1976 Detroit Lions season

1976 Detroit Lions season
Head coach	Rick Forzano and Tommy Hudspeth
Results
Record	6–8
Division place	3rd NFC Central
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1976 Detroit Lions season was the 47th season in franchise history. After the first four games of the season, Rick Forzano resigned under pressure of owner William Clay Ford, and was replaced by one time BYU head coach and Lions assistant Tommy Hudspeth.^[1] In spite of a stellar season by quarterback Greg Landry, that year's NFL Comeback Player Of The Year, the team was still mired in mediocrity, fininsing 6–8.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	School
1

Regular season

During the Thanksgiving Day game on November 25, O.J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills set a record with the most rushing yards in one Thanksgiving Day game, by rushing for 273 yards vs. the Lions.^[2]

In spite of their poor overall record the Lions offense set a statistical record for Passer Rating Differential (40.9, 14th best 196—2011). Such a high rating is usually reserved for playoff teams or Super Bowl winners;

Top 25 Teams in Passer Rating Differential (1960–present)

Ranking Team OPR DPR Differential Record Won title

1 1960 Browns 109.5 51.7 57.8 8–3–1 –
2 1966 Packers 102.1 46.1 56.0 12–2 Yes
3 1987 49ers 106.2 53.8 52.4 13–2 –
4 1989 49ers 114.8 68.5 46.3 14–2 Yes
5 1975 Vikings 90.8 46.2 44.6 12–2 –
6 1975 Steelers 86.7 42.8 43.9 12–2 Yes
7 1994 49ers 111.4 68.1 43.3 13–3 Yes
8 1999 Rams 106.6 64.1 42.5 13–3 Yes
9 1975 Bengals 89 46.9 42.1 11–3 –
10 1963 Giants* 94.4 52.7 41.7 11–3 Yes
11 1962 Packers 84.9 43.4 41.5 13–1 Yes
12 1976 Lions 84.6 43.7 40.9 6–8 --
13 1963 Bears 75.6 34.8 40.8 11–1–2 Yes
14 1996 Packers 95.7 55.4 40.3 13–3 Yes
15 1974 Redskins 90 49.9 40.1 10–4 –
16 1972 Dolphins 86.9 47.4 39.5 14–0 Yes
17 1988 Vikings 80.4 41.2 39.2 11–5 –
18 1991 Redskins 98 58.9 39.1 14–2 Yes
19 1960 Eagles 87.9 49.1 38.8 10–2 Yes
20 2007 Patriots* 116 78.1 37.9 16–0 Yes
21 2002 Buccaneers 86.3 48.4 37.9 12–4 Yes
22 2009 Saints 106 68.6 37.4 13–3 Yes
23 1984 Dolphins* 108.5 71.4 37.1 14–2 Yes
24 1977 Cowboys 85.3 48.2 37.1 12–2 Yes
25 1967 Rams 84.4 47.5 36.9 11–1–2 –

Note: The 1963 Giants, 2007 Patriots and 1984 Dolphins lost in their respective title games.^[3]

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 12, 1976	at Chicago Bears	L 10–3	54,125
2	September 19, 1976	Atlanta Falcons	W 24–10	50,840
3	September 26, 1976	Minnesota Vikings	L 10–9	77,292
4	October 3, 1976	at Green Bay Packers	L 24–14	55,041
5	October 10, 1976	New England Patriots	W 30–10	60,174
6	October 17, 1976	at Washington Redskins	L 20–7	45,908
7	October 24, 1976	at Seattle Seahawks	W 41–14	61,280
8	October 31, 1976	Green Bay Packers	W 27–6	74,992
9	November 7, 1976	at Minnesota Vikings	L 31–23	46,735
10	November 14, 1976	at New Orleans Saints	L 17–16	42,048
11	November 21, 1976	Chicago Bears	W 14–10	78,042
12	November 25, 1976	Buffalo Bills	W 27–14	66,875
13	December 5, 1976	at New York Giants	L 24–10	66,069
14	December 11, 1976	Los Angeles Rams	L 20–17	73,470

Standings

NFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Minnesota Vikings⁽²⁾	11	2	1	.821	5–1	9–2	305	176	W2
Chicago Bears	7	7	0	.500	4–2	7–5	253	216	L1
Detroit Lions	6	8	0	.429	2–4	5–7	262	220	L2
Green Bay Packers	5	9	0	.357	1–5	4–8	218	299	W1

Roster

Detroit Lions roster

Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Special Teams

Reserve Lists

Currently vacant

Rookies in italics

References

↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 114
↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 377
↑ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/kerry_byrne/06/23/most.important.stat.passer.rating.differential/index.html

Detroit Lions

Founded in 1930 Formerly the Portsmouth Spartans (1930–1933) Based in Detroit, Michigan Headquartered in Allen Park, Michigan

Franchise	Franchise Team history Seasons Players First-round draft picks Starting quarterbacks Coaches

Stadiums	Universal Stadium University of Detroit Stadium Tiger Stadium Pontiac Silverdome Ford Field

Culture	NFL on Thanksgiving Day Paper Lion (film) "What's Going On" (Marvin Gaye song) Home Improvement Cheerleaders

Lore	1932 Playoff Game Curse of Bobby Layne Mike Utley gives a thumbs up Marty Mornhinweg takes the wind "Fire Millen" 0–16 "Calvin Johnson rule" Miracle in Motown

Rivalries	Chicago Bears Green Bay Packers Minnesota Vikings

Notable people	William Clay & Martha Firestone Ford Barry Sanders Bobby Layne Glenn Presnell

Division championships (4)	1935 1983 1991 1993

Conference championships (4)	1952 1953 1954 1957

League championships (4)	1935 1952 1953 1957

Broadcasters	Radio: Radio network Dan Miller Jim Brandstatter Tony Ortiz WJR TV: Television network Matt Shepard Chris Spielman Jennifer Hammond WJBK Fox Sports Detroit

Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: North Division

Seasons (87)	1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Championship seasons in bold

Portsmouth Spartans–Detroit Lions seasons

Portsmouth Spartans 1930 1931 1932 1933 Detroit 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Bold indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl victory Italics indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl appearance

1976 NFL season

East	Central	West	East	Central	West
Baltimore	Cincinnati	Denver	Dallas	Chicago	Atlanta
Buffalo	Cleveland	Kansas City	NY Giants	Detroit	Los Angeles
Miami	Houston	Oakland	Philadelphia	Green Bay	New Orleans
New England	Pittsburgh	San Diego	St. Louis	Minnesota	San Francisco
NY Jets		Tampa Bay	Washington		Seattle

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