NFL game summary for 10/17/1976:
Pat Fischer intercepted a Greg Landry pass, setting up Mark Moseley's 42-yard third quarter field goal to break a scoreless tie and Joe Lavender picked off another Landry pass, two plays after a Joe Theismann to Frank Grant touchdown pass, setting up Mike Thomas' three-yard TD run. Washington's defense, forcing three Detroit turnovers and getting five sacks, shut out the Lions until 51 seconds left in the game when Joe Reed and Ray Jarvis combined for a 56-yard touchdown pass.
Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):
| Team | Rush Yds/Gm | Pass Yds/Gm | Tot Yds/Gm | Turnovers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | OFFENSE | 151.8 (12) | 115.0 (22) | 266.8 (24) | 7 |
| DEFENSE | 143.0 (14) | 75.0 (1) | 218.0 (2) | 11 | |
 | OFFENSE | 149.4 (13) | 158.0 (15) | 307.4 (12) | 19 |
| DEFENSE | 165.8 (19) | 189.2 (22) | 355.0 (24) | 13 |
Line: Redskins by 3½
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Lions (2-4-0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Washington Redskins (4-2-0) | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 20 |
( 0- 3) WAS Mark Moseley 42 yard field goal ( 0-10) WAS Frank Grant 8 yard pass from Joe Theismann (Mark Moseley kick) ( 0-17) WAS Mike Thomas 3 yard rush (Mark Moseley kick) ( 0-20) WAS Mark Moseley 45 yard field goal ( 7-20) DET Ray Jarvis 56 yard pass from Joe Reed (Errol Mann kick)
DET WAS
First Downs: 13 14
Rushes-yards: 34-103 40-109
Yards/rush: 3.0 2.7
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 11-28-201-2 9-20-129-1
Sacked-yards: 5-57 3-31
Net pass yards: 144 98
Net yards/pass: 4.4 4.3
Total net yards: 247 207
Total plays: 67 (50% run) 63 (63% run)
Yards/play: 3.7 3.3
Fumbles-lost: 3-1 2-1
Turnovers: 3 2
Penalties-yards: 10-105 5-41
Attendance: 45,908
Passing:
DET: Greg Landry, 5 of 16 for 84 yards (2 int); Joe Reed, 6 of 12 for 117 yards and 1 TD WAS: Joe Theismann, 9 of 20 for 129 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
Rushing:
DET: Dexter Bussey, 19 for 69 yards; Horace King, 9 for 0 yards; Greg Landry, 4 for 20 yards; Lawrence Gaines, 2 for 14 yards WAS: Mike Thomas, 19 for 87 yards and 1 TD; John Riggins, 11 for 25 yards; Calvin Hill, 5 for 7 yards; Larry Brown, 3 for -7 yards; Joe Theismann, 1 for 6 yards; Frank Grant, 1 for -9 yards
Receiving:
DET: Ray Jarvis, 4 for 96 yards and 1 TD; Larry Walton, 3 for 63 yards; Horace King, 2 for 16 yards; David Hill, 1 for 14 yards; Leonard Thompson, 1 for 12 yards WAS: Frank Grant, 6 for 93 yards and 1 TD; Roy Jefferson, 2 for 21 yards; Jerry Smith, 1 for 15 yards
Kick returns:
DET: Bobby Thompson, 5 for 74 yards WAS: Eddie Brown, 1 for 67 yards
Punt returns:
DET: Lem Barney, 2 for 10 yards WAS: Eddie Brown, 4 for 47 yards
Interceptions:
DET: Dick Jauron, 1 for 0 yards WAS: Joe Lavender, 1 for 5 yards; Pat Fischer, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
DET: Herman Weaver, 10 for 386 yards WAS: Mike Bragg, 8 for 308 yards
Field Goals:
DET: Errol Mann, 0/1 WAS: Mark Moseley, 2/3
DET: Greg Landry, 5 of 16 for 84 yards (2 int); Joe Reed, 6 of 12 for 117 yards and 1 TD WAS: Joe Theismann, 9 of 20 for 129 yards and 1 TD (1 int)
Rushing:
DET: Dexter Bussey, 19 for 69 yards; Horace King, 9 for 0 yards; Greg Landry, 4 for 20 yards; Lawrence Gaines, 2 for 14 yards WAS: Mike Thomas, 19 for 87 yards and 1 TD; John Riggins, 11 for 25 yards; Calvin Hill, 5 for 7 yards; Larry Brown, 3 for -7 yards; Joe Theismann, 1 for 6 yards; Frank Grant, 1 for -9 yards
Receiving:
DET: Ray Jarvis, 4 for 96 yards and 1 TD; Larry Walton, 3 for 63 yards; Horace King, 2 for 16 yards; David Hill, 1 for 14 yards; Leonard Thompson, 1 for 12 yards WAS: Frank Grant, 6 for 93 yards and 1 TD; Roy Jefferson, 2 for 21 yards; Jerry Smith, 1 for 15 yards
Kick returns:
DET: Bobby Thompson, 5 for 74 yards WAS: Eddie Brown, 1 for 67 yards
Punt returns:
DET: Lem Barney, 2 for 10 yards WAS: Eddie Brown, 4 for 47 yards
Interceptions:
DET: Dick Jauron, 1 for 0 yards WAS: Joe Lavender, 1 for 5 yards; Pat Fischer, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
DET: Herman Weaver, 10 for 386 yards WAS: Mike Bragg, 8 for 308 yards
Field Goals:
DET: Errol Mann, 0/1 WAS: Mark Moseley, 2/3