NFL game summary for 09/03/1978:
Roland Harper scored on a one-yard run with 1:56 remaining to give rookie head coach Neill Armstrong his first victory and spoil the NFL coaching debut of Bud Wilkinson. The Bears' Walter Payton rushed for 101 yards and tied Gale Sayers' club record of 20 games with at least 100 yards on the ground.
Line: Bears by 3½
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 St. Louis Cardinals (0-1-0) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
 Chicago Bears (1-0-0) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
( 0- 3) CHI Bob Thomas 29 yard field goal
( 3- 3) STL Jim Bakken 33 yard field goal
( 3-10) CHI Walter Payton 5 yard rush (Bob Thomas kick)
(10-10) STL Eason Ramson 1 yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick)
(10-17) CHI Roland Harper 1 yard rush (Bob Thomas kick)
STL CHI
First Downs: 16 19
Rushes-yards: 28-99 45-194
Yards/rush: 3.5 4.3
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 17-33-152-2 8-19-72-0
Sacked-yards: 2-15 3-23
Net pass yards: 137 49
Net yards/pass: 3.9 2.2
Total net yards: 236 243
Total plays: 63 (44% run) 67 (67% run)
Yards/play: 3.7 3.6
Fumbles-lost: 1-0 1-0
Turnovers: 2 0
Penalties-yards: 5-27 4-57
Attendance: 52,791
Passing:
STL: Jim Hart, 17 of 33 for 152 yards and 1 TD (2 int) CHI: Bob Avellini, 8 of 19 for 72 yards
Rushing:
STL: Wayne Morris, 13 for 33 yards; Steve Jones, 9 for 42 yards; Jim Otis, 4 for 18 yards; Jerry Latin, 2 for 6 yards CHI: Walter Payton, 26 for 101 yards and 1 TD; Roland Harper, 18 for 93 yards and 1 TD; Bob Avellini, 1 for 0 yards
Receiving:
STL: Mel Gray, 5 for 83 yards; Pat Tilley, 4 for 24 yards; Steve Jones, 3 for 16 yards; Wayne Morris, 2 for 13 yards; Jimmy Childs, 1 for 12 yards; Jerry Latin, 1 for 3 yards; Eason Ramson, 1 for 1 yard and 1 TD CHI: Walter Payton, 3 for 22 yards; Greg Latta, 2 for 15 yards; Bo Rather, 1 for 16 yards; James Scott, 1 for 15 yards; Roland Harper, 1 for 4 yards
Kick returns:
STL: Jerry Latin, 2 for 48 yards CHI: Brian Baschnagel, 2 for 42 yards; Mike Morgan, 1 for 24 yards
Punt returns:
STL: Pat Tilley, 2 for 8 yards; Tom Southard, 2 for -2 yards CHI: Steve Schubert, 3 for 28 yards; Len Walterscheid, 1 for 11 yards
Interceptions:
CHI: Virgil Livers, 1 for 9 yards; Terry Schmidt, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
STL: Steve Little, 6 for 217 yards CHI: Bob Parsons, 8 for 286 yards
Field Goals:
STL: Jim Bakken, 1/2 CHI: Bob Thomas, 1/1
STL: Jim Hart, 17 of 33 for 152 yards and 1 TD (2 int) CHI: Bob Avellini, 8 of 19 for 72 yards
Rushing:
STL: Wayne Morris, 13 for 33 yards; Steve Jones, 9 for 42 yards; Jim Otis, 4 for 18 yards; Jerry Latin, 2 for 6 yards CHI: Walter Payton, 26 for 101 yards and 1 TD; Roland Harper, 18 for 93 yards and 1 TD; Bob Avellini, 1 for 0 yards
Receiving:
STL: Mel Gray, 5 for 83 yards; Pat Tilley, 4 for 24 yards; Steve Jones, 3 for 16 yards; Wayne Morris, 2 for 13 yards; Jimmy Childs, 1 for 12 yards; Jerry Latin, 1 for 3 yards; Eason Ramson, 1 for 1 yard and 1 TD CHI: Walter Payton, 3 for 22 yards; Greg Latta, 2 for 15 yards; Bo Rather, 1 for 16 yards; James Scott, 1 for 15 yards; Roland Harper, 1 for 4 yards
Kick returns:
STL: Jerry Latin, 2 for 48 yards CHI: Brian Baschnagel, 2 for 42 yards; Mike Morgan, 1 for 24 yards
Punt returns:
STL: Pat Tilley, 2 for 8 yards; Tom Southard, 2 for -2 yards CHI: Steve Schubert, 3 for 28 yards; Len Walterscheid, 1 for 11 yards
Interceptions:
CHI: Virgil Livers, 1 for 9 yards; Terry Schmidt, 1 for 0 yards
Punting:
STL: Steve Little, 6 for 217 yards CHI: Bob Parsons, 8 for 286 yards
Field Goals:
STL: Jim Bakken, 1/2 CHI: Bob Thomas, 1/1