Best NFL Playoff Games of the 1970s, Part 2

Here are four games to forever remember–NFL football at its best.

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#4 December 23, 1972,  Pittsburgh Steelers 13, Oakland Raiders 7, Three Rivers Stadium: Defense dominated as the teams went into the locker room tied 0–0. Pittsburgh took a 3–0 lead when Roy Gerela kicked an 18-yard field goal early in the 3rd stanza, and the Steelers increased the gap to 6–0 in the fourth. That’s when the Raiders’ offense came to life with an 80-yard drive to take a 7–6 lead. With just 22 seconds left on the clock and facing 4th and 10 on their 40-yard line, Franco Harris scored the winning touchdown on what will be known forever as The Immaculate Reception.

#5 December 27, 1975, Dallas Cowboys 17, Minnesota Vikings 14,  Metropolitan Stadium: The Vikings took a 7–0 lead into the locker room courtesy of a rookie mistake. Offensive lineman Pat Donovan tried but couldn’t recover a punted ball that he thought had touched his teammate Cliff Harris. The Vikings recovered the flub on the Dallas four-yard line and punched it for a touchdown a few plays later. The first sustained drive didn’t occur until early in the third quarter when the Cowboys evened things up at 7–7. Dallas took a 10–7 lead before Minnesota responded with their only good offensive drive of the game–a 70-yard, 11-play drive that ended with a TD. The Cowboys’ next possession resulted in a punt, and Minnesota took over with just 3:12 left on the clock, hoping to run out the clock. But the Doomsday Defense rose to the occasion, forcing a punt, and Dallas took possession on their 15-yard line with 1:51 left.

The play stood even after the Vikings argued that Pearson pushed off and should have been flagged for offensive interference. Staubach, a devout Catholic, said he threw the ball as he recited the Hail Mary prayer. The play became known as The Hail Mary Pass. Staubach finished the game 17-29 for 246 yards and that last-second TD, while the Doomsday Defense limited the Vikings to a total of 215 yards.

#6 December 23, 1972, Dallas Cowboys 30, SF 49ers 28, Candlestick Park: Dallas fell behind quickly when Vic Washington ran the opening kickoff 97 yards to put the 49ers up 7–0. The Cowboys cut the lead to 7–3 with a 37-yard field goal, and after the teams exchanged turnovers, the 49ers scored another touchdown to go up 14–3. A second Dallas turnover led to another 49ers touchdown. But the Cowboys came back with a field goal and a touchdown to narrow the gap to 21–13. Dallas continued to have problems holding onto the ball in the third quarter. A fumble led to another 49ers touchdown, which increased their lead to 28–13. Towards the end of the third quarter,

Staubach promptly fumbled on his opening drive, setting the 49ers up for a 32-yard field goal. Brice Gosslet missed the attempt, and later running back Calvin Hill broke off a 48-yard run to set up a Toni Fritsch field goal. After the Doomsday Defense forced a 49ers punt, Staubach led the offense to a touchdown with just under two minutes to play. After Dallas recovered an onside kick, Staubach scrambled for 21 yards. This was followed by two pass completions that put Dallas ahead 30–28 with just 52 seconds left. The 49ers came close to field goal range, but an interception by safety Charlie Waters ended the game. The Cowboys outgained the 49ers in total yards 402–255 and first downs 22–13. But they also committed five turnovers and allowed five sacks. 49ers’ defensive end Cedrick Hardman was responsible for 3.5 of those sacks.

#7 December 18, 1976, Oakland Raiders 24, NE Patriots 21, Oakland Alameda County Coliseum: New England defeated Oakland 48–17 in Week 4 of the season, handing the Raiders their only loss of the year. And after the opening drive of the playoff game, it looked like New England would win again. That’s because the Patriots marched 86 yards in 10 plays to take a 7–0 lead. But the Raiders narrowed the gap to four points on Errol Mann’s 40-yard field goal and took the lead, 10-7, in the second quarter on a Ken Stabler-to-Fred Biletnikoff 31-yard touchdown pass. But the Patriots grabbed the lead back on their opening drive of the third quarter. NE went 80 yards in nine plays, scoring a touchdown on a 26-yard touchdown pass from Steve Grogan to tight end Russ Francis. The Patriots expanded the lead to 21-10 on a 10-play, 55-yard drive, but Oakland came right back with a 70-yard drive in eight plays to close the gap to four. The teams exchanged punts before New England misfired on a 50-yard field goal attempt. Oakland took possession with good field position and 4:12 left on the clock. They drove to the Patriots’ 28-yard line before stalling.

 With that penalty assist, Oakland moved the ball to the four-yard line and faced a 3rd and 1 when another penalty–this time a personal foul on safety Prentice McCray–gave the Raiders a first down on the 1-yard-line. That’s when Stabler faked a handoff and dove into the end for the winning score with 14 seconds remaining on the clock. Ken Stabler went 19-of-32 on the day for 233 yards and a touchdown, and Fred Biletnikoff caught nine of those passes for 137 yards and the one touchdown.