All NFL game summaries for 11/21/1976:

Interceptions by Dewey McClain and Ray Brown plus a short Dallas punt were turned into 17 points within 4:44 of the fourth quarter to give the Falcons their first victory over the Cowboys in six meetings. Dallas took a 10-0 lead in the third quarter on a 23-yard field goal by Efren Herrera but Atlanta tied the game on a 35-yard run by Mike Esposito and got the go-ahead touchdown with 6:53 left on a one-yard run by Scott Hunter. Tommy Nobis intercepted a pass at the Falcons' 9 with 1:12 remaining to halt the final Cowboys' drive after they were stopped on downs on the previous series at the Atlanta 28.

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

Line: Cowboys by 12

                     DAL             ATL
First Downs:         15              13
Rushes-yards:        36-182          43-141
Yards/rush:          5.1             3.3
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     13-28-157-3     8-20-99-1
Sacked-yards:        4-32            1-10
Net pass yards:      125             89
Net yards/pass:      3.9             4.2
Total net yards:     307             230
Total plays:         68 (52% run)    64 (67% run)  
Yards/play:          4.5             3.6
Fumbles-lost:        1-1             1-1
Turnovers:           4               2
Penalties-yards:     8-70            4-39

Attendance: 54,992

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Dan Fouts and Charlie Joiner combined for two first half touchdowns as the Chargers broke a four game losing streak with their fifth win of the season. Ray Wersching ended the 27-point San Diego first half with a 45-yard free kick field goal following a fair catch by Mike Williams at the Bills' 35. O.J. Simpson gained 118 yards for his fourth 100-yard game in 1976.

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

Line: Bills by 4

                     SD              BUF
First Downs:         20              14
Rushes-yards:        35-184          38-148
Yards/rush:          5.3             3.9
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     19-29-200-3     8-30-83-3
Sacked-yards:        1-2             2-12
Net pass yards:      198             71
Net yards/pass:      6.6             2.2
Total net yards:     382             219
Total plays:         65 (53% run)    70 (54% run)  
Yards/play:          5.9             3.1
Fumbles-lost:        1-1             1-0
Turnovers:           4               3
Penalties-yards:     8-65            4-81

Attendance: 36,539

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Steve Ramsey's two touchdown passes and Phil Olsen's block of a New York extra point attempt gave the Broncos their first win over the Giants. Ramsey sent Denver to a 14-0 advantage on four-yard scoring passes to Haven Moses and Riley Odoms before New York got its first score. Brad Van Pelt blocked a Broncos' punt and Jim Stienke carried it in for six points with 25 seconds left in the half, but Olsen blocked the PAT. The Giants scored again on their second possession of the third period but Denver shut them out the rest of the way, picking up two turnovers in the closing minutes.

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

Line: Broncos by 10

                     NYG             DEN
First Downs:         13              15
Rushes-yards:        38-121          44-136
Yards/rush:          3.2             3.1
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     11-24-137-2     10-16-128-0
Sacked-yards:        2-15            4-25
Net pass yards:      122             103
Net yards/pass:      4.7             5.2
Total net yards:     243             239
Total plays:         64 (59% run)    64 (68% run)  
Yards/play:          3.8             3.7
Fumbles-lost:        2-1             4-1
Turnovers:           3               1
Penalties-yards:     7-55            9-93

Attendance: 62,961

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Greg Landry threw two touchdown passes within 90 seconds at the close of the first half, connecting with Larry Walton with 2:18 left in the half for a 7-7 tie, then three plays after James Hunter's interception at the Detroit 34, Landry hit Ray Jarvis with a six-yard scoring pass for a 14-7 lead. Chicago struck in the first period on a 50-yard pass reception by James Scott but Detroit dug in and held the Bears to a fourth quarter field goal and limited Walter Payton to 40 yards.

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

Line: Bears by 1

                     CHI             DET
First Downs:         11              23
Rushes-yards:        29-111          41-203
Yards/rush:          3.8             5.0
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     8-29-133-1      15-26-187-2
Sacked-yards:        3-23            6-41
Net pass yards:      110             146
Net yards/pass:      3.4             4.6
Total net yards:     221             349
Total plays:         61 (47% run)    73 (56% run)  
Yards/play:          3.6             4.8
Fumbles-lost:        1-0             2-2
Turnovers:           1               4
Penalties-yards:     11-79           4-32

Attendance: 77,731

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Fran Tarkenton passed for two touchdowns and the Vikings' defense stopped the Packers four times with interceptions as Minnesota won its fourth consecutive NFC Central title and eighth in the last nine years. Robert Miller caught Tarkenton's first TD pass, a four-yarder, with six seconds left in the first half for a 10-3 Vikings' lead. John Brockington's one-yard run ending a 74-yard drive on the first series of the second half tied the game 10-10 but Tarkenton rallied Minnesota for an 88-yard drive, breaking the tie with an 11-yard pass to Ahmad Rashad 1:06 into the fourth quarter.

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

Line: Vikings by 10

                     MIN             GB
First Downs:         17              13
Rushes-yards:        30-100          38-146
Yards/rush:          3.3             3.8
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     23-43-180-0     12-27-100-4
Sacked-yards:        3-29            4-18
Net pass yards:      151             82
Net yards/pass:      3.3             2.6
Total net yards:     251             228
Total plays:         76 (39% run)    69 (55% run)  
Yards/play:          3.3             3.3
Fumbles-lost:        4-2             0-0
Turnovers:           2               4
Penalties-yards:     2-25            4-25

Attendance: 53,104

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Tony Davis gave the Bengals their winning points on a one-yard run with 4:20 left in the game as Cincinnati overcame six turnovers and a 24-20 fourth quarter deficit for its ninth victory. Archie Griffin, registering his first 100-plus day with 139 rushing yards, broke loose for a 77-yard touchdown, the AFC's longest run in 1976, on the game's first scrimmage play. Kansas City tied the score in the third period on Tommy Reamon's second TD and pulled ahead in the fourth quarter before Ken Anderson regrouped the Bengals for a 62-yard game clinching drive.

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

Line: Bengals by 11

                     CIN             KC
First Downs:         21              16
Rushes-yards:        41-269          39-126
Yards/rush:          6.6             3.2
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     9-17-123-1      12-25-179-0
Sacked-yards:        2-19            6-54
Net pass yards:      104             125
Net yards/pass:      5.5             4.0
Total net yards:     373             251
Total plays:         60 (68% run)    70 (55% run)  
Yards/play:          6.2             3.6
Fumbles-lost:        7-5             3-0
Turnovers:           6               0
Penalties-yards:     2-10            5-50

Attendance: 46,259

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Steve Grogan threw three touchdown passes and Prentice McCray returned two interceptions for touchdowns for the Patriots' eighth win of the season, their most since 1966. The Jets took a 10-0 lead early in the first quarter on a field goal and Greg Buttle's 23-yard run following a fumble recovery, but Grogan had New England in the lead by the end of the quarter with TD passes of 15 yards to Andy Johnson and 17 yards to Darryl Stingley. McCray's two interception return touchdowns of 63 and 55 yards, a Patriots' record and two of a club record seven interceptions, gave New England a 28-17 lead.

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

Line: Patriots by 10

                     NE              NYJ
First Downs:         13              20
Rushes-yards:        41-154          30-103
Yards/rush:          3.8             3.4
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     10-22-83-1      18-42-214-7
Sacked-yards:        0-0             3-30
Net pass yards:      83              184
Net yards/pass:      3.8             4.1
Total net yards:     237             287
Total plays:         63 (65% run)    75 (40% run)  
Yards/play:          3.8             3.8
Fumbles-lost:        3-2             4-3
Turnovers:           3               10
Penalties-yards:     7-89            5-49

Attendance: 49,983

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Mark van Eeghen gave Oakland a 12-7 lead at the end of the first quarter on a one-yard run and the Raiders added 14 insurance points in the second half to clinch their fifth straight AFC Western Division title. Roman Gabriel threw his two-hundredth career touchdown pass, a one-yarder to Harold Carmichael, to give the Eagles a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, but Oakland came back with a field goal and a safety before van Eeghen's TD. Ken Stabler, completing 14 of 18 passes, combined with Fred Biletnikoff for a 16-yard score in the third quarter and Clarence Davis picked up his third TD of the year on an eight-yard run in the fourth quarter.

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

Line: Raiders by 9

                     OAK             PHI
First Downs:         23              14
Rushes-yards:        47-250          33-97
Yards/rush:          5.3             2.9
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     14-18-133-0     12-25-146-1
Sacked-yards:        0-0             4-36
Net pass yards:      133             110
Net yards/pass:      7.4             3.8
Total net yards:     383             207
Total plays:         65 (72% run)    62 (53% run)  
Yards/play:          5.9             3.3
Fumbles-lost:        2-2             5-0
Turnovers:           2               1
Penalties-yards:     4-49            4-32

Attendance: 62,113

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Reggie Harrison scored two second-half touchdowns and Roy Gerela added three field goals to lead the Steelers past the Oilers for the eighth time in the last nine games. Rocky Bleier ran for a 10-yard touchdown on the game's first series and Pittsburgh built a 12-0 lead before Ken Burrough scored on a 69-yard pass from John Hadl to break the Steelers' string of 22 consecutive quarters without giving up a TD. Pittsburgh's linebackers menaced Houston. Jack Lambert picked up two fumbles, Jack Ham and Andy Russell each had an interception, and Loren Toews blocked a second quarter punt for a safety.

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

Line: Steelers by 16

                     HOU             PIT
First Downs:         12              17
Rushes-yards:        33-101          48-143
Yards/rush:          3.1             3.0
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     9-23-134-2      8-13-132-1
Sacked-yards:        1-10            2-27
Net pass yards:      124             105
Net yards/pass:      5.2             7.0
Total net yards:     225             248
Total plays:         57 (57% run)    63 (76% run)  
Yards/play:          3.9             3.9
Fumbles-lost:        3-2             3-1
Turnovers:           4               2
Penalties-yards:     10-77           10-84

Attendance: 47,947

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Bobby Douglass' two second period touchdowns, plus a 28-point third quarter, led the Saints to their largest margin of victory in 10 years and tied their highest point total. Douglass' scores on one and three-yard TD runs resulted from two of five Seattle turnovers that were turned into New Orleans six-pointers. Following Chuck Muncie's three-yard touchdown run to open the Saints' scoring in the third period, Tom Myers picked up a Seahawk fumble at the Seattle 20 and ran it in for the score, and 28 seconds later Elex Price picked off a Bill Munson pass and returned it 23 yards for another touchdown.

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

Line: Saints by 1

                     NO              SEA
First Downs:         28              18
Rushes-yards:        52-258          24-105
Yards/rush:          5.0             4.4
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     14-24-149-2     17-34-172-3
Sacked-yards:        1-8             1-8
Net pass yards:      141             164
Net yards/pass:      5.6             4.7
Total net yards:     399             269
Total plays:         77 (67% run)    59 (40% run)  
Yards/play:          5.2             4.6
Fumbles-lost:        1-0             2-2
Turnovers:           2               5
Penalties-yards:     7-58            4-35

Attendance: 61,865

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The Rams' defense limited the 49ers to 88 total yards and forced six turnovers, converting four into scores, including Monte Jackson's second interception for a 41-yard touchdown. Pat Haden threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Ron Jessie one play after a Jim Youngblood interception. Tom Dempsey started off the 17-point Rams' third quarter with a 42-yard field goal following a fumble recovery at the San Francisco 26, and Haden ran over from the one after the 49ers fumbled the ensuing kickoff.

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

Line: Rams by 3

                     LA              SF
First Downs:         8               7
Rushes-yards:        47-120          29-70
Yards/rush:          2.6             2.4
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     3-8-61-0        9-28-65-4
Sacked-yards:        5-35            4-47
Net pass yards:      26              18
Net yards/pass:      2.0             0.6
Total net yards:     146             88
Total plays:         60 (78% run)    61 (47% run)  
Yards/play:          2.4             1.4
Fumbles-lost:        4-2             3-2
Turnovers:           2               6
Penalties-yards:     2-20            3-25

Attendance: 58,573

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Mike Thomas's club record 195 yards and third quarter touchdown plus Mike Moseley's three field goals led the Redskins past the Cardinals for the second time in 1976 and tightened the race in the NFC East. Jim Hart opened the scoring with a 48-yard pass to Terry Metcalf, but the Washington defense pressured Hart the rest of the way, allowing him to complete only 9 of 31 passes and picking up four sacks. The Redskins cut the St. Louis lead to 7-6 at the half and Thomas put Washington ahead to stay with 6:13 in the third quarter on a 22-yard touchdown run.

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

Line: Cardinals by 8

                     WAS             STL
First Downs:         20              16
Rushes-yards:        56-247          31-152
Yards/rush:          4.4             4.9
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     9-20-110-1      9-31-181-1
Sacked-yards:        0-0             4-26
Net pass yards:      110             155
Net yards/pass:      5.5             4.4
Total net yards:     357             307
Total plays:         76 (73% run)    66 (46% run)  
Yards/play:          4.7             4.7
Fumbles-lost:        3-2             5-3
Turnovers:           3               4
Penalties-yards:     6-76            3-18

Attendance: 49,833

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Brian Sipe broke a 7-7 halftime deadlock with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Paul Warfield and defensive end Joe Jones recovered a Buccaneers' fumble in the end zone as the Browns picked up their seventh win. Steve Spurrier led Tampa Bay on an 80-yard second period drive, tying the score with a 12-yard scoring pass to Essex Johnson following Cleo Miller's TD run.

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

Line: Browns by 18

                     CLE             TB
First Downs:         21              18
Rushes-yards:        41-149          28-102
Yards/rush:          3.6             3.6
Comp-Att-Yd-INT:     12-23-142-0     18-32-157-1
Sacked-yards:        1-9             3-32
Net pass yards:      133             125
Net yards/pass:      5.5             3.6
Total net yards:     282             227
Total plays:         65 (63% run)    63 (44% run)  
Yards/play:          4.3             3.6
Fumbles-lost:        0-0             1-1
Turnovers:           0               2
Penalties-yards:     10-70           7-57

Attendance: 34,948

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