The
1976 NFL season was the 57th regular season of the
National Football LeagueThe 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 league expanded to 28 teams with the addition of the
Seattle SeahawksThe Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
and the
Tampa Bay BuccaneersThe 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...
. This fulfilled one of the conditions agreed to in
1966The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League, and the season after which was played Super Bowl I, though it was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons, thus an odd number of teams...
for the 1970
AFL-NFL MergerThe AFL–NFL merger of 1970 was the merger of the two major professional American football leagues in the United States at the time: the National Football League and the American Football League...
, which called for the league to expand to 28 teams by 1970 or soon thereafter.
For this season only, the Seahawks played in the
NFC WestThe NFC West is a division of the National Football League's National Football Conference. It currently has four members: Arizona Cardinals, St...
while the Buccaneers played in the
AFC WestThe AFC West is a division of the National Football League's American Football Conference, currently comprising the Denver Broncos, San Diego Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Oakland Raiders.-History:...
. (The Seahawks would return to the
NFC WestThe NFC West is a division of the National Football League's National Football Conference. It currently has four members: Arizona Cardinals, St...
with the realignment prior to the
2002 NFL seasonThe 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League.The league went back to an even number of teams, expanding to 32 teams with the addition of the Houston Texans. The clubs were then realigned into eight divisions, four teams in each...
.)
In addition, the Buccaneers would set a record of futility, finishing the season 0-14. The Buccaneers would go on to lose their first 26 games as a franchise before finally winning against the
New Orleans SaintsThe New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
and
St. Louis CardinalsThe 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...
to finish the
1977 seasonThe 1977 NFL season was the 58th regular season of the National Football League. The Seattle Seahawks were placed in the AFC West while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were slotted in the NFC Central....
.
The season ended with
Super Bowl XISuper Bowl XI was a football game played on January 9, 1977 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 1976 regular season...
when the
Oakland RaidersThe Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
defeated the
Minnesota VikingsThe Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
.
Major rule changes
- Two 30-seconds clocks, one on each end of the field, will be used for all games. They will be visible to both players and fans to note the official time between the ready-for-play signal and the snap of the ball.
- If the defensive team commits a foul during a failed extra point attempt, the try is replayed and the offensive team has the option to either have the distance penalty assessed on the next try or the ensuing kickoff.
- If the defensive team commits a foul during a successful extra point attempt, the penalty will be assessed on the ensuing kickoff.
- Players cannot grasp the facemask of an opponent. The penalty for an incidental grasp of the facemask is 5 yards. The penalty for twisting, turning, or pulling the facemask is 15 yards. A player can be ejected from the game if the foul is judged to be vicious and/or flagrant.
- A defender is prohibited from running or diving into, or throwing his body against or on a ballcarrier who falls or slips to the ground untouched and makes no attempt to advance, before or after the ball is dead. This is sometimes called as the "Ben Davidson
Benjamin Earl Davidson is a former collegiate and professional American football player between 1961 and 1972, most notably in the American Football League with the Oakland Raiders from 1964 through 1969, and for the NFL Raiders from 1970 through 1972. He had also played in the NFL for the league...
Rule" after the Raiders defender who almost seriously injured quarterback Len DawsonLeonard Ray "Len" "Lenny" Dawson is a former American collegiate and Professional Football quarterback who attended Purdue University and went on to play for three professional teams, most notably the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs...
after the Chiefs passer fell to the ground and made no attempt to advance.
Division races
The two expansion clubs, Tampa Bay and Seattle, were "swing" teams that didn't participate in regular conference play. Every other NFL team played a home-and-away series against the other members in its division, three interconference games, and the remainder of their 14 game schedule against other conference teams. As a member of the AFC in 1976, Tampa Bay played the other 13 members of the conference, while Seattle did the same in the NFC. The 14th game, played in
Week Six, was Seattle's 13–10 win at Tampa.
Starting in 1970, and until 2002, there were three divisions (Eastern, Central and Western) in each conference. The winners of each division, and a fourth "wild card" team based on the best non-division winner, qualified for the playoffs. The tiebreaker rules were changed to start with head-to-head competition, followed by division records, common opponents' records, and conference play.
National Football Conference
| Week |
Eastern |
|
Central |
|
Western |
|
Wild Card |
|
| 1 |
3 teams |
1-0-0 |
(Chi, Min) |
1-0-0 |
(LA, SF) |
1-0-0 |
4 teams |
1-0-0 |
| 2 |
3 teams |
2-0-0 |
CHICAGO |
2-0-0 |
LOS ANGELES |
1-0-1 |
2 teams |
2-0-0 |
| 3 |
(Dal, Was) |
3-0-0 |
MINNESOTA |
2-0-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
2-0-1 |
(Dal Was) |
3-0-0 |
| 4 |
DALLAS |
4-0-0 |
MINNESOTA |
3-0-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
3-0-1 |
ST. LOUIS* |
3-1-0 |
| 5 |
DALLAS |
5-0-0 |
MINNESOTA |
4-0-1 |
SAN FRANCISC0 |
4-1-0 |
ST. LOUIS |
4-1-0 |
| 6 |
ST. LOUIS* |
5-1-0 |
MINNESOTA |
5-0-1 |
SAN FRANCISCO |
5-1-0 |
DALLAS |
5-1-0 |
| 7 |
DALLAS |
6-1-0 |
MINNESOTA |
6-0-1 |
SAN FRANCISCO |
6-1-0 |
LOS ANGELES |
5-1-1 |
| 8 |
DALLAS |
7-1-0 |
MINNESOTA |
6-1-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
6-1-1 |
ST. LOUIS* |
6-2-0 |
| 9 |
DALLAS |
8-1-0 |
MINNESOTA |
7-1-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
6-2-1 |
ST. LOUIS |
7-2-0 |
| 10 |
DALLAS |
9-1-0 |
MINNESOTA |
8-1-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
6-3-1 |
ST. LOUIS |
8-2-0 |
| 11 |
DALLAS |
9-2-0 |
MINNESOTA |
9-1-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
7-3-1 |
ST. LOUIS |
8-3-0 |
| 12 |
DALLAS |
10-2-0 |
MINNESOTA |
9-2-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
8-3-1 |
WASHINGTON* |
8-4-0 |
| 13 |
DALLAS |
11-2-0 |
MINNESOTA |
10-2-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
9-3-1 |
WASHINGTON* |
9-4-0 |
| 14 |
DALLAS |
11-3-0 |
MINNESOTA |
11-2-1 |
LOS ANGELES |
10-3-1 |
WASHINGTON* |
10-4-0 |
American Football Conference
| Week |
Eastern |
|
Central |
|
Western |
|
Wild Card |
|
| 1 |
(Bal, Mia) |
1-0-0 |
3 teams |
1-0-0 |
(Oak, SD) |
1-0-0 |
4 teams |
1-0-0 |
| 2 |
BALTIMORE |
2-0-0 |
HOUSTON |
2-0-0 |
(Den, Oak) |
2-0-0 |
2 teams |
2-0-0 |
| 3 |
MIAMI* |
2-1-0 |
HOUSTON* |
2-1-0 |
(Oak, SD) |
3-0-0 |
5 teams |
2-1-0 |
| 4 |
BALTIMORE* |
3-1-0 |
CINCINNATI* |
3-1-0 |
(Den, Oak) |
3-1-0 |
3 teams* |
3-1-0 |
| 5 |
BALTIMORE |
4-1-0 |
CINCINNATI* |
4-1-0 |
OAKLAND |
4-1-0 |
HOUSTON |
4-1-0 |
| 6 |
BALTIMORE |
5-1-0 |
CINCINNATI* |
4-2-0 |
OAKLAND |
5-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND* |
4-2-0 |
| 7 |
BALTIMORE |
6-1-0 |
CINCINNATI |
5-2-0 |
OAKLAND |
6-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
5-2-0 |
| 8 |
BALTIMORE |
7-1-0 |
CINCINNATI |
6-2-0 |
OAKLAND |
7-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
5-3-0 |
| 9 |
BALTIMORE |
8-1-0 |
CINCINNATI |
7-2-0 |
OAKLAND |
8-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
6-3-0 |
| 10 |
BALTIMORE |
8-2-0 |
CINCINNATI |
8-2-0 |
OAKLAND |
9-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
7-3-0 |
| 11 |
BALTIMORE |
9-2-0 |
CINCINNATI |
9-2-0 |
OAKLAND |
10-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
8-3-0 |
| 12 |
BALTIMORE |
10-2-0 |
CINCINNATI |
9-3-0 |
OAKLAND |
11-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
9-3-0 |
| 13 |
BALTIMORE* |
10-3-0 |
CINCINNATI* |
9-4-0 |
OAKLAND |
12-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND* |
10-3-0 |
| 14 |
BALTIMORE* |
11-3-0 |
PITTSBURGH* |
10-4-0 |
OAKLAND |
13-1-0 |
NEW ENGLAND |
11-3-0 |
Final standings
W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against
- clinched wild cardThe term wild card refers broadly to a tournament or playoff berth awarded to an individual or team that has not qualified through normal play.-International sports:...
berth, - clinched division title
Tiebreakers
- Baltimore finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on better division record (7–1 to Patriots' 6–2).
- Pittsburgh finished ahead of Cincinnati in the AFC Central based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).
- Washington finished ahead of St. Louis in the NFC East based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).
- Atlanta finished ahead of New Orleans in the NFC West based on better division record (2–4 to Saints' 1–5).
Playoffs
Awards
| Most Valuable Player The National Football League Most Valuable Player Award is given by various entities, most notably the Associated Press , to the player who is considered most valuable in the league. When the award is referred to without mentioning the organization, it generally means the AP award. The AP NFL MVP...
|
Bert Jones Bertram Hays "Bert" Jones is a former LSU and NFL quarterback who played for the then Baltimore Colts and, briefly, the Los Angeles Rams. At Ruston High School, he was given the nickname, "The Ruston Rifle"...
, QuarterbackQuarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
, Baltimore Colts |
| Coach of the Year The National Football League Coach of the Year Award is presented annually by various news and sports organizations to the NFL head coach who has done the most outstanding job of working with the talent he has at his disposal. Currently, the most widely recognized award is presented by the...
|
Forrest Gregg Alvis Forrest Gregg is a former American football player and coach in the National Football League. During a Pro Football Hall of Fame playing career, he was a part of six championships, five of them with the Green Bay Packers before closing out his tenure with the Dallas Cowboys with a win in...
, Cleveland Browns |
| Offensive Player of the Year The NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award is given annually by the Associated Press to the offensive player of the National Football League believed to have had the most outstanding season...
|
Bert Jones Bertram Hays "Bert" Jones is a former LSU and NFL quarterback who played for the then Baltimore Colts and, briefly, the Los Angeles Rams. At Ruston High School, he was given the nickname, "The Ruston Rifle"...
, QuarterbackQuarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
, Baltimore Colts |
| Defensive Player of the Year The NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award is given by the Associated Press to the league's most outstanding defensive player at the end of every NFL season since 1971. Multiple-award winners include Lawrence Taylor, who won it three times, and Joe Greene, Mike Singletary, Bruce Smith, Reggie...
|
Jack Lambert, LinebackerA linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...
, Pittsburgh |
| Offensive Rookie of the Year |
Sammy White Samuel or Sam White may refer to:*Samuel White , lawyer and U.S. Senator from Delaware*Samuel White , Member of Parliament for Leitrim*Samuel Albert White , Australian ornithologist...
, Wide ReceiverA wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
, Minnesota Vikings |
| Defensive Rookie of the Year |
Mike Haynes Michael James Haynes is an American former National Football League cornerback who played for the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Raiders. He used his speed, quickness and range to become both a premier defensive back and an outstanding punt return specialist.-Early years:Mike Haynes...
, CornerbackA cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...
, New England |