All NFL game summaries for 12/21/1975:

Baltimore completed its amazing comeback from a last place 2-12 season in 1974 to a 10-4 year in 1975 by winning the AFC East and running its consecutive victory streak to nine against the stubborn Patriots. The Colts, needing a win to clinch, trailed 21-20 in the fourth quarter and had to come back with Lydell Mitchell's 15th touchdown of the season after a Stan White interception and Nelson Munsey's 30-yard interception return. Mitchell finished with 1,193 yards and Bert Jones with 18 TD passes.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
New England Patriots	OFFENSE	133.3 (15)	174.6 (10)	307.9 (14)	45
New England Patriots	DEFENSE	160.9 (20)	159.5 (12)	320.4 (15)	27
Baltimore Colts	OFFENSE	160.7 (8)	162.3 (14)	323.0 (11)	16
Baltimore Colts	DEFENSE	131.5 (10)	168.0 (14)	299.5 (13)	36

Line: Colts by 16

Team	1	2	3	4	F
New England Patriots (3-11-0)	7	7	0	7	21
Baltimore Colts (10-4-0)	7	3	10	14	34

( 7- 0) NE  Allen Carter 99 yard kickoff return (John Smith kick)
( 7- 7) BAL Bert Jones 8 yard rush (Toni Linhart kick)
( 7-10) BAL Toni Linhart 19 yard field goal
(14-10) NE  Sam Cunningham 7 yard pass from Steve Grogan (John Smith kick)
(14-17) BAL Raymond Chester 20 yard pass from Bert Jones (Toni Linhart kick)
(14-20) BAL Toni Linhart 31 yard field goal
(21-20) NE  Steve Grogan 1 yard rush (John Smith kick)
(21-27) BAL Lydell Mitchell 11 yard rush (Toni Linhart kick)
(21-34) BAL Nelson Munsey 30 yard interception return (Toni Linhart kick)

                     NE              BAL
First Downs:         18              18
Rushes-yards:        28-112          39-128
Yards/rush:          4.0             3.3
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     16-35-201-5     18-31-181-1
Sacked-yards:        3-33            1-10
Net pass yards:      168             171
Net yards/pass:      4.4             5.3
Total net yards:     280             299
Total plays:         66 (42% run)    71 (54% run)  
Yards/play:          4.2             4.2
Fumbles-lost:        3-0             1-1
Turnovers:           5               2
Penalties-yards:     5-44            5-41

Attendance: 51,926

Passing:
NE: Steve Grogan, 16 of 35 for 201 yards and 1 TD (5 int)
BAL: Bert Jones, 18 of 31 for 181 yards and 1 TD (1 int)

Rushing:
NE: Andy Johnson, 13 for 44 yards; Sam Cunningham, 9 for 43 yards; Allen Carter, 3 for 21 yards; Steve Grogan, 2 for 3 yards and 1 TD; Don Calhoun, 1 for 1 yard
BAL: Lydell Mitchell, 34 for 98 yards and 1 TD; Bert Jones, 2 for 19 yards and 1 TD; Bill Olds, 2 for 6 yards; Don McCauley, 1 for 5 yards

Receiving:
NE: Andy Johnson, 6 for 103 yards; Randy Vataha, 4 for 54 yards; Sam Cunningham, 3 for 10 yards and 1 TD; Bob Windsor, 2 for 24 yards; Steve Burks, 1 for 10 yards
BAL: Roger Carr, 6 for 77 yards; Glenn Doughty, 3 for 45 yards; Raymond Chester, 3 for 39 yards and 1 TD; Bill Olds, 3 for 14 yards; Don McCauley, 2 for 0 yards; Lydell Mitchell, 1 for 6 yards

Kick returns:
NE: Allen Carter, 6 for 206 yards and 1 TD; Darryl Stingley, 1 for 24 yards
BAL: Bruce Laird, 3 for 90 yards; Marshall Johnson, 1 for 25 yards

Punt returns:
NE: Andy Johnson, 3 for 25 yards
BAL: Howard Stevens, 5 for 85 yards

Interceptions:
NE: Steve Nelson, 1 for 4 yards
BAL: Stan White, 2 for 32 yards; Nelson Munsey, 1 for 30 yards and 1 TD; Bruce Laird, 1 for 12 yards; Fred Cook, 1 for 8 yards

Punting:
NE: Mike Patrick, 6 for 253 yards
BAL: David Lee, 5 for 194 yards

Field Goals:
BAL: Toni Linhart, 2/4

The Bengals nailed down the wild card berth in the AFC by scoring three touchdowns before San Diego had a chance to run a play from scrimmage and coasted to an easy victory. Ken Anderson, achieving a second straight NFL passing title, completed 18 of 23 for 216 yards and three touchdowns for a season total of 21 and left the game at halftime. Rookie Stan Fritts scored twice for a total of 10 as the Bengals closed out with an 11-3 record, their best ever. Anderson finished with his highest yardage, 3,169, completing 60.5 percent of his passes.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
San Diego Chargers	OFFENSE	129.8 (17)	118.1 (25)	247.9 (24)	26
San Diego Chargers	DEFENSE	175.0 (24)	172.2 (16)	347.2 (22)	30
Cincinnati Bengals	OFFENSE	127.1 (19)	228.4 (1)	355.5 (3)	30
Cincinnati Bengals	DEFENSE	160.1 (18)	127.2 (3)	287.3 (10)	41

Line: Bengals by 15

Team	1	2	3	4	F
San Diego Chargers (2-12-0)	0	10	7	0	17
Cincinnati Bengals (11-3-0)	27	14	0	6	47

( 0- 7) CIN Ken Anderson 2 yard rush (Dave Green kick)
( 0-14) CIN Stan Fritts 6 yard pass from Ken Anderson (Dave Green kick)
( 0-20) CIN Stan Fritts 1 yard rush (kick failed)
( 0-27) CIN Isaac Curtis 52 yard pass from Ken Anderson (Dave Green kick)
( 0-34) CIN Boobie Clark 1 yard rush (Dave Green kick)
( 3-34) SD  Ray Wersching 43 yard field goal
(10-34) SD  Rickey Young 2 yard pass from Jesse Freitas (Ray Wersching kick)
(10-41) CIN Lenvil Elliott 14 yard pass from Ken Anderson (Dave Green kick)
(17-41) SD  Bo Matthews 3 yard rush (Ray Wersching kick)
(17-47) CIN John Reaves 1 yard rush (kick failed)

                     SD              CIN
First Downs:         15              27
Rushes-yards:        29-113          41-167
Yards/rush:          3.9             4.1
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     11-27-118-0     25-34-272-1
Sacked-yards:        5-43            0-0
Net pass yards:      75              272
Net yards/pass:      2.3             8.0
Total net yards:     188             439
Total plays:         61 (47% run)    75 (54% run)  
Yards/play:          3.1             5.9
Fumbles-lost:        4-3             4-3
Turnovers:           3               4
Penalties-yards:     0-0             1-2

Attendance: 46,474

Passing:
SD: Jesse Freitas, 11 of 27 for 118 yards and 1 TD
CIN: Ken Anderson, 18 of 23 for 216 yards and 3 TDs; John Reaves, 7 of 11 for 56 yards (1 int)

Rushing:
SD: Rickey Young, 16 for 58 yards; Bo Matthews, 9 for 45 yards and 1 TD; Jesse Freitas, 3 for 6 yards; Tony Baker, 1 for 4 yards
CIN: Stan Fritts, 16 for 82 yards and 1 TD; Boobie Clark, 11 for 50 yards and 1 TD; Champ Henson, 4 for 12 yards; Ken Anderson, 2 for 7 yards and 1 TD; Ed Williams, 2 for 6 yards; Lenvil Elliott, 2 for 5 yards; John Reaves, 2 for 0 yards and 1 TD; Essex Johnson, 1 for 7 yards; John McDaniel, 1 for -2 yards

Receiving:
SD: Rickey Young, 3 for 18 yards and 1 TD; Dwight McDonald, 2 for 21 yards; Chuck Bradley, 1 for 42 yards; Joe Sweet, 1 for 13 yards; Gary Garrison, 1 for 8 yards; Tony Baker, 1 for 7 yards; Bo Matthews, 1 for 6 yards; Pat Curran, 1 for 3 yards
CIN: Boobie Clark, 5 for 37 yards; Isaac Curtis, 3 for 79 yards and 1 TD; Charlie Joiner, 3 for 34 yards; Bob Trumpy, 3 for 26 yards; Stan Fritts, 3 for 24 yards and 1 TD; Ed Williams, 3 for 17 yards; Lenvil Elliott, 2 for 39 yards and 1 TD; Bruce Coslet, 2 for 18 yards; Champ Henson, 1 for -2 yards

Kick returns:
SD: Mike Fuller, 6 for 135 yards; Rickey Young, 1 for 0 yards
CIN: Lenvil Elliott, 2 for 52 yards; Bernard Jackson, 1 for 28 yards

Punt returns:
SD: Mike Fuller, 1 for 11 yards
CIN: Lyle Blackwood, 2 for 2 yards; Lemar Parrish, 1 for 11 yards

Interceptions:
SD: Mike Williams, 1 for 0 yards

Punting:
SD: Dennis Partee, 4 for 167 yards
CIN: Dave Green, 1 for 39 yards

Field Goals:
SD: Ray Wersching, 1/2

Jim Otis of the Cardinals rushed 69 yards in the first half and rested the remainder of the game with the NFC rushing title in his grasp on a total of 1,076 yards. Otis' backfield mate, Terry Metcalf, added 127 total yards to boost his overall yardage to 2,462 yards for an NFL record. Another Cardinals' running back, Jerry Latin, had the longest run from scrimmage in the NFL in 1975, a 57-yard TD scamper. The victory tied the Cardinals' all- time one-season record of 11 wins, and marked a high in their 16-year St. Louis history.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
St. Louis Cardinals	OFFENSE	163.8 (7)	190.8 (5)	354.6 (4)	38
St. Louis Cardinals	DEFENSE	140.3 (13)	190.1 (24)	330.4 (17)	35
Detroit Lions	OFFENSE	157.4 (9)	132.2 (22)	289.5 (18)	28
Detroit Lions	DEFENSE	127.5 (7)	153.7 (9)	281.2 (7)	36

Line: Cardinals by 4

Team	1	2	3	4	F
St. Louis Cardinals (11-3-0)	7	7	7	3	24
Detroit Lions (7-7-0)	0	0	7	6	13

( 7- 0) STL Terry Metcalf 14 yard rush (Jim Bakken kick)
(14- 0) STL Dwayne Crump 64 yard return of blocked field goal (Jim Bakken kick)
(14- 7) DET Dexter Bussey 32 yard rush (Errol Mann kick)
(21- 7) STL Jerry Latin 57 yard rush (Jim Bakken kick)
(24- 7) STL Jim Bakken 24 yard field goal
(24-13) DET Marlin Briscoe 23 yard pass from Joe Reed (kick failed)

                     STL             DET
First Downs:         20              16
Rushes-yards:        51-272          21-101
Yards/rush:          5.3             4.8
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     6-12-73-1       14-30-199-1
Sacked-yards:        0-0             0-0
Net pass yards:      73              199
Net yards/pass:      6.1             6.6
Total net yards:     345             300
Total plays:         63 (80% run)    51 (41% run)  
Yards/play:          5.5             5.9
Fumbles-lost:        0-0             1-1
Turnovers:           1               2
Penalties-yards:     5-47            4-24

Attendance: 64,272

Passing:
STL: Jim Hart, 5 of 9 for 57 yards; Dennis Shaw, 1 of 3 for 16 yards (1 int)
DET: Joe Reed, 14 of 29 for 199 yards and 1 TD (1 int); Herman Weaver, 0 of 1 for 0 yards

Rushing:
STL: Jerry Latin, 15 for 112 yards and 1 TD; Jim Otis, 14 for 69 yards; Josh Ashton, 9 for 41 yards; Terry Metcalf, 9 for 38 yards and 1 TD; Steve Jones, 3 for 15 yards; Dennis Shaw, 1 for -3 yards
DET: Dexter Bussey, 10 for 75 yards and 1 TD; Altie Taylor, 6 for 12 yards; Horace King, 2 for 14 yards; Joe Reed, 1 for 6 yards; Bobby Thompson, 1 for 6 yards; Leonard Thompson, 1 for -12 yards

Receiving:
STL: Jackie Smith, 2 for 26 yards; Terry Metcalf, 2 for 16 yards; Jerry Latin, 1 for 16 yards; Mel Gray, 1 for 15 yards
DET: Charlie Sanders, 4 for 45 yards; Dexter Bussey, 3 for 44 yards; Marlin Briscoe, 2 for 38 yards and 1 TD; Bobby Thompson, 2 for 22 yards; Horace King, 2 for 21 yards; Ray Jarvis, 1 for 29 yards

Kick returns:
STL: Terry Metcalf, 2 for 44 yards
DET: Bobby Thompson, 3 for 66 yards; Horace King, 2 for 42 yards

Punt returns:
STL: Gary Hammond, 1 for 30 yards; Terry Metcalf, 1 for 29 yards
DET: Charlie West, 2 for 47 yards

Interceptions:
STL: Ken Reaves, 1 for -2 yards
DET: Levi Johnson, 1 for 26 yards

Punting:
STL: Jeff West, 4 for 126 yards
DET: Herman Weaver, 4 for 199 yards

Field Goals:
STL: Jim Bakken, 1/2
DET: Errol Mann, 0/1

Eric Torkelson's 86 yards included a 15-yard touchdown in the second period that lifted the Packers to their fourth victory. Atlanta's Dave Hampton ran for 61 yards to finish with 1,002 yards, thus achieving the 1,000-yard plateau which twice eluded him by five and three yards.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Atlanta Falcons	OFFENSE	128.5 (18)	145.3 (19)	273.8 (20)	43
Atlanta Falcons	DEFENSE	162.2 (21)	182.5 (20)	344.7 (21)	33
Green Bay Packers	OFFENSE	106.0 (26)	146.9 (18)	252.9 (23)	34
Green Bay Packers	DEFENSE	170.4 (22)	153.4 (8)	323.8 (16)	36

Line: Falcons by 6

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Atlanta Falcons (4-10-0)	6	0	0	7	13
Green Bay Packers (4-10-0)	3	9	10	0	22

( 0- 3) GB  Joe Danelo 34 yard field goal
( 6- 3) ATL Dave Hampton 1 yard rush (kick failed)
( 6- 9) GB  Eric Torkelson 15 yard rush (kick failed)
( 6-12) GB  Joe Danelo 30 yard field goal
( 6-15) GB  Joe Danelo 19 yard field goal
( 6-22) GB  Barty Smith 1 yard rush (Joe Danelo kick)
(13-22) ATL Alfred Jenkins 52 yard pass from Steve Bartkowski (Nick Mike-Mayer kick)

                     ATL             GB
First Downs:         14              20
Rushes-yards:        26-124          46-169
Yards/rush:          4.8             3.7
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     13-37-219-2     16-33-181-1
Sacked-yards:        3-41            3-19
Net pass yards:      178             162
Net yards/pass:      4.5             4.5
Total net yards:     302             331
Total plays:         66 (39% run)    82 (56% run)  
Yards/play:          4.6             4.0
Fumbles-lost:        4-3             3-3
Turnovers:           5               4
Penalties-yards:     2-20            2-10

Attendance: 38,565

Passing:
ATL: Steve Bartkowski, 13 of 34 for 219 yards and 1 TD (2 int); Pat Sullivan, 0 of 3 for 0 yards
GB: John Hadl, 16 of 32 for 181 yards (1 int); Willard Harrell, 0 of 1 for 0 yards

Rushing:
ATL: Dave Hampton, 14 for 61 yards and 1 TD; Haskel Stanback, 8 for 52 yards; Woody Thompson, 1 for 5 yards; Pat Sullivan, 1 for 3 yards; Monroe Eley, 1 for 3 yards; Steve Bartkowski, 1 for 0 yards
GB: Eric Torkelson, 22 for 86 yards and 1 TD; Barty Smith, 14 for 60 yards and 1 TD; John Brockington, 8 for 12 yards; John Hadl, 1 for 7 yards; Willard Harrell, 1 for 4 yards

Receiving:
ATL: Ken Burrow, 3 for 33 yards; Alfred Jenkins, 2 for 81 yards and 1 TD; Jim Mitchell, 2 for 48 yards; Dave Hampton, 2 for 28 yards; Wallace Francis, 2 for 23 yards; Haskel Stanback, 2 for 6 yards
GB: John Brockington, 5 for 31 yards; Rich McGeorge, 3 for 46 yards; Ken Payne, 3 for 25 yards; Eric Torkelson, 2 for 12 yards; Barty Smith, 1 for 33 yards; Gerald Tinker, 1 for 17 yards; Steve Odom, 1 for 17 yards

Kick returns:
ATL: Mack Herron, 3 for 51 yards; Rick Byas, 2 for 30 yards; Woody Thompson, 1 for 19 yards
GB: Steve Odom, 2 for 22 yards

Punt returns:
ATL: Mack Herron, 4 for 33 yards
GB: Willard Harrell, 3 for 3 yards; Ken Ellis, 1 for 1 yard; Charlie Hall, 1 for 0 yards

Interceptions:
ATL: Rolland Lawrence, 1 for 23 yards
GB: Perry Smith, 1 for 61 yards; Al Matthews, 1 for 40 yards

Punting:
ATL: John James, 6 for 222 yards
GB: David Beverly, 6 for 194 yards

Field Goals:
ATL: Nick Mike-Mayer, 0/2
GB: Joe Danelo, 3/4

Dan Pastorini led Houston to its best season record (10-4) since 1962 by raking the Browns' defense with his passes, including a 75-yard touchdown toss to Ken Burrough who finished the season with 1,063 yards on 53 catches and eight scores. Despite the fine season the Oilers failed to make the playoffs in the tough Central Division. The Oilers' four sacks gave them 45, a club record. Houston set an attendance record by averaging 48,065 for a seven-game total of 336,458.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Cleveland Browns	OFFENSE	134.9 (14)	136.8 (21)	271.7 (21)	35
Cleveland Browns	DEFENSE	143.5 (16)	187.3 (22)	330.8 (18)	24
Houston Oilers	OFFENSE	145.5 (12)	131.8 (23)	277.3 (19)	32
Houston Oilers	DEFENSE	121.8 (4)	175.2 (17)	297.1 (12)	41

Line: Oilers by 9

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Cleveland Browns (3-11-0)	0	0	3	7	10
Houston Oilers (10-4-0)	14	7	0	0	21

( 0- 7) HOU Don Hardeman 2 yard rush (Skip Butler kick)
( 0-14) HOU Ken Burrough 75 yard pass from Dan Pastorini (Skip Butler kick)
( 0-21) HOU Ronnie Coleman 2 yard rush (Skip Butler kick)
( 3-21) CLE Don Cockroft 42 yard field goal
(10-21) CLE Ken Brown 4 yard rush (Don Cockroft kick)

                     CLE             HOU
First Downs:         22              21
Rushes-yards:        27-96           44-166
Yards/rush:          3.6             3.8
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     24-43-213-2     11-23-166-2
Sacked-yards:        4-34            1-10
Net pass yards:      179             156
Net yards/pass:      3.8             6.5
Total net yards:     275             322
Total plays:         74 (36% run)    68 (64% run)  
Yards/play:          3.7             4.7
Fumbles-lost:        2-0             3-0
Turnovers:           2               2
Penalties-yards:     9-68            9-68

Attendance: 43,770

Passing:
CLE: Mike Phipps, 24 of 42 for 213 yards (2 int); Henry Hynoski, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
HOU: Dan Pastorini, 11 of 23 for 166 yards and 1 TD (2 int)

Rushing:
CLE: Greg Pruitt, 14 for 37 yards; Henry Hynoski, 5 for 38 yards; Billy Pritchett, 4 for 6 yards; Ken Brown, 3 for 15 yards and 1 TD; Hugh McKinnis, 1 for 0 yards
HOU: Fred Willis, 18 for 42 yards; Ronnie Coleman, 12 for 54 yards and 1 TD; Don Hardeman, 9 for 45 yards and 1 TD; Willie Rodgers, 5 for 25 yards

Receiving:
CLE: Reggie Rucker, 7 for 79 yards; Oscar Roan, 5 for 44 yards; Steve Holden, 3 for 32 yards; Greg Pruitt, 3 for 16 yards; Henry Hynoski, 2 for 7 yards; Ken Brown, 1 for 17 yards; Willie Miller, 1 for 9 yards; Hugh McKinnis, 1 for 8 yards; Billy Pritchett, 1 for 1 yard
HOU: Ken Burrough, 5 for 129 yards and 1 TD; Ronnie Coleman, 2 for 22 yards; Mack Alston, 2 for 10 yards; Billy Johnson, 1 for 15 yards; Fred Willis, 1 for -10 yards

Kick returns:
CLE: Ken Brown, 2 for 35 yards; Willie Miller, 1 for 18 yards; Henry Hynoski, 1 for 17 yards
HOU: Billy Johnson, 3 for 74 yards

Punt returns:
CLE: Willie Miller, 2 for -1 yards; Henry Hynoski, 1 for 7 yards
HOU: Billy Johnson, 6 for 46 yards

Interceptions:
CLE: Dave Graf, 1 for 19 yards; Van Green, 1 for 0 yards
HOU: Bob Atkins, 1 for 41 yards; Zeke Moore, 1 for 14 yards

Punting:
CLE: Don Cockroft, 7 for 318 yards
HOU: Dan Pastorini, 7 for 254 yards

Field Goals:
CLE: Don Cockroft, 1/2

The Bears erupted for their highest point total of the season as rookie quarterback Bob Avellini threw three touchdown passes to tight end Greg Latta and rookie runner Walter Payton rushed for 134 yards, including a 54-yard scoring dash.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Chicago Bears	OFFENSE	112.2 (23)	121.2 (24)	233.4 (25)	37
Chicago Bears	DEFENSE	154.0 (17)	182.8 (21)	336.8 (19)	22
New Orleans Saints	OFFENSE	121.1 (21)	108.9 (26)	230.0 (26)	35
New Orleans Saints	DEFENSE	133.5 (11)	163.4 (13)	296.8 (11)	36

Line: Saints by 3

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Chicago Bears (4-10-0)	7	14	7	14	42
New Orleans Saints (2-12-0)	0	10	0	7	17

( 7- 0) CHI Bob Avellini 1 yard rush (Bob Thomas kick)
( 7- 7) NO  Rod McNeill 6 yard rush (Rich Szaro kick)
(14- 7) CHI Greg Latta 13 yard pass from Bob Avellini (Bob Thomas kick)
(14-10) NO  Rich Szaro 19 yard field goal
(21-10) CHI Greg Latta 5 yard pass from Bob Avellini (Bob Thomas kick)
(28-10) CHI Virgil Livers 40 yard interception return (Bob Thomas kick)
(35-10) CHI Greg Latta 20 yard pass from Bob Avellini (Bob Thomas kick)
(42-10) CHI Walter Payton 54 yard rush (Bob Thomas kick)
(42-17) NO  Andrew Jones 1 yard rush (Rich Szaro kick)

                     CHI             NO
First Downs:         19              17
Rushes-yards:        42-195          29-68
Yards/rush:          4.6             2.3
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     15-23-268-2     10-30-143-3
Sacked-yards:        1-5             3-14
Net pass yards:      263             129
Net yards/pass:      11.0            3.9
Total net yards:     458             197
Total plays:         66 (63% run)    62 (46% run)  
Yards/play:          6.9             3.2
Fumbles-lost:        3-1             3-2
Turnovers:           3               5
Penalties-yards:     11-90           1-14

Attendance: 33,371

Passing:
CHI: Bob Avellini, 15 of 23 for 268 yards and 3 TDs (2 int)
NO: Larry Cipa, 10 of 30 for 143 yards (3 int)

Rushing:
CHI: Walter Payton, 25 for 134 yards and 1 TD; Roland Harper, 7 for 23 yards; Johnny Musso, 6 for 33 yards; Mike Adamle, 2 for 0 yards; Bo Rather, 1 for 4 yards; Bob Avellini, 1 for 1 yard and 1 TD
NO: Andrew Jones, 14 for 31 yards and 1 TD; Rod McNeill, 7 for 9 yards and 1 TD; Steve Rogers, 4 for 28 yards; Larry Cipa, 4 for 0 yards

Receiving:
CHI: Greg Latta, 5 for 67 yards and 3 TDs; Walter Payton, 5 for 62 yards; Bob Grim, 2 for 72 yards; Roland Harper, 2 for 13 yards; Bo Rather, 1 for 54 yards
NO: Henry Childs, 4 for 67 yards; Larry Burton, 2 for 23 yards; Don Herrmann, 1 for 28 yards; Andrew Jones, 1 for 12 yards; Paul Seal, 1 for 11 yards; Steve Rogers, 1 for 2 yards

Kick returns:
CHI: Walter Payton, 2 for 104 yards; Earl Douthitt, 1 for 30 yards; Virgil Livers, 1 for 21 yards
NO: Rod McNeill, 5 for 163 yards; Steve Rogers, 2 for 36 yards

Punt returns:
CHI: Virgil Livers, 2 for 19 yards; Doug Plank, 2 for 18 yards
NO: Tom Myers, 3 for 8 yards

Interceptions:
CHI: Virgil Livers, 1 for 40 yards and 1 TD; Craig Clemons, 1 for 33 yards; Larry Ely, 1 for 2 yards
NO: Greg Westbrooks, 1 for 21 yards; Tom Myers, 1 for 0 yards

Punting:
CHI: Bob Parsons, 4 for 159 yards
NO: Tom Blanchard, 7 for 338 yards

Field Goals:
CHI: Bob Thomas, 0/1
NO: Rich Szaro, 1/2

The Cowboys, assured of the wild card berth in the NFC playoffs, used Clint Longley at quarterback to beat the Jets. John Riggins became the first Jet to make the 1,000-yard mark in rushing with a total of 1,005 and a touchdown that helped put New York out front 14-0 in the first quarter. Robert Newhouse wound up with 108 yards for the Cowboys.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Dallas Cowboys	OFFENSE	168.4 (6)	192.8 (4)	361.2 (2)	33
Dallas Cowboys	DEFENSE	121.4 (3)	157.0 (10)	278.4 (6)	42
New York Jets	OFFENSE	150.6 (10)	165.5 (12)	316.2 (13)	39
New York Jets	DEFENSE	191.8 (26)	202.5 (25)	394.4 (26)	26

Line: Cowboys by 7

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Dallas Cowboys (10-4-0)	0	14	10	7	31
New York Jets (3-11-0)	14	0	0	7	21

( 0- 7) NYJ John Riggins 1 yard rush (Pat Leahy kick)
( 0-14) NYJ Carl Garrett 8 yard rush (Pat Leahy kick)
( 7-14) DAL Robert Newhouse 3 yard rush (Toni Fritsch kick)
(14-14) DAL Doug Dennison 1 yard rush (Toni Fritsch kick)
(21-14) DAL Drew Pearson 10 yard pass from Clint Longley (Toni Fritsch kick)
(24-14) DAL Toni Fritsch 22 yard field goal
(24-21) NYJ Bob Gresham 7 yard rush (Pat Leahy kick)
(31-21) DAL Randy Hughes 33 yard interception return (Toni Fritsch kick)

                     DAL             NYJ
First Downs:         21              13
Rushes-yards:        53-243          41-121
Yards/rush:          4.6             3.0
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     6-15-94-1       2-13-15-1
Sacked-yards:        1-8             2-16
Net pass yards:      86              -1
Net yards/pass:      5.4             -0.1
Total net yards:     329             120
Total plays:         69 (76% run)    56 (73% run)  
Yards/play:          4.8             2.1
Fumbles-lost:        2-1             1-1
Turnovers:           2               2
Penalties-yards:     7-55            3-15

Attendance: 37,279

Passing:
DAL: Clint Longley, 6 of 15 for 94 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
NYJ: Joe Namath, 1 of 8 for 7 yards; J.J. Jones, 1 of 5 for 8 yards (1 int)

Rushing:
DAL: Robert Newhouse, 19 for 108 yards and 1 TD; Doug Dennison, 13 for 46 yards and 1 TD; Preston Pearson, 10 for 28 yards; Charley Young, 8 for 49 yards; Clint Longley, 3 for 12 yards
NYJ: John Riggins, 27 for 62 yards and 1 TD; Carl Garrett, 8 for 38 yards and 1 TD; Steve Davis, 3 for 13 yards; Bob Gresham, 2 for 7 yards and 1 TD; J.J. Jones, 1 for 1 yard

Receiving:
DAL: Robert Newhouse, 2 for 25 yards; Drew Pearson, 2 for 25 yards and 1 TD; Preston Pearson, 1 for 23 yards; Jean Fugett, 1 for 21 yards
NYJ: Rich Caster, 2 for 15 yards

Kick returns:
DAL: Percy Howard, 2 for 51 yards; Thomas Henderson, 2 for 30 yards
NYJ: Lou Piccone, 4 for 87 yards; Bob Gresham, 1 for 19 yards

Punt returns:
DAL: Golden Richards, 2 for 11 yards
NYJ: Lou Piccone, 2 for 2 yards; Rich Sowells, 1 for 0 yards

Interceptions:
DAL: Randy Hughes, 1 for 33 yards and 1 TD
NYJ: Jim Bailey, 1 for 8 yards

Punting:
DAL: Mitch Hoopes, 5 for 150 yards
NYJ: Greg Gantt, 8 for 229 yards

Field Goals:
DAL: Toni Fritsch, 1/1

George Blanda went over the 2,000 point mark with four conversions for a career total of 2,002 points in 26 seasons of pro play as he completed his 340th game (and 224th consecutive). Blanda, 48, also made a brief appearance as a quarterback after Ken Stabler built up 21-13 halftime lead. Pete Banaszak added three rushing touchdowns for a season total of 16 and 96 points as the Raiders finished the regular season with an 11-3 record, averaging an earlier 42-10 loss to the Chiefs.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Kansas City Chiefs	OFFENSE	133.1 (16)	163.9 (13)	297.0 (16)	30
Kansas City Chiefs	DEFENSE	190.6 (25)	182.4 (19)	373.0 (25)	41
Oakland Raiders	OFFENSE	171.3 (4)	173.1 (11)	344.4 (7)	47
Oakland Raiders	DEFENSE	128.3 (8)	124.2 (2)	252.5 (3)	37

Line: n/a

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Kansas City Chiefs (5-9-0)	3	10	0	7	20
Oakland Raiders (11-3-0)	7	14	0	7	28

( 0- 7) OAK Pete Banaszak 5 yard rush (George Blanda kick)
( 3- 7) KC  Jan Stenerud 35 yard field goal
( 6- 7) KC  Jan Stenerud 29 yard field goal
(13- 7) KC  Barry Pearson 5 yard pass from Tony Adams (Jan Stenerud kick)
(13-14) OAK Pete Banaszak 3 yard rush (George Blanda kick)
(13-21) OAK Morris Bradshaw 16 yard pass from Ken Stabler (George Blanda kick)
(20-21) KC  Jeff Kinney 1 yard rush (Jan Stenerud kick)
(20-28) OAK Pete Banaszak 1 yard rush (George Blanda kick)

                     KC              OAK
First Downs:         23              24
Rushes-yards:        33-117          44-246
Yards/rush:          3.5             5.6
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     18-32-245-3     14-19-149-1
Sacked-yards:        2-16            3-8
Net pass yards:      229             141
Net yards/pass:      6.7             6.4
Total net yards:     346             387
Total plays:         67 (49% run)    66 (66% run)  
Yards/play:          5.2             5.9
Fumbles-lost:        1-1             1-0
Turnovers:           4               1
Penalties-yards:     3-10            7-71

Attendance: 48,604

Passing:
KC: Tony Adams, 18 of 31 for 245 yards and 1 TD (2 int); Walter White, 0 of 1 for 0 yards (1 int)
OAK: Ken Stabler, 11 of 12 for 134 yards and 1 TD; David Humm, 2 of 4 for 4 yards; George Blanda, 1 of 3 for 11 yards (1 int)

Rushing:
KC: Woody Green, 17 for 73 yards; Jeff Kinney, 12 for 24 yards and 1 TD; Tony Adams, 3 for 26 yards; Ed Podolak, 1 for -6 yards
OAK: Pete Banaszak, 17 for 72 yards and 3 TDs; Mark van Eeghen, 8 for 43 yards; Jess Phillips, 7 for 84 yards; Harold Hart, 5 for 11 yards; Marv Hubbard, 4 for 22 yards; Clarence Davis, 3 for 14 yards

Receiving:
KC: Barry Pearson, 6 for 103 yards and 1 TD; Walter White, 3 for 33 yards; Jeff Kinney, 3 for 16 yards; Larry Brunson, 2 for 48 yards; Woody Green, 2 for 24 yards; Billy Masters, 1 for 16 yards; Ed Podolak, 1 for 5 yards
OAK: Bob Moore, 3 for 17 yards; Mark van Eeghen, 3 for 7 yards; Morris Bradshaw, 2 for 29 yards and 1 TD; Mike Siani, 2 for 27 yards; Pete Banaszak, 2 for 22 yards; Cliff Branch, 1 for 30 yards; Clarence Davis, 1 for 17 yards

Kick returns:
KC: Reggie Craig, 3 for 46 yards; Woody Green, 2 for 32 yards
OAK: Harold Hart, 3 for 85 yards; Jess Phillips, 2 for 62 yards

Punt returns:
KC: Ed Podolak, 2 for 12 yards
OAK: Neal Colzie, 2 for 22 yards

Interceptions:
KC: Willie Lanier, 1 for 0 yards
OAK: Jack Tatum, 1 for 12 yards; Skip Thomas, 1 for 6 yards; Charlie Phillips, 1 for 3 yards

Punting:
KC: Jim McCann, 3 for 124 yards
OAK: Ray Guy, 5 for 214 yards

Field Goals:
KC: Jan Stenerud, 2/2

Larry Watkins scored from the 1-yard line for the Giants with 3:22 remaining to provide the Giants' victory. Danny Buggs' eight-yard punt return to the San Francisco's 38 set up the winning score that wiped out a 23-20 lead the 49ers took early in the fourth period on an 18-yard scoring pass from Tom Owen to Larry Schreiber.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
New York Giants	OFFENSE	111.7 (24)	149.9 (17)	261.6 (22)	36
New York Giants	DEFENSE	172.4 (23)	169.1 (15)	341.5 (20)	23
San Francisco 49ers	OFFENSE	109.0 (25)	183.9 (6)	292.9 (17)	43
San Francisco 49ers	DEFENSE	127.2 (6)	157.2 (11)	284.5 (8)	26

Line: 49ers by 4

Team	1	2	3	4	F
New York Giants (5-9-0)	7	6	7	6	26
San Francisco 49ers (5-9-0)	0	10	6	7	23

( 7- 0) NYG Marsh White 1 yard rush (George Hunt kick)
(13- 0) NYG Doug Kotar 14 yard rush (kick failed)
(13- 7) SF  Sammy Johnson 26 yard rush (Steve Mike-Mayer kick)
(13-10) SF  Steve Mike-Mayer 40 yard field goal
(20-10) NYG Ray Rhodes 30 yard pass from Craig Morton (George Hunt kick)
(20-16) SF  Larry Schreiber 1 yard rush (kick failed)
(20-23) SF  Larry Schreiber 18 yard pass from Tom Owen (Steve Mike-Mayer kick)
(26-23) NYG Larry Watkins 1 yard rush (kick failed)

                     NYG             SF
First Downs:         23              20
Rushes-yards:        45-175          33-181
Yards/rush:          3.9             5.5
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     16-30-168-0     14-30-194-1
Sacked-yards:        2-15            3-25
Net pass yards:      153             169
Net yards/pass:      4.8             5.1
Total net yards:     328             350
Total plays:         77 (58% run)    66 (50% run)  
Yards/play:          4.3             5.3
Fumbles-lost:        5-1             1-0
Turnovers:           1               1
Penalties-yards:     4-35            9-64

Attendance: 34,354

Passing:
NYG: Craig Morton, 16 of 30 for 168 yards and 1 TD
SF: Tom Owen, 14 of 30 for 194 yards and 1 TD (1 int)

Rushing:
NYG: Doug Kotar, 22 for 72 yards and 1 TD; Marsh White, 12 for 69 yards and 1 TD; Larry Watkins, 7 for 32 yards and 1 TD; Joe Dawkins, 3 for 3 yards; Craig Morton, 1 for -1 yards
SF: Delvin Williams, 11 for 87 yards; Sammy Johnson, 10 for 70 yards and 1 TD; Larry Schreiber, 8 for 22 yards and 1 TD; Wilbur Jackson, 3 for 1 yard; Tom Owen, 1 for 1 yard

Receiving:
NYG: Jim Obradovich, 4 for 55 yards; Ray Rhodes, 3 for 46 yards and 1 TD; Doug Kotar, 3 for 21 yards; Walker Gillette, 2 for 18 yards; Marsh White, 2 for 14 yards; Don Clune, 1 for 10 yards; Larry Watkins, 1 for 4 yards
SF: Terry Beasley, 5 for 90 yards; Gene Washington, 4 for 49 yards; Larry Schreiber, 3 for 32 yards and 1 TD; Sammy Johnson, 1 for 13 yards; Delvin Williams, 1 for 10 yards

Kick returns:
NYG: Rondy Colbert, 2 for 43 yards; Andy Selfridge, 1 for 0 yards
SF: Manfred Moore, 2 for 62 yards; Sammy Johnson, 2 for 38 yards

Punt returns:
NYG: Danny Buggs, 3 for 15 yards; Rondy Colbert, 2 for 17 yards
SF: Bruce Taylor, 3 for 77 yards

Interceptions:
NYG: Bobby Brooks, 1 for 38 yards

Punting:
NYG: Dave Jennings, 5 for 214 yards; George Hunt, 1 for 24 yards
SF: Tom Wittum, 5 for 236 yards

Field Goals:
SF: Steve Mike-Mayer, 1/4

Redskins' wide receiver Charley Taylor caught two passes to lift his career total to 635 receptions that created an NFL record for career receptions, erasing the old record of 633 held by Don Maynard. The Eagles' victory gave them a season sweep over the Redskins and was sparked by seven interceptions; one, an 89-yard TD return by Frank LeMaster, was the longest in the NFL in 1975.

Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):

Team		Rush Yds/Gm	Pass Yds/Gm	Tot Yds/Gm	Turnovers
Philadelphia Eagles	OFFENSE	117.7 (22)	179.9 (8)	297.6 (15)	34
Philadelphia Eagles	DEFENSE	160.8 (19)	188.3 (23)	349.1 (23)	36
Washington Redskins	OFFENSE	123.8 (20)	217.5 (2)	341.2 (8)	38
Washington Redskins	DEFENSE	136.5 (12)	179.6 (18)	316.2 (14)	36

Line: Redskins by 6

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Philadelphia Eagles (4-10-0)	7	3	10	6	26
Washington Redskins (8-6-0)	3	0	0	0	3

( 7- 0) PHI Charlie Smith 28 yard pass from Mike Boryla (Horst Muhlmann kick)
( 7- 3) WAS Mark Moseley 25 yard field goal
(10- 3) PHI Horst Muhlmann 25 yard field goal
(13- 3) PHI Horst Muhlmann 23 yard field goal
(20- 3) PHI Joe Lavender 36 yard interception return (Horst Muhlmann kick)
(26- 3) PHI Frank LeMaster 89 yard interception return (kick failed)

                     PHI             WAS
First Downs:         12              18
Rushes-yards:        47-172          26-143
Yards/rush:          3.7             5.5
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     9-18-103-1      16-41-119-7
Sacked-yards:        1-2             3-29
Net pass yards:      101             90
Net yards/pass:      5.3             2.0
Total net yards:     273             233
Total plays:         66 (71% run)    70 (37% run)  
Yards/play:          4.1             3.3
Fumbles-lost:        0-0             2-1
Turnovers:           1               8
Penalties-yards:     10-97           7-53

Attendance: 49,385

Passing:
PHI: Mike Boryla, 9 of 18 for 103 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
WAS: Joe Theismann, 8 of 20 for 55 yards (3 int); Randy Johnson, 8 of 20 for 64 yards (4 int); Bobby Anderson, 0 of 1 for 0 yards

Rushing:
PHI: James McAlister, 15 for 41 yards; Art Malone, 12 for 22 yards; Tom Sullivan, 11 for 26 yards; Po James, 7 for 78 yards; Charlie Smith, 1 for 6 yards; Mike Boryla, 1 for -1 yards
WAS: Mike Thomas, 14 for 70 yards; Larry Brown, 6 for 20 yards; Joe Theismann, 3 for 34 yards; Ralph Nelson, 2 for 6 yards; Moses Denson, 1 for 13 yards

Receiving:
PHI: Harold Carmichael, 4 for 33 yards; Charlie Smith, 2 for 33 yards and 1 TD; James McAlister, 2 for 4 yards; Charle Young, 1 for 33 yards
WAS: Frank Grant, 5 for 42 yards; Charley Taylor, 2 for 16 yards; Roy Jefferson, 2 for 15 yards; Mike Thomas, 2 for 10 yards; Moses Denson, 2 for 9 yards; Jerry Smith, 1 for 12 yards; Larry Jones, 1 for 12 yards; Larry Brown, 1 for 3 yards

Kick returns:
PHI: James McAlister, 1 for 20 yards; Po James, 1 for 12 yards
WAS: Larry Jones, 3 for 69 yards; Ralph Nelson, 2 for 41 yards; Rusty Tillman, 1 for 4 yards

Punt returns:
PHI: Larry Marshall, 4 for 26 yards
WAS: Larry Jones, 5 for 54 yards; Joe Theismann, 1 for 3 yards

Interceptions:
PHI: Frank LeMaster, 2 for 114 yards and 1 TD; Artimus Parker, 2 for 3 yards; Joe Lavender, 1 for 36 yards and 1 TD; Bill Bergey, 1 for 20 yards; John Outlaw, 1 for 0 yards
WAS: Mike Bass, 1 for 16 yards

Punting:
PHI: Spike Jones, 7 for 274 yards
WAS: Mike Bragg, 5 for 197 yards

Field Goals:
PHI: Horst Muhlmann, 2/3
WAS: Mark Moseley, 1/2