1976 Detroit Lions season

The 1976 Detroit Lions season was the 47th season in franchise history. After the first four games of the season, Rick Forzano resigned under pressure of owner William Clay Ford, and was replaced by one time Brigham Young University head coach and Lions assistant Tommy Hudspeth.[2] In spite of a stellar season by quarterback Greg Landry, that year's NFL Comeback Player Of The Year, the team was still mired in mediocrity, finishing 6–8.

1976 Detroit Lions season
OwnerWilliam Clay Ford, Sr.
Head coachRick Forzano and Tommy Hudspeth
General managerRuss Thomas
Home fieldPontiac Metropolitan Stadium[1]
Results
Record6–8
Division place3rd NFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
2
AP All-ProsNone

NFL Draft
Main article: 1976 NFL Draft
1976 Detroit Lions draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 10 James Hunter  CB Grambling State from Chicago
1 16 Lawrence Gaines  RB Wyoming
2 44 Ken Long  G Purdue
2 46 David Hill *  TE Texas A&I from San Diego
3 68 Russ Bolinger  OT Long Beach State from Chicago
3 76 John Woodcock  DT Hawaii
5 145 Steadman Scavella  LB Miami (FL) from Miami
7 198 Garth TenNapel  LB Texas A&M
8 217 Rich Sorenson  K Chico State from New England
8 225 Charles Braswell  DB West Virginia
9 253 Leanell Jones  TE Long Beach State
10 279 Bill Bowerman  DB New Mexico State
11 307 Gary Shugrue  DE Villanova
12 335 Mike McCabe  C South Carolina
13 363 Mel Jacobs  WR San Diego State
14 391 Leonard Elston  WR Kentucky State
15 419 Trent Smock  WR Indiana
16 447 Craig McCurdy  LB William & Mary
17 475 Jim Meeks  DB Boise State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Notes

  • Detroit were awarded a first-round pick (8th) from Los Angeles as compensation for the Rams signing Lions free agent WR Ron Jessie. During the draft, Detroit traded this 8th pick to Chicago in exchange for the Bears' first- and third-round picks (10th and 68th).
  • Detroit were awarded a second-round pick (46th) from San Diego as compensation for the Chargers signing Lions free agent C Ed Flanagan.
  • Detroit traded its fourth-round pick (108th) to Miami in exchange for LB Larry Ball and the Dolphins' fifth-round pick (145th).
  • Detroit traded its fifth-round pick (140th) to San Francisco in exchange for QB Joe Reed.
  • Detroit traded its sixth-round pick (170th) to New England in exchange for C Jon Morris.
  • Detroit traded FB Leon Crosswhite to New England in exchange for the Patriots' eighth-round pick (217th) and sixth-round pick in 1975.

Roster
Detroit Lions roster
Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

 Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Special Teams

 Reserve Lists
  • Currently vacant

Rookies in italics

Regular season

On November 25, O.J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills set a record with the most rushing yards in a Thanksgiving Day game, by rushing for 273 yards against the Lions.[3]

In spite of their poor overall record the Lions offense set a statistical record for Passer Rating Differential (40.9, 14th best 1960 to 2011). Such a high rating is usually reserved for playoff teams or Super Bowl winners:

NFL Champions (1920–1969)
Super Bowl Champions (1970–present)		 Conference Champions Division Champions Wild Card Berth Did not qualify for postseason
Top 25 Teams in Passer Rating Differential (1960-present)[4]
Ranking Team OPR DPR Differential W L T
1 1960 Cleveland Browns 109.5 51.7 57.8 8 3 1
2 1966 Green Bay Packers 102.1 46.1 56.0 12 2
3 1987 San Francisco 49ers 106.2 53.8 52.4 13 2
4 1989 San Francisco 49ers 114.8 68.5 46.3 14 2
5 1975 Minnesota Vikings 90.8 46.2 44.6 12 2
6 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers 86.7 42.8 43.9 12 2
7 1994 San Francisco 49ers 111.4 68.1 43.3 13 3
8 1999 St. Louis Rams 106.6 64.1 42.5 13 3
9 1975 Cincinnati Bengals 89 46.9 42.1 11 3
10 1963 New York Giants 94.4 52.7 41.7 11 3
11 1962 Green Bay Packers 84.9 43.4 41.5 13 1
12 1976 Detroit Lions 84.6 43.7 40.9 6 8
13 1963 Chicago Bears 75.6 34.8 40.8 11 1 2
14 1996 Green Bay Packers 95.7 55.4 40.3 13 3
15 1974 Washington Redskins 90 49.9 40.1 10 4
16 1972 Miami Dolphins 86.9 47.4 39.5 14 0
17 1988 Minnesota Vikings 80.4 41.2 39.2 11 5
18 1991 Washington Redskins 98 58.9 39.1 14 2
19 1960 Philadelphia Eagles 87.9 49.1 38.8 10 2
20 2007 New England Patriots 116 78.1 37.9 16 0
21 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 86.3 48.4 37.9 12 4
22 2009 New Orleans Saints 106 68.6 37.4 13 3
23 1984 Miami Dolphins 108.5 71.4 37.1 14 2
24 1977 Dallas Cowboys 85.3 48.2 37.1 12 2
25 1967 Los Angeles Rams 84.4 47.5 36.9 11 1 2

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance
1 September 12 at Chicago Bears L 10–3 0–1 54,125
2 September 19 Atlanta Falcons W 24–10 1–1 50,840
3 September 26 Minnesota Vikings L 10–9 1–2 77,292
4 October 3 at Green Bay Packers L 24–14 1–3 55,041
5 October 10 New England Patriots W 30–10 2–3 60,174
6 October 17 at Washington Redskins L 20–7 2–4 45,908
7 October 24 at Seattle Seahawks W 41–14 3–4 61,280
8 October 31 Green Bay Packers W 27–6 4–4 74,992
9 November 7 at Minnesota Vikings L 31–23 4–5 46,735
10 November 14 at New Orleans Saints L 17–16 4–6 42,048
11 November 21 Chicago Bears W 14–10 5–6 78,042
12 November 25 Buffalo Bills W 27–14 6–6 66,875
13 December 5 at New York Giants L 24–10 6–7 66,069
14 December 11 Los Angeles Rams L 20–17 6–8 73,470
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Week 1 at Bears
See also: 1976 Chicago Bears season and Bears–Lions rivalry
Week One: Detroit Lions (0–0) at Chicago Bears (0–0)
1 2 34Total
Lions 0 3 003
Bears 0 0 7310

at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

  • Date: September 12, 1976
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 69 °F or 20.6 °C • Wind 12 miles per hour (19 km/h; 10 kn)
  • Game attendance: 54,125
  • Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information

Week 2 vs Falcons
See also: 1976 Atlanta Falcons season
Week Two: Atlanta Falcons (0–1) at Detroit Lions (0–1)
1 2 34Total
Falcons 0 7 3010
Lions 0 0 02424

at Pontiac Metropolitan Stadium, Pontiac, Michigan

  • Date: September 19, 1976
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: Indoors (dome)
  • Game attendance: 50,840
  • Box Score
Game information

Week 4 at Packers
Week Four: Detroit Lions (1–2) at Green Bay Packers (0–3)
1 2 34Total
Lions 0 14 0014
Packers 10 0 01424

at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin

  • Date: October 3
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: 60 °F or 15.6 °C
  • Game attendance: 55,041
  • Box Score
Game information

Standings
NFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Minnesota Vikings(1) 11 2 1 .821 5–1 9–2–1 305 176 W2
Chicago Bears 7 7 0 .500 4–2 7–5 253 216 L1
Detroit Lions 6 8 0 .429 2–4 4–8 262 220 L2
Green Bay Packers 5 9 0 .357 1–5 5–8 218 299 W1

References
  1. "The Argus-Press - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2021-10-10.
  2. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 114.
  3. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 377
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-06-26. Retrieved 2011-06-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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