1978 Los Angeles Rams season

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1978 Los Angeles Rams season
OwnerCarroll Rosenbloom
Head coachRay Malavasi
Home fieldLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Results
Record12–4
Division place1st NFC West
Playoff finishWon Divisional Playoffs (vs. Vikings) 34–10
Lost NFC Championship (vs. Cowboys) 0–28

The 1978 Los Angeles Rams season was the team's 41st year with the National Football League and the 33rd season in Los Angeles. They improved on their 10-4 record from last year and finished 12-4.

The Rams won their sixth straight division title and appeared in the NFC Championship game, losing 28-0 at home to the Dallas Cowboys.

Offseason[]

Chuck Knox, who had coached the Rams for the previous five seasons, left the team after the 1977 season to join the Buffalo Bills.

In February, 1978, Rams owner Carroll Rosenbloom hired former Rams coach George Allen, with much media fanfare. Allen had coached the Rams from 1966–1970, and had recently been dismissed by the Washington Redskins, whom he had coached from 1971–1977.

His second stint as the Rams' head coach was an unfortunate experience for all concerned. Allen did not have full authority over personnel and thus worked with general manager Don Klosterman to oversee a talented roster that had made the team a perennial playoff challenger. Allen brought with him his scrupulous discipline and attention to detail, which extended to practice-field protocol and dining-hall decorum. Almost immediately, a group of Ram players chafed at the regulations, and some made their grievances public. A few, including standout linebacker Isiah Robertson, briefly left camp.

As newspaper reports were quoting players expressing confidence that differences would be resolved, the Rams played listlessly and lost the first two games of the 1978 exhibition schedule. Rosenbloom decided that for the season to be salvaged a change must be made, and the announcement of Allen's abrupt dismissal was made on August 13, 1978, just weeks before the season opener. Many of Allen's own players were surprised by the decision. Defensive coordinator Ray Malavasi, well-respected and liked by players (and the only holdover from Chuck Knox' staff), replaced Allen.

On Tuesday, July 25, 1978, the Rams announced plans to leave the Coliseum for Anaheim Stadium beginning with the 1980 season. [1]

NFL Draft[]

Main article: 1978 NFL Draft
Round Pick Player Position School/Club Team

Roster[]

1978 Los Angeles Rams roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 3 at Philadelphia Eagles W 16–14 1–0 Veterans Stadium 64,721
2 September 10 Atlanta Falcons W 10–0 2–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 46,201
3 September 17 Dallas Cowboys W 27–14 3–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 65,749
4 September 24 at Houston Oilers W 10–6 4–0 Houston Astrodome 45,749
5 October 1 at New Orleans Saints W 26–20 5–0 Louisiana Superdome 61,659
6 October 8 San Francisco 49ers W 27–10 6–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 59,337
7 October 15 at Minnesota Vikings W 34–17 7–0 Metropolitan Stadium 46,551
8 October 22 New Orleans Saints L 3–10 7–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 47,574
9 October 30 at Atlanta Falcons L 7–15 7–2 Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium 57,250
10 November 5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 26–23 8–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 55,182
11 November 12 Pittsburgh Steelers W 10–7 9–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 63,089
12 November 19 at San Francisco 49ers W 31–28 10–2 Candlestick Park 45,022
13 November 26 at Cleveland Browns L 19–30 10–3 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 55,158
14 December 3 at New York Giants W 20–17 11–3 Giants Stadium 62,629
15 December 11 Cincinnati Bengals L 19–20 11–4 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 47,471
16 December 17 Green Bay Packers W 31–14 12–4 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 42,500

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings[]

NFC West
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 W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Los Angeles Rams(1) 12 4 0 .750 4–2 10–2 316 245 W1
Atlanta Falcons(4) 9 7 0 .563 5–1 8–4 240 290 L1
New Orleans Saints 7 9 0 .438 3–3 6–6 281 298 W1
San Francisco 49ers 2 14 0 .125 0–6 1–11 219 350 L1

Postseason[]

NFC Divisional Playoff[]

  • Los Angeles Rams 34, Minnesota Vikings 10
1 2 3 4 Total
Vikings 3 7 0 0 10
Rams 0 10 14 10 34

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

  • TV: CBS
  • Attendance: 69,631

After the game was tied 10–10 at halftime, the Rams dominated the second half by scoring 24 unanswered points. After the Vikings opened up the scoring with a field goal, Los Angeles marched 59 yards to score on quarterback Pat Haden's 9-yard touchdown pass to Willie Miller.

NFC Championship Game[]

  • Dallas Cowboys 28, Los Angeles Rams 0
1 2 3 4 Total
Cowboys 0 0 7 21 28
Rams 0 0 0 0 0

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

  • TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • Attendance: 67,470

This game was a tough defensive struggle until Charlie Waters intercepted two Pat Haden passes intended for tight end Terry Nelson. Waters' first interception came in the middle of the third and led to a 5-yard touchdown run by Tony Dorsett. Rams kicker Frank Corrall missed two first half field goal attempts, and with the score 14–0, the Rams were stopped on 4th and inches at the Dallas 21 yard line. Roger Staubach then led a touchdown drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Billy Joe Dupree. Thomas Henderson, who had said in pre-game interviews that the Rams "didn't have enough class to go to the Super Bowl", backed up his words by capping the scoring with a 68-yard interception return touchdown.

References[]

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