1977 NFL season Totally Explained

Everything about The 1977 Nfl Season totally explained

The 1977 NFL season was the 58th regular season of the National Football League. The Seattle Seahawks were placed in the AFC West while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were slotted in the NFC Central.
   Instead of a traditional Thanksgiving Day game hosted by the Dallas Cowboys, the league scheduled a Miami Dolphins at St. Louis Cardinals contest. This would be only the second season since 1966 that the Cowboys didn't play on that holiday.
   This was the last NFL regular season with 14 games. The regular season was expanded to 16 games in 1978, with the preseason reduced from six games to four.
   The season ended with Super Bowl XII when the Cowboys defeated the Denver Broncos.

Major rule changes

The head slap is outlawed. This change is referred to as the "Deacon Jones Rule"; the Rams defensive end frequently used this technique.
Any shoe worn by a player with an artificial limb must have a kicking surface that conforms to that of a normal kicking shoe. Informally referred to as the "Tom Dempsey Rule." Dempsey is a record-breaking placekicker whose modified shoe (having a flattened and enlarged toe area) on his deformed kicking foot generated controversy during his career.
Defenders are only permitted to make contact with receivers once.
Defenders are not allowed to make contact with an opponent above the shoulders with the palms of their hands, except to ward him off the line.
Offensive linemen are not allowed to thrust their hands to a defender's neck, face, or head.
Wide receivers are not allowed to clip defenders.

Final standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT= Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against

Qualified for playoffs

Team				CT	F	A
AFC East
Baltimore Colts	10	4	0	.714	295	221
Miami Dolphins	10	4	0	.714	313	197
New England Patriots	9	5	0	.643	278	217
Buffalo Bills	3	11	0	.214	160	313
New York Jets	3	11	0	.214	191	300
AFC Central
Team				CT	F	A
Pittsburgh Steelers	9	5	0	.643	283	243
Cincinnati Bengals	8	6	0	.571	238	235
Houston Oilers	8	6	0	.571	299	230
Cleveland Browns	6	8	0	.429	269	267
AFC West
Team				CT	F	A
Denver Broncos	12	2	0	.857	274	148
Oakland Raiders	11	3	0	.786	351	230
San Diego Chargers	7	7	0	.500	222	205
Seattle Seahawks	5	9	0	.357	282	373
Kansas City Chiefs	2	12	0	.143	225	349

Team				CT	F	A
NFC East
Dallas Cowboys	12	2	0	.857	345	212
Washington Redskins	9	5	0	.643	196	189
St. Louis Cardinals	7	7	0	.500	272	287
Philadelphia Eagles	5	9	0	.357	220	207
New York Giants	5	9	0	.357	181	265
NFC Central
Team				CT	F	A
Minnesota Vikings	9	5	0	.643	231	227
Chicago Bears	9	5	0	.643	255	253
Detroit Lions	6	8	0	.429	183	252
Green Bay Packers	4	10	0	.286	134	219
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	2	12	0	.143	103	223
NFC West
Team				CT	F	A
Los Angeles Rams	10	4	0	.714	302	146
Atlanta Falcons	7	7	0	.500	179	129
San Francisco 49ers	5	9	0	.357	220	260
New Orleans Saints	3	11	0	.214	232	336

Tiebreakers

Baltimore finished ahead of Miami in the AFC EAST based on better conference record (9-3 to Dolphins' 8-4).

Buffalo finished ahead of N.Y. Jets in the AFC East based on better strength of schedule (.582 to Jets' .536).

Cincinnati finished ahead of Houston in the AFC Central based on better division record (6-3 to Oilers' 5-4).

Minnesota finished ahead of Chicago in the NFC Central based on fewer losses by common opponents (11 losses to 14 losses by the Bears' opponents).

Chicago won the NFC Wild Card over Washington based on better net points in conference games (48 to Redskins' 4).

Philadelphia finished ahead of N.Y. Giants in the NFC East based on head-to-head sweep (2-0).

Playoffs

*Denver (the AFC 1 seed) didn't play Oakland (the 4 seed) in the Divisional playoff round because both teams were in the same division.Further Information

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