Head coach Hank Stram Record 6–8 Playoff finish did not qualify | Home field Cotton Bowl Division place 2nd AFL Western | |
AFL All-Stars HB Abner Haynes
LB Sherrill Headrick
TE Chris Burford
QB Cotton Davidson
DT Paul Rochester | ||
The 1961 Dallas Texans season resulted in a 6–8 record and second-place finish in the AFL Western Conference.
The club moved its training camp to Lamar Hunt's alma mater of Southern Methodist University and started the regular season at 3–1 before hitting a six-game losing skid, the longest such streak of head coach Hank Stram's tenure with the franchise. One of those losses was a 28–21 decision in a Friday night contest at Boston (11/3) which featured a bizarre ending as a raincoat-clad fan knocked down a potential game-tying TD from Cotton Davidson to Chris Burford on the game's final play. The team rebounded to claim wins in three of its final four contests to finish 6–8, marking the club's second straight finish behind the Chargers in the AFL West standings.
Standings
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.