NFL game summary for 09/19/1976:
Greg Landry came off the bench in the third quarter and led the Lions to a 24-point fourth quarter with the help of a few Falcons' fumbles and a fake field goal touchdown. Landry scored on a five-yard run seven seconds into the final period after Charlie West recovered an Atlanta fumble at the Falcons' 17. Then, Errol Mann lined up for a field goal try, holder Joe Reed took the snap and tossed a 32-yard TD pass to linebacker Ed O'Neil. Rookie James Hunter intercepted a Steve Bartkowski pass on the Falcons' ensuing possession and returned it 39 yards for a score. Atlanta rookie Bubba Bean was the Falcons' only big weapon, picking up 98 yards on the ground including a second quarter touchdown burst.
Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):
| Team | Rush Yds/Gm | Pass Yds/Gm | Tot Yds/Gm | Turnovers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | OFFENSE | 62.0 (26) | 148.0 (17) | 210.0 (25) | 4 |
| DEFENSE | 232.0 (26) | 137.0 (9) | 369.0 (18) | 4 | |
 | OFFENSE | 109.0 (21) | 134.0 (22) | 243.0 (22) | 3 |
| DEFENSE | 114.0 (11) | 126.0 (6) | 240.0 (6) | 0 |
Line: Even
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons (0-2-0) | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| Detroit Lions (1-1-0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 24 |
( 7- 0) ATL Bubba Bean 5 yard rush (Nick Mike-Mayer kick)
(10- 0) ATL Nick Mike-Mayer 41 yard field goal
(10- 7) DET Greg Landry 5 yard rush (Errol Mann kick)
(10-10) DET Errol Mann 32 yard field goal
(10-17) DET Ed O'Neil 32 yard pass from Joe Reed (Errol Mann kick)
(10-24) DET James Hunter 39 yard interception return (Errol Mann kick)
ATL DET
First Downs: 13 15
Rushes-yards: 42-177 41-198
Yards/rush: 4.2 4.8
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 5-16-59-3 8-20-124-0
Sacked-yards: 0-0 5-27
Net pass yards: 59 97
Net yards/pass: 3.7 3.9
Total net yards: 236 295
Total plays: 58 (72% run) 66 (62% run)
Yards/play: 4.1 4.5
Fumbles-lost: 3-2 1-0
Turnovers: 5 0
Penalties-yards: 1-10 10-85
Attendance: 50,115
Passing:
ATL: Steve Bartkowski, 5 of 16 for 59 yards (3 int) DET: Joe Reed, 5 of 11 for 78 yards and 1 TD; Greg Landry, 3 of 9 for 46 yards
Rushing:
ATL: Bubba Bean, 22 for 98 yards and 1 TD; Haskel Stanback, 10 for 54 yards; Woody Thompson, 7 for 25 yards; Steve Bartkowski, 2 for 0 yards; Dave Hampton, 1 for 0 yards DET: Dexter Bussey, 15 for 79 yards; Lawrence Gaines, 13 for 51 yards; Joe Reed, 5 for 27 yards; Horace King, 4 for 24 yards; Greg Landry, 3 for 19 yards and 1 TD; Bobby Thompson, 1 for -2 yards
Receiving:
ATL: Alfred Jenkins, 3 for 47 yards; John Gilliam, 1 for 9 yards; Jim Mitchell, 1 for 3 yards DET: Horace King, 3 for 33 yards; Charlie Sanders, 2 for 30 yards; Ed O'Neil, 1 for 32 yards and 1 TD; Ray Jarvis, 1 for 15 yards; Larry Walton, 1 for 14 yards
Kick returns:
ATL: Rick Byas, 2 for 41 yards; Ralph Ortega, 1 for 9 yards; Wallace Francis, 1 for 7 yards DET: James Hunter, 3 for 77 yards
Punt returns:
ATL: Rolland Lawrence, 5 for 55 yards DET: Lem Barney, 1 for 4 yards
Interceptions:
DET: James Hunter, 1 for 39 yards and 1 TD; Dick Jauron, 1 for 0 yards; Levi Johnson, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
ATL: John James, 5 for 184 yards DET: Herman Weaver, 7 for 308 yards
Field Goals:
ATL: Nick Mike-Mayer, 1/1 DET: Errol Mann, 1/2
ATL: Steve Bartkowski, 5 of 16 for 59 yards (3 int) DET: Joe Reed, 5 of 11 for 78 yards and 1 TD; Greg Landry, 3 of 9 for 46 yards
Rushing:
ATL: Bubba Bean, 22 for 98 yards and 1 TD; Haskel Stanback, 10 for 54 yards; Woody Thompson, 7 for 25 yards; Steve Bartkowski, 2 for 0 yards; Dave Hampton, 1 for 0 yards DET: Dexter Bussey, 15 for 79 yards; Lawrence Gaines, 13 for 51 yards; Joe Reed, 5 for 27 yards; Horace King, 4 for 24 yards; Greg Landry, 3 for 19 yards and 1 TD; Bobby Thompson, 1 for -2 yards
Receiving:
ATL: Alfred Jenkins, 3 for 47 yards; John Gilliam, 1 for 9 yards; Jim Mitchell, 1 for 3 yards DET: Horace King, 3 for 33 yards; Charlie Sanders, 2 for 30 yards; Ed O'Neil, 1 for 32 yards and 1 TD; Ray Jarvis, 1 for 15 yards; Larry Walton, 1 for 14 yards
Kick returns:
ATL: Rick Byas, 2 for 41 yards; Ralph Ortega, 1 for 9 yards; Wallace Francis, 1 for 7 yards DET: James Hunter, 3 for 77 yards
Punt returns:
ATL: Rolland Lawrence, 5 for 55 yards DET: Lem Barney, 1 for 4 yards
Interceptions:
DET: James Hunter, 1 for 39 yards and 1 TD; Dick Jauron, 1 for 0 yards; Levi Johnson, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
ATL: John James, 5 for 184 yards DET: Herman Weaver, 7 for 308 yards
Field Goals:
ATL: Nick Mike-Mayer, 1/1 DET: Errol Mann, 1/2