1975 Los Angeles Rams season

1975 Los Angeles Rams season
OwnerCarroll Rosenbloom
Head coachChuck Knox
Home stadiumLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Results
Record12–2
Division place1st NFC West
PlayoffsWon Divisional Playoffs
(vs. Cardinals) 35–23
Lost NFC Championship
(vs. Cowboys) 7–37

The 1975 Los Angeles Rams season was the team's 38th year with the National Football League, and the 30th season in Los Angeles. The Rams finished the season with a 12–2 record and won the NFC West and qualified for the playoffs for the 3rd straight season. The Rams finished the season with the number 1 scoring and number 1 total defense in the NFL. In the postseason, they defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 35–23 in the divisional round before getting routed by the Dallas Cowboys 37–7 in the NFC Championship Game. The 1975 season also represents the last time the Rams played a game on Thanksgiving Day, in which they defeated the Lions 20–0. The 50-year drought without playing a game on the holiday is the longest active drought in the NFL and the longest in history, even beating out the Jacksonville Jaguars, who have never played on Thanksgiving, but they've only existed for 29 seasons.

In 2007, ESPN.com ranked the 1975 Rams as the tenth-greatest defense in NFL history.[1] Said ESPN.com, "Fred Dryer. Jack Youngblood. Merlin Olsen. Get the idea? They weren't the "Fearsome Foursome," but with those guys anchoring the defensive line, and All-Pros Isiah Robertson (linebacker) and Dave Elmendorf (safety), the Rams were almost impossible to score against. The Rams went 12–2, holding opponents to just 9.6 points a game, (the second-lowest average in NFL history) and ending the season with a six-game winning streak during which they gave up just 32 points. The defense wasn't as impressive in the postseason, surrendering 23 points in a first-round 35–23 victory over the offensive powerhouse Cardinals before being demolished 37–7 by the Cowboys in the NFC title game."



Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 1975 NFL draft
1975 Los Angeles Rams draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 9 Mike Fanning  Defensive tackle Notre Dame
1 11 Dennis Harrah *  Tackle Miami
1 20 Doug France *  Tackle Ohio State
2 28 Monte Jackson *  Cornerback San Diego State
2 48 Leroy Jones  Defensive end Norfolk State
3 61 Geoff Reece  Center Washington State
3 67 Dan Nugent  Guard Auburn Would later make Denver Broncos roster in 1976
4 98 Rod Perry *  Defensive back Colorado
5 112 Wayne Hammond  Defensive tackle Montana State
5 126 Rick Nuzum  Center Kentucky
6 140 Darius McCarthy  Wide receiver South Carolina State
7 176 Pat Haden *  Quarterback USC
8 204 John Washington  Defensive back Tulane
9 229 Gordy Riegel  Linebacker Stanford
11 281 Howard Strickland  Running back California
12 307 Chandler Williams  Wide receiver
13 332 A.J. Jacobs  Defensive back Louisville
14 360 Arthur Allen  Wide receiver Oregon State
15 385 Alvin White  Quarterback Oregon State
16 410 Francis Reynolds  Running back Alcorn State
17 428 Skip Boyd  Punter Washington
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff / Coaches

1975 Los Angeles Rams staff
Front Office

Coaching Staff

Offensive Coaches:

Defensive Coaches:

Special Teams Coaches:

  • None - N/A

Strength and Conditioning:

  • None - N/A

Other Assistant Coaches:

  • Training Assistant - Garrett Giemont
  • Advance Scott - Jack Faulkner

Roster

1975 Los Angeles Rams roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

Reserve


Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 21 at Dallas Cowboys L 7–18 0–1 Texas Stadium 49,091
2 September 28 at San Francisco 49ers W 23–14 1–1 Candlestick Park 55,072
3 October 5 Baltimore Colts W 24–13 2–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 62,491
4 October 12 at San Diego Chargers W 13–10 3–1 San Diego Stadium 37,382
5 October 19 Atlanta Falcons W 22–7 4–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 64,843
6 October 26 New Orleans Saints W 38–14 5–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 54,723
7 November 3 at Philadelphia Eagles W 42–3 6–1 Veterans Stadium 64,601
8 November 9 San Francisco 49ers L 23–24 6–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 74,064
9 November 16 at Atlanta Falcons W 16–7 7–2 Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium 44,595
10 November 23 Chicago Bears W 38–10 8–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 64,979
11 November 27 at Detroit Lions W 20–0 9–2 Pontiac Municipal Stadium 69,552
12 December 7 at New Orleans Saints W 14–7 10–2 Louisiana Superdome 39,958
13 December 14 Green Bay Packers W 22–5 11–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 66,496
14 December 20 Pittsburgh Steelers W 10–3 12–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 69,389
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Week 1: Dallas Cowboys

Quarter 1 2 34Total
Rams 0 0 077
Cowboys 0 9 3618

at Texas Stadium, Irving, TX

  • Date: September 21
  • Game time: 3:00
  • Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C), wind 12 mph
  • Referee: Pat Haggerty
  • TV: CBS
  • Box Score

Playoffs

Main article: 1975–76 NFL playoffs
Round Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Attendance
Divisional December 27 St. Louis Cardinals (3) W 35–23 1–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 72,650
NFC Championship January 4, 1976 Dallas Cowboys (4) L 7–37 1–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 84,483

NFC Divisional Playoff

St. Louis Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Rams – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 9 7723
Rams 14 14 0735

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

Game information
  • Scoring
    • LA – Jaworski 5 run (Dempsey kick) LA 7–0
    • LA – Youngblood 47 interception return (Dempsey kick) LA 14–0
    • LA – Simpson 65 interception return (Dempsey kick) LA 21–0
    • STL – Otis 3 run (kick blocked) LA 21–6
    • LA – Jackson 66 pass from Jaworski (Dempsey kick) LA 28–6
    • STL – field goal Bakken 39 LA 28–9
    • STL – Gray 11 pass from Hart (Bakken kick) LA 28–16
    • LA – Jessie 2 fumble return (Dempsey kick) LA 35–16
    • STL – Jones 3 run (Bakken kick) LA 35–23

NFC Championship Game

Dallas Cowboys 37, Los Angeles Rams 7
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 7 14 13337
Rams 0 0 077

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

  • Date: January 4
  • Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C), wind 8 mph, relative humidity 58%
  • Referee: Tommy Bell
  • TV announcers (CBS): Vin Scully and Sonny Jurgensen
  • Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information
First quarter

Second quarter

  • DAL - Golden Richards 4-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Toni Fritsch kick) - Cowboys 14-0
  • DAL - Preston Pearson 15-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Toni Fritsch kick) - Cowboys 21-0

Third quarter

  • DAL - Preston Pearson 19-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Toni Fritsch kick) - Cowboys 28-0
  • DAL - Toni Fritsch 40-yard field goal - Cowboys 31-0
  • DAL - Toni Fritsch 26-yard field goal - Cowboys 34-0

Fourth quarter

Standings

NFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Los Angeles Rams(2) 12 2 0 .857 5–1 9–2 312 135 W6
San Francisco 49ers 5 9 0 .357 3–3 4–7 255 286 L4
Atlanta Falcons 4 10 0 .286 3–3 3–8 240 289 L1
New Orleans Saints 2 12 0 .143 1–5 2–9 165 360 L7

References

  1. ^ The List: Best NFL defense of all-time, 2007
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