 | |
| 13 | December 10, 1961 | New York Giants | L 28–24 | |
| 14 | December 17, 1961 | at Detroit Lions | W 27–24 |
Standings
| NFL Eastern Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
| New York Giants | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 9–2–1 | 368 | 220 | T1 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 8–4 | 361 | 297 | W1 | |
| Cleveland Browns | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 8–3–1 | 319 | 270 | T1 | |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 7–5 | 279 | 267 | W3 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 5–7 | 295 | 287 | L1 | |
| Dallas Cowboys | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 2–9–1 | 236 | 380 | L4 | |
| Washington Redskins | 1 | 12 | 1 | .077 | 1–10–1 | 174 | 392 | W1 | |
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Playoff Bowl
| Season | Date | Winner | Score | Runner up | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | January 6, 1962 | Detroit Lions | 38–10 | Philadelphia Eagles | |
References
- ↑ Players are identified as a Pro Bowler if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their careers.
- ↑ Players are identified as an All-Star if they were selected for the All-Star team at any time in their careers.
- ↑ Wayne Fontes signed with the New York Titans of the AFL
- ↑ Billy Majors signed with the Buffalo Bills of the AFL
- ↑ This last selection is commonly referred to as Mr. Irrelevant.
- ↑ Jacque MacKinnon signed with the San Diego Chargers of the AFL
- 1 2 NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 369