The 1976 NFL season was the 57th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 28 teams with the addition of the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. For this season only, the Seahawks played in the NFC West while the Buccaneers played in the AFC West.

The season ended with Super Bowl XI when the Oakland Raiders defeated the Minnesota Vikings.

Major rule changes

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• Two 30-seconds clocks, one on each end of the field, will be used for all games. They will be visible to both players and fans to note the official time between the ready-for-play signal and the snap of the ball.
• If the defensive team commits a foul during a failed extra point attempt, the try is replayed and the offensive team has the option to either have the distance penalty assessed on the next try or the ensuing kickoff.
• If the defensive team commits a foul during a successful extra point attempt, the penalty will be assessed on the ensuing kickoff.
• Players cannot grasp the facemask of an opponent. The penalty for an incidental grasp of the facemask is 5 yards. The penalty for twisting, turning, or pulling the facemask is 15 yards. A player can be ejected from the game if the foul is judged to be vicious and/or flagrant.
• A defender is prohibited from running or diving into, or throwing his body against or on a ballcarrier who falls or slips to the ground untouched and makes no attempt to advance, before or after the ball is dead. This is sometimes called as the "Ben Davidson Rule" after the Raiders defender who almost seriously injured quarterback Len Dawson after the Chiefs passer fell to the ground and made no attempt to advance.

Final standings

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

Qualified for playoffs

Tiebreakers

• Baltimore finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on better division record (7-1 to Patriots' 6-2).
• Pittsburgh finished ahead of Cincinnati in the AFC Central based on head-to-head sweep (2-0).
• Washington finished ahead of St. Louis in the NFC East based on head-to-head sweep (2-0).
• Atlanta finished ahead of New Orleans in the NFC West based on better division record (2-4 to Saints' 1-5).

Playoffs

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Home team in capitals

AFC

• Divisional playoffs: OAKLAND 24, New England 21; Pittsburgh 40, BALTIMORE 14
• AFC Championship: OAKLAND 24, Pittsburgh 7

NFC

• Divisional playoffs: MINNESOTA 35, Washington 20; Los Angeles 14, DALLAS 12
• NFC Championship: MINNESOTA 24, Los Angeles 13

Super Bowl XI

Oakland (AFC) 32, Minnesota (NFC) 14, at Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California

References

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• NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 193299436X)
• NFL History 1971-1980 (Last accessed December 4, 2005)
• 1976 season in details
• Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0062701746)

National Football League seasons | 1976 in sports

Saison NFL 1976