| 1967 Los Angeles Rams season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | George Allen |
| Home stadium | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–1–2 |
| Division place | 1stWestern Coastal |
| Playoffs | LostWestern Conference Championship Game (atPackers) 7–28 Won NFLPlayoff Bowl (vs.Browns) 30–6 |
The1967Los Angeles Ramsseason was the team's 30th year with theNational Football League and the 22nd season inLos Angeles. Under second-year head coachGeorge Allen, the Rams had a regular season record of 11–1–2, tied for the best in the league (and the best of the George Allen era), and won the first Coastal Division title. It was their first playoff appearance since 1955.
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL)
| Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Practice squad Reserve
|
The Los Angeles Rams entered the 1967 season with renewed optimism. For years they had been a poor team, but the hiring of coachGeorge Allen helped turn things around. In his first season in1966, the Rams finished at 8–6, their first winning season since1958.
The Rams won their first two games and faced a big test in Dallas on October 1 against the powerfulCowboys, the defending Eastern Conference champions. It was no contest at the sold-outCotton Bowl, as the Rams won 35–13,[1] but they came home and stumbled in a 27–24 loss to the49ers and fell a game behind the 4–0Baltimore Colts. Los Angeles went east to Baltimore and played to a 24–24 tie. Remarkably, both teams tied their next game as well; the Rams tied theWashington Redskins while the Colts tied theMinnesota Vikings. Both teams then went on winning streaks, and with two games remaining, the Rams were 9–1–2 and the Colts were 10–0–2.
But before finishing the season against the Colts in L.A. in a possible division title deciding game, the Rams faced the two-time defending championGreen Bay Packers (9–2–1). The Packers had clinched their division and would host its playoff games, so a reporter had asked Green Bay head coachVince Lombardi if he would be resting his starters in (what for them was) a meaningless game, Lombardi roared, "the Packers have never played a meaningless game and, as long as I am the coach, they never will!" The game was a classic see-saw affair that saw the Packers leading 24–20 with less than a minute to play and the Rams out of time outs. Facing fourth down, the Packers lined up to punt at their own 41, butTony Guillory blocked theDonny Anderson punt andClaude Crabb returned it to the Packer 5-yard line. On second and goal, quarterbackRoman Gabriel hit flankerBernie Casey in the end zone for a 27–24 Rams victory.[2] Baltimore, meanwhile, defeated theNew Orleans Saints 30-10.
In the season finale on December 17, the Rams sacked Baltimore quarterbackJohnny Unitas seven times and intercepted two of his passes in a 34–10 win.[3] Both teams finished 11–1–2 and tiebreaker rules at the time dictated that the results of the teams' head-to-head meetings was the tiebreaker. The Rams were awarded the division title based on their 1–0–1 record vs. the Colts, outscoring them in the two games by a combined 58–34.[3]
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 17 | atNew Orleans Saints | W 27–13 | 1–0 | Tulane Stadium | 80,879 | |
| 2 | September 22 | Minnesota Vikings | W 39–3 | 2–0 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 52,255 | |
| 3 | October 1 | atDallas Cowboys | W 35–13 | 3–0 | Cotton Bowl | 75,229 | |
| 4 | October 8 | San Francisco 49ers | L 24–27 | 3–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 60,424 | |
| 5 | October 15 | atBaltimore Colts | T 24–24 | 3–1–1 | Memorial Stadium | 60,238 | |
| 6 | October 22 | Washington Redskins | T 28–28 | 3–1–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 55,381 | |
| 7 | October 29 | atChicago Bears | W 28–17 | 4–1–2 | Wrigley Field | 46,073 | |
| 8 | November 5 | atSan Francisco 49ers | W 17–7 | 5–1–2 | Kezar Stadium | 53,194 | |
| 9 | November 12 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 33–17 | 6–1–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 57,628 | |
| 10 | November 19 | atAtlanta Falcons | W 31–3 | 7–1–2 | Atlanta Stadium | 56,871 | |
| 11 | November 23 | atDetroit Lions | W 31–7 | 8–1–2 | Tiger Stadium | 54,389 | |
| 12 | December 3 | Atlanta Falcons | W 20–3 | 9–1–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 40,395 | |
| 13 | December 9 | Green Bay Packers | W 27–24 | 10–1–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 76,637 | |
| 14 | December 17 | Baltimore Colts | W 34–10 | 11–1–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 77,277 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text. | |||||||
| NFL Coastal | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Los Angeles Rams | 11 | 1 | 2 | .917 | 4–1–1 | 8–1–1 | 398 | 196 | W8 |
| Baltimore Colts | 11 | 1 | 2 | .917 | 4–1–1 | 7–1–2 | 394 | 198 | L1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 3–3 | 4–6 | 273 | 337 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 1 | 12 | 1 | .077 | 0–6 | 1–9 | 175 | 422 | L7 |
Prior to1975, the NFL playoff sites were rotated and were not based on regular season record. In 1967, the hosts were the Capitol and Central division winners for the conference championships (first round), and the Western Conference for the championship game. This gave home field advantage to the Central Division winner, the two-time defending NFL championGreen Bay Packers. Thefollowing year's playoff hosts were Century, Coastal, and Eastern, respectively, and1969 was like 1967. With the rotation system it was common for the host team to have an inferior record; it had occurred in four of the previous fiveNFL championship games (1962,1964,1965,1966).
The Coastal division champion Rams (11–1–2) traveled toMilwaukee to meet the Central champion Packers (9–4–1) for the Western Conference title on Saturday, December 23. It was played atCounty Stadium (the Packers played several home games per season in Milwaukee through1994) The two teams had played a classic game just thirteen days earlier in Los Angeles (won by the Rams in the final seconds).
In the playoff game, the Rams jumped out to a 7–0 lead in the unusually balmy 30 °F (−1 °C) weather, but the Packers' postseason experience began to show as they led 14–7 at halftime. The Rams could not get anything going offensively and the Packers went on to a methodical 28–7 win.[4][5][6] The following week, the Packers won the famed "Ice Bowl" game against theDallas Cowboys atLambeau Field inGreen Bay.
After the loss in Milwaukee, Los Angeles played theCleveland Browns in thethird placePlayoff Bowl. Held at theOrange Bowl inMiami on January 7, it was won by the Rams 30–6.[7][8]
| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference | December 23 | atGreen Bay Packers | L 7–28 | 0–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 49,861 |
| Playoff Bowl | January 7, 1968 | Cleveland Browns | W 30–6 | 1–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 37,102 |
