1976 St. Louis Football Cardinals: A Contender Trapped By The NFC East
In an era when the NFC East had some great teams—Roger Staubach’s Dallas Cowboys and the legendary Over-The-Hill Gang of the Washington Redskins, it was actually the old St. Louis Cardinals football team who came into 1976 as the two-time defending division champs. Coached by Don Coryell, the Cardinals were a contender again in ’76. But this time, the quality of the division combined with the stringent playoff qualification standards of the era conspired to keep the Cards out of the postseason.
A POTENT OFFENSE COVERS FOR MEDIOCRE D
Jim Hart was a Pro Bowl quarterback. His numbers—56% completion rate, 7.6 yards-per-attempt, an 18/13 TD-INT ratio, with a 3.4% interception rate—don’t look good by today’s standards. But defenses in the mid-1970s NFL were allowed to be much more physical, passing games themselves were very different, and Hart’s numbers all put him in the top 10 of starting quarterbacks.
Mel Gray was the deep threat, with his 36 catches producing nearly 700 yards and Gray also punched a Pro Bowl ticket. Ike Harris was a steady target, pulling in 52 catches for almost 800 yards. And versatile Terry Metcalf came out of the backfield to catch 33 more balls, and his 11.8 yards-per-catch was high for a running back.
Metcalf also ran for over 500 yards, lending support to a running game that was built around fullback Jim Otis, who muscled for nearly 900 yards. Steve Jones filled out a balanced backfield, chipping in 451 yards in what was then just a 14-game regular season schedule.
There were some big names in the skill positions, but it was all made possible by a fantastic offensive line. Tom Banks was the best center in football. The right side of the line had Pro Bowl guard Conrad Dobler and All-Pro tackle Dan Dierdorf. The line was the anchor of an offense that ranked eighth in the NFL for points scored.
St. Louis needed to score because they had some issues defending. There were some good individual players, notably All-Pro corner Roger Wehrli. Bob Bell and John Zook were pretty decent pass rushers at ends. But there wasn’t a lot else and the Cardinals finished 16th in a 28-team league for points allowed.
A FAST START AGAINST A SOFT SLATE
The Seattle Seahawks were one of two new NFL franchises in 1976 (the Tampa Bay Buccaneers being the other). St. Louis traveled to the Pacific Northwest to the old Kingdome to start the new era. The Cardinals muscled up against the newcomers, racking up 281 rush yards. Otis carried 27 times for 140 yards, while Metcalf only needed 16 carries to gain 113 more. St. Louis led 30-10 in the fourth quarter and then held off a late surge to win 30-24.
A home date with a bad Green Bay Packers team was next. The Cardinals again controlled the line of scrimmage, winning rush yardage 208-62, forcing seven turnovers and committing none. Hart went 15/29 for 221 yards. Although they spent three quarters settling for field goals and led 15-0 going into the final period, St. Louis was too dominant and eventually started to find the end zone in a 29-0 whitewash.
But a road trip west to play the mediocre San Diego Chargers ended up exposing the defensive flaws. The Cards gave up over 200 yards on the ground and Charger quarterback Dan Fouts carved them up. St. Louis also lost four fumbles, dug themselves a 33-10 hole by halftime and lost 43-24.
The Cardinals occupied the NFC East, both here in St. Louis and later in Phoenix, until the 2002 realignment. While the division was ferocious at the top, with the Cowboys and Redskins, the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants, were both uncompetitive. St. Louis had a chance to get back on track with home games against both.
Defensive back Mike Sensibaugh got the Cards rolling against the Giants with a 35-yard Pick-6, and St. Louis led 20-7 in the third quarter. The running game showed its balance, with Jones and Wayne Morris combining for 155 yards. St. Louis closed out a 27-21 win.
After a sluggish start against Philadelphia, where the Cards trailed 7-6 in the second quarter, Hart opened up with a 49-yard touchdown strike to Gray. St. Louis won the rushing battle 198-58, the turnover margin 4-1 and cruised to a 33-14 win.
The Cards were 4-1 and the first money part of the season was about to begin—consecutive games against the Cowboys and Redskins.
BIG WINS…AND A BITTER LOSS
Dallas’ visit to Busch Stadium was in the late Sunday afternoon TV window. Hart threw a 54-yard TD pass to Gray in the second quarter. The Cardinals later fell behind 10-7 and were having problems getting the running game going. Hart stepped up. He threw a short TD pass to Metcalf to get the lead and went on top again to Gray from 47 yards to extend the lead. Hart finished 22/33 for 346 yards, while Gray’s seven catches went for 152 yards. St. Louis got a monster 21-17 win.
Monday Night in Washington saw rain come down hard. The Cardinals generally controlled the flow of play but only led 10-6. As it turns out, if you fumble the football nine times, lose eight of them, and mix in an interception, it can come back to haunt you. St. Louis lost the game in the fourth quarter, dropping a 20-10 decision.
St. Louis had held their own against the best of the NFC East, but it bears emphasizing that there was only one wild-card spot per conference in the world of 1976. Of the three powerhouses in this division, someone was going to be left without a chair when the music stopped.
The road only got mildly easier, playing a respectable San Francisco 49ers team at home, and the Cardinals were in a 20-13 hole in the fourth quarter and again being outrushed. Hart and Gray again came through, this time on a 77-yard game-tying TD pass. Hart finished 16/31 for 271 yards and three touchdowns. The game went to overtime where St. Louis pulled out a 23-20 win.
A road trip to Philadelphia proved tougher than expected, with the Cardinals trailing 7-0 at the half and still tied 14-14 in the fourth quarter. Otis ran for 115 yards, and another late field goal got St. Louis out of town with a 17-14 win.
The Cardinals were 7-2, sandwiched in between the 8-1 Cowboys and the 6-3 Redskins. And the second and last money part of the schedule was about to begin.
THE BIGGEST BATTLES
The Los Angeles Rams had knocked St. Louis out of the playoffs in 1975 and were en route to returning to the NFC Championship Game this year. The Cards were a six-point underdog in the L.A. Coliseum, and they dug themselves a 21-6 hole after allowing the second half kickoff to be returned for a touchdown.
Once again, in a tough spot, it was time for Hart. He finished the day 20/33 for 324 yards. Harris caught eight balls for 130 yards while Pat Tilley added six catches for 120 yards. The Cardinals pulled to within 28-27 and then got a short field goal to win it. They had another late escape.
When the Redskins lost, St. Louis had a two-game cushion on the wild-card. Just as Washington was coming to town for a late Sunday afternoon battle. The Cardinals could take firm control of the race with a win. However, if they lost, not only would the Redskins pull to within a game, St. Louis would also lose the head-to-head tiebreaker. The stakes were enormous.
The game started well, when Hart hit Metcalf with a 48-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. But on a windy day, Hart otherwise struggled, only completing 9/31 passes. The Washington passing attack wasn’t much better in the conditions, but the Cards were outrushed 247-152. They never found the end zone again and ultimately lost 16-10. Instead of clinching, they had a dogfight on their hands.
St. Louis went to Dallas on Thanksgiving Day. Trailing 19-7 in the fourth quarter, things looked bleak. One more time, Hart rallied his team. With Harris catching six balls for 113 yards, the Cards closed to 19-14 and then reached the Cowboy 20-yard line late in the game. Four times, Hart went for the end zone and the win. Four times, he came up empty. This time, the comeback bid fell short.
Dallas was going to win the NFC East. And when Washington won on Sunday, the Cards and Redskins were both 8-4, with St. Louis now on the outside looking in. However, there was still a significant ray of hope—Washington also had to come to Dallas, and the Cowboys were still playing for the #1 seed in the NFC bracket.
A LAST PUSH FALLS SHORT
Before worrying about what the Redskins did, St. Louis had a tough home game on a Saturday afternoon against the playoff-bound Baltimore Colts. The Cardinals found their running game. Otis ran for 107 yards and St. Louis shut down the Baltimore ground attack. Hart went 13/22 for 206 yards, spreading the ball around and getting an impressive 17-14 win.
It would all come down to the final week. The Cardinals were going to the Meadowlands where they had to beat the Giants. Then, they would wait and see if the Cowboys could knock out the Redskins in the late afternoon.
Perhaps St. Louis had their minds on what would happen in Dallas, because facing a woeful opponent, the Cardinals trailed 14-10 in the fourth quarter. But they ran for 230 yards, 119 from Otis. And a 1-yard TD run from Jones got them another close escape, 17-14. Now they needed help.
For three quarters, it looked like they might get it. The Redskins squandered some opportunities and trailed 14-13 in the fourth quarter. But Washington controlled the final period, beat Dallas, and claimed the wild-card spot. Even at 10-4, with a record that would have had them as the 5-seed in today’s format, St. Louis was going home.
THE END OF AN ERA
The Cardinals slipped to 7-7 the following year and moved on from Coryell. That didn’t work out. Coryell went to San Diego and began winning again. The Cardinals only made the playoffs one more time as a resident of St. Louis, and that was in the strike-shortened year of 1982. As it turned out, the near-miss of 1976 marked the end of a short era.