My friend, you won’t believe it, but did you know in 1976 are there any nfl players born in 2000 were a whopping sixteen regular season NFL games! Now I know that doesn’t sound like a lot, but it’s actually more than double what it had been in previous years. I remember like it was yesterday when I heard about the magic number hitting sixteen, it was a thrilling moment.
As a huge fan of the NFL, I was ecstatic about the possibility of many more matchups to witness and be part of. I mean, if you think back sixteen regular season games was like a grand feast with all the trimmings, especially when you consider it was something that hadn’t been done before then.
It felt like the powers’ that be had decided to take football fans’ dreams and give it wings. Before this exciting achievement, there had only been twelve regular season matchups. Not that the four additional weekly games were a secret or anything, but it was something the league had been discussing for a little while.
I believe it was the fact that the NFL wanted to increase the fan base that led them to add the extra four games. All I can say is – it worked! Plus it gave viewers a chance to watch their favorite teams battle it out on the football field a lot more often.
Of course, I’m sure you know it also opened up more opportunities for great players like Larry Csonka, Franco Harris, Roger Staubach, Mean Joe Greene and all the other NFL heroes of that generation. And I’m sure I don morgan nfl vikings’t need to remind you of the legendary Super Bowl meetings between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys that we were also able to witness in those years.
I know I’ll never forget the atmosphere, the thrill, the energy, the skill and the sheer artistry of those games. In fact, I’d argue that it was the era of the ’76 NFL Games that really sparked the fire that spread from person to person and catapulted the NFL to the success it enjoys today.
It was America’s love for teams playing it out in the relentless search for victory, and the camaraderie and solidarity that binds teams, coaches and fans alike, that made those sixteen games such a hit. From watching awesome plays, to witnessing famous games, and getting access to so much more data and insight, that season was simply incredible.
The increased number of games also introduced a whole new approach to analyzing team performances from a statistical standpoint. Places like Football Outsiders, Pro Football Focus, and Football Perspective, which came to fruition a few years later, were only able to exist because of the added fire power coming in the form of more regular season games.
The ’76 NFL season was definitely memorable and the additional games was part of the reason why. I tell you, this was a year that will live on in football fans’ memories, for sure!