1976 Baltimore Colts season
Encyclopedia
The 1976
Baltimore Colts
season
was the 24th season for the team in the National Football League
. The Baltimore Colts finished the National Football League
's 1976 season with a record of 11 wins and 3 losses, and finished tied for first in the AFC
East
division with the New England Patriots
. However, the Colts finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on a better division record (7–1 to Patriots' 6–2).
as a No. 2 seed and played host to the Pittsburgh Steelers
in the divisional round. The Colts feel behind 26–7 at the half and would never recover, losing in the end 40–14.
1976 NFL season
The 1976 NFL season was the 57th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 28 teams with the addition of the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers...
Baltimore Colts
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League ....
season
Indianapolis Colts seasons
The Indianapolis Colts, formerly the Baltimore Colts, are an American football team playing in the National Football League . The list documents the season-by-season records of the Colts franchise from to present, including postseason records and league awards for individual players or head coaches...
was the 24th season for the team in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. The Baltimore Colts finished the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
's 1976 season with a record of 11 wins and 3 losses, and finished tied for first in the AFC
American Football Conference
The American Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the National Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL....
East
AFC East
The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is a division of the National Football League's American Football Conference. There are four members: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots , and New York Jets...
division with the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
. However, the Colts finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on a better division record (7–1 to Patriots' 6–2).
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Game Site | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 12, 1976 | at New England Patriots New England Patriots The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National... |
W 27–13 | 1–0 | Schaeffer Stadium Foxboro Stadium Foxboro Stadium was an outdoor stadium, located in Foxborough, Massachusetts... |
|
| 2 | September 19, 1976 | Cincinnati Bengals Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL... |
W 28–27 | 2–0 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
| 3 | September 26, 1976 | at Dallas Cowboys Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas... |
L 27–30 | 2–1 | Texas Stadium Texas Stadium Texas Stadium was a football stadium in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. The stadium opened on September 17, 1971.Built to replace the aging Cotton Bowl, it was the home field of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, and had a seating capacity of 65,675... |
|
| 4 | October 3, 1976 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West... |
W 42–17 | 3–1 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
| 5 | October 10, 1976 | Miami Dolphins Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 28–14 | 4–1 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
| 6 | October 17, 1976 | at Buffalo Bills Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 31–13 | 5–1 | Rich Stadium Ralph Wilson Stadium Ralph Wilson Stadium is a football stadium, located in the town of Orchard Park, a suburb of Buffalo, New York. It is the home for the Buffalo Bills, of the NFL... |
|
| 7 | October 24, 1976 | at New York Jets New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 20–0 | 6–1 | Shea Stadium Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008... |
|
| 8 | November 1, 1976 | Houston Oilers Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter... |
W 38–14 | 7–1 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
| 9 | November 7, 1976 | at San Diego Chargers San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 37–21 | 8–1 | San Diego Stadium Qualcomm Stadium Qualcomm Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium, in San Diego, California, in the Mission Valley area.... |
|
| 10 | November 14, 1976 | New England Patriots New England Patriots The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National... |
L 14–21 | 8–2 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
| 11 | November 22, 1976 | at Miami Dolphins Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 17–16 | 9–2 | Miami Orange Bowl Miami Orange Bowl The Orange Bowl, formerly Burdine Stadium, was an outdoor athletic stadium in Miami, Florida, west of downtown in Little Havana. Considered a landmark, it was the home stadium for the Miami Hurricanes college football team... |
|
| 12 | November 28, 1976 | New York Jets New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 33–16 | 10–2 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
| 13 | December 4, 1976 | at St. Louis Cardinals Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League... |
L 17–24 | 10–3 | Busch Memorial Stadium Busch Memorial Stadium Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium, was a multi-purpose sports facility in St. Louis, Missouri that operated from 1966 to 2005.... |
|
| 14 | December 12, 1976 | Buffalo Bills Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 58–20 | 11–3 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
Standings
| AFC East AFC East The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is a division of the National Football League's American Football Conference. There are four members: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots , and New York Jets... |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| New England Patriots 1976 New England Patriots season The 1976 New England Patriots season was the seventh season for the team in the National Football League and 17th season overall. After a nine-year stretch in which they posted just one .500 season amid eight losing years, the Patriots turned around their fortunes, going 11–3 and rushing for 2,957... |
11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 376 | 236 | W-6 |
| Baltimore Colts | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 417 | 246 | W-1 |
| Miami Dolphins 1976 Miami Dolphins season The 1976 Miami Dolphins season was the team's 11th as a member of the National Football League. The Dolphins failed to improve on their previous season's output of 10–4, winning only six games. One of these wins came over their new in-state rivals, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers – who proceeded to lose... |
6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 263 | 264 | L-1 |
| New York Jets 1976 New York Jets season The 1976 New York Jets season was the 17th season for the team and the seventh in the National Football League. It began with the team trying to improve upon its 3–11 record from 1975 under new head coach Lou Holtz... |
3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 169 | 383 | L-4 |
| Buffalo Bills 1976 Buffalo Bills season The 1976 Buffalo Bills season was the 17th season for the club and its 7th in the National Football League.-NFL Draft:-Schedule:-Standings:-Awards and honors:... |
2 | 12 | 0 | .143 | 245 | 363 | L-10 |
Postseason
The team made it to the playoffsNFL playoffs, 1976-77
The NFL playoffs following the 1976 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XI.-Bracket:-AFC: Oakland Raiders 24, New England Patriots 21:The Patriots scored first after an 86-yard drive was capped by running back Andy Johnson's 1-yard touchdown run...
as a No. 2 seed and played host to the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
in the divisional round. The Colts feel behind 26–7 at the half and would never recover, losing in the end 40–14.
| Playoff Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Game Site | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisional | December 19, 1976 | Pittsburgh Steelers Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC... (3) |
L 14–40 | 0–1 | Memorial Stadium Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) Memorial Stadium was a sports stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, that formerly stood on 33rd Street on an over-sized block also bounded by Ellerslie Avenue , 36th Street , and Ednor Road... |
|
See also
- History of the Indianapolis ColtsHistory of the Indianapolis ColtsThe Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the AFC South division of the National Football League. They have won 3 NFL championships and 2 Super Bowls....
- Indianapolis Colts seasonsIndianapolis Colts seasonsThe Indianapolis Colts, formerly the Baltimore Colts, are an American football team playing in the National Football League . The list documents the season-by-season records of the Colts franchise from to present, including postseason records and league awards for individual players or head coaches...
- Colts-Patriots rivalry