# 1975 Los Angeles Rams season

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 49-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. 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

1975 Los Angeles Rams draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 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 |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

## 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 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rams | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 18 |
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
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | Rams | Cowboys |
| 2 | | | | | Cowboys | 25-yard field goal by Toni Fritsch | 0 | 3 |
| 2 | | | | | Cowboys | Doug Dennison 1-yard touchdown run, kick no good | 0 | 9 |
| 3 | | | | | Cowboys | 39-yard field goal by Fritsch | 0 | 12 |
| 4 | | | | | Cowboys | 19-yard field goal by Fritsch | 0 | 15 |
| 4 | | | | | Cowboys | 31-yard field goal by Fritsch | 0 | 18 |
| 4 | | | | | Rams | Ron Jaworski 4-yard touchdown run, Tom Dempsey kick good | 7 | 18 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 7 | 18 |

### 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

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cardinals | 0 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 23 |
| Rams | 14 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 35 |
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles
* Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/1:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 73,459
* Referee: Dick Jorgensen
* TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Hank Stram

### NFC Championship Game

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cowboys | 7 | 14 | 13 | 3 | 37 |
| Rams | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
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

### Standings

NFC West :
| viewtalkedit | 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 |