The 1980 NFL season was the 61st regular season of the National Football League.
After the league declined to approve the proposed move by the Raiders from Oakland, California to Los Angeles, the team along with the Los Angeles Coliseum sued the NFL for violating antitrust laws. A verdict in the trial would not be decided until before the 1982 NFL season. The Los Angeles Rams left the Coliseum for Anaheim Stadium in Orange County.
Meanwhile, the season ended with Super Bowl XV when the Raiders defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 27-10, making them the first Wild Card playoff team ever to do so.
A ten-second runoff will be implemented when a team commits the following fouls within the last minute of either half:
Fouls by either team that prevents the snap (i.e., false start, encroachment, etc.)
Intentional grounding
Illegal forward pass thrown from beyond the line of scrimmage
Throwing a backward pass out of bounds
Spiking or throwing the ball in the field of play after a down has ended, except after a touchdown
Any other intentional foul that causes the clock to stop.
Any excess time-out taken for injuries by either team.
Teams can take a time-out (if available) to prevent the runoff.
Players are prohibited from striking, swinging, or clubbing to the head, face, or neck. The personal foul could be called whether or not the initial contact was made below the neck.
A "Guidelines for Captains" section was added to the rules.
From 1978 to 1989, ten teams qualified for the playoffs: the winners of each of the divisions, and two wild-card teams in each conference. These are the leaders for each playoff slot, week by week. Teams listed in Week 16 indicate playoff participants.
Final standings
W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against
Cleveland finished ahead of Houston in the AFC Central based on better conference record (8–4 to Oilers' 7–5).
San Diego finished ahead of Oakland in the AFC West based on better net points in division games (plus 60 net points to Raiders' plus 37).
San Diego was the top AFC playoff seed based on better conference record than Cleveland and Buffalo (9–3 to Browns' 8–4 and Bills' 8–4).
Cleveland was the second AFC playoff seed based on better record against common opponents (5–2 to Bills' 5–3).
Oakland was the first AFC Wild Card based on better conference record than Houston (9–3 to Oilers' 7–5).
Kansas City finished ahead of Denver in the AFC West based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).
Philadelphia finished ahead of Dallas in the NFC East based on better net points in division games (plus 84 net points to Cowboys' plus 50).
Atlanta was the top NFC playoff seed based on head-to-head victory over Philadelphia (1–0).
Minnesota finished ahead of Detroit in the NFC Central based on better conference record (8–4 to Lions' 9–5).
Tampa Bay finished ahead of Green Bay in the NFC Central based on better head-to-head record (1–0–1 to Packers' 0–1–1).
NOTE: The San Diego Chargers (the AFC 1 seed) did not play the Oakland Raiders (the 4 seed) in the Divisional playoff round because both teams were in the same division.
