The Cincinnati Bengals were at 8-2 and had won four
straight games as they faced the Kansas City Chiefs on November 21, 1976. The
Bengals, coached for the first year by Bill Johnson, had a fine sixth-year
quarterback in Ken Anderson, the league’s top passer the previous two seasons. With
one of their two first-round draft choices, they took HB Archie Griffin (pictured at right), the
two-time Heisman Trophy winner out of Ohio State, to add outside speed to their
running game. The defense had talent in pass-rushing DE Coy Bacon, MLB Jim
LeClair, cornerbacks Lemar Parrish and Ken Riley, and SS Tommy Casanova.
Head Coah Paul Wiggin’s Chiefs, meanwhile, were slogging
along at 3-7. Kansas City was an aging team with far too many starters over 30.
QB Mike Livingston had emerged from a long apprenticeship behind the
now-retired Len Dawson, and second-year TE Walter White was developing into a
good receiver. But the defense had too many holes, although rookie FS Gary
Barbaro was proving to be a good find.
It was a sunny day with 46,259 fans in attendance at
Arrowhead Stadium. It didn’t take them long to see the home team fall behind. On
the first play from scrimmage, Archie Griffin broke away for a 77-yard touchdown
for the Bengals. Another rookie, Chris Bahr, added the extra point.
The teams traded punts before the Chiefs mounted a drive
that reached Cincinnati territory. FB MacArthur Lane had a 17-yard carry and HB
Tommy Reamon got the ball to the Bengals’ 40 with a 10-yard run, but the
possession stalled there as Mike Livingston overthrew three straight passes.
Kansas City was forced to punt.
The Bengals, taking over at their 20, proceeded to
advance 80 yards in nine plays. Griffin ran effectively and Ken Anderson
completed three passes, including one to TE Bob Trumpy for 22 yards to the
Kansas City 18. From there, FB Boobie Clark ran for a touchdown, and with
Bahr’s second successful extra point, the visitors carried a 14-0 lead into the
second quarter.
The Chiefs got a break early in the next period when
Anderson, on a quarterback keeper up the middle, fumbled and MLB Willie Lanier
recovered at the Cincinnati 35. But three running plays accumulated seven yards
and Jan Stenerud’s 35-yard field goal attempt was wide to the left.
The teams once again exchanged punts before Anderson
threw a pass that was intercepted by CB Emmitt Thomas, who returned it 29 yards
to the Cincinnati 31. It looked like the Chiefs would again fail to take
advantage when Lane was tossed for a two-yard loss and Livingston was sacked to
put them seven yards further back. But on third-and-19, Livingston kept the
ball himself and ran for the 19 yards he needed for a first down. Two plays
later, Livingston passed to WR Henry Marshall for 23 yards to the one yard
line, and from there Reamon went through the middle of the line for a TD.
Adding Stenerud’s extra point, the Cincinnati lead was cut to 14-7.
With 4:39 left in the half, the Bengals advanced to the
KC 29, but a running play that lost yards combined with Anderson being sacked
by DE Whitney Paul moved the ball back to the 34 and, after a pass fell
incomplete, Bahr missed a 51-yard field goal try. The score remained unchanged
at the half.
The Chiefs had first possession in the third quarter and
went three-and-out, but then got a break when Tommy Casanova fumbled the
ensuing punt and LB Dave Rozumek recovered for Kansas City at the Cincinnati
10. Four plays later, Reamon scored a touchdown from a yard out and, with
Stenerud’s successful PAT, the game was tied at 14-14.
The problems continued for the Bengals on the kickoff
when HB Tony Davis lost the handle on the ball and WR Lawrence Williams
recovered at the Cincinnati 30. But after a first-play Livingston pass to Lane
that picked up 16 yards, the Chiefs gained seven more yards and Stenerud’s
24-yard field goal attempt was blocked by Coy Bacon.
After another trade of punts, the Bengals put together a
10-play, 62-yard drive. Anderson threw to Trumpy for 20 yards and, on a
third-and-eight play, connected with the tight end again for 11 yards. Clark
ran for 18 yards on a sweep and Anderson picked up 11 on a carry up the middle.
FB Stan Fritts went one yard to cap the series with a TD, and while Bahr’s
extra point try was unsuccessful, the visitors were back in front by 20-14.
Williams returned the kickoff 37 yards for the Chiefs and
they were into Cincinnati territory as the game moved into the fourth quarter
thanks to a Livingston pass to Lane for 23 yards and carries by Reamon and HB
Ed Podolak that added another 12 yards to the Cincinnati 31. On the second play
of the final period, Livingston connected with Walter White for 16 yards and,
after two short runs and a reverse by Marshall that picked up seven yards,
Stenerud kicked a 24-yard field goal to narrow the margin to three points.
The Bengals continued to have trouble holding onto kick
returns as DB Melvin Morgan fumbled the kickoff and Gary Barbaro recovered for
the Chiefs at the Cincinnati 21. From there, a loss on a running play and a
holding penalty backed Kansas City up, but facing a third-and-23 situation,
Livingston completed a pass to White in the end zone for a 34-yard touchdown.
With the successful conversion, the Chiefs were in front by 24-20.
Once again a KC kickoff resulted in the Chiefs gaining
possession as HB Lenvill Elliott’s 22-yard return ended with a fumble and FB
Glynn Harrison recovered for the home team. With 11:44 left to play, the Chiefs
started off at the Cincinnati 27 and gained five yards in three plays, but they
failed to add to their lead when Stenerud missed a 39-yard field goal attempt.
Once more the teams exchanged punts before, with just
under seven minutes remaining on the clock, the Bengals went 62 yards in six
plays. Griffin picked up 15 yards on two carries and two plays later a controversial
roughing-the-passer penalty that drew vehement argument from the Chiefs added
another 15 yards to the Kansas City 33. Anderson then threw to TE Bruce Coslet
for 32 yards and Tony Davis went up the middle for the last yard and a
touchdown. Bahr added the extra point and the visitors were back in front by
three.
Two kickoffs went out of bounds, resulting in penalties
and backing the Chiefs up, and Harrison then ran the next one back 35 yards to
give Kansas City excellent field position at the Cincinnati 38. However, after
advancing to the 22, Livingston was dumped for a seven-yard loss and Stenerud’s
46-yard field goal attempt sailed wide to the left. The Bengals were able to
run out the clock and came away with a 27-24 win.
The Bengals outgained Kansas City (373 yards to 251),
with 269 yards of that total coming on the ground, and also had the edge in first
downs (21 to 16). Cincinnati also recorded six sacks, to two by the Chiefs.
However, the Bengals hurt themselves with six turnovers, five of them on
fumbles, while Kansas City didn’t turn the ball over at all.
Archie Griffin rushed for 139 yards on just 13 carries
that included the long touchdown. Boobie Clark added 91 yards on 15 attempts
and also scored a TD. Ken Anderson completed 9 of 17 passes for 123 yards with
no touchdowns and one interception. Bob Trumpy topped the receivers with three
catches for 53 yards.
For the Chiefs, Mike Livingston was successful on 12 of
25 throws for 179 yards and a TD with none intercepted. Walter White (pictured at left) had 5 pass
receptions for 87 yards and a score. MacArthur Lane ran for 36 yards on 13
carries and added four catches for 40 yards. Tommy Reamon, the former World
Football League star, gained just 19 yards on 10 rushing attempts, but two of
them were good for touchdowns.
“It would have been a big win for us,” said a frustrated
Coach Paul Wiggin, who vehemently questioned the roughing-the-passer penalty
that allowed the Bengals to continue their winning scoring drive.
In the showdown for the AFC Central the next week, the
Bengals again fell to the Steelers in a snowstorm and lost the following game
as well. They ended up with a 10-4 record, which put them in second place and
on the outside of the postseason. Kansas City won two of its last three
contests to finish at 5-9 and fourth in the AFC West.
Archie Griffin, undersized at 5’9” and 191 pounds, had a
good rookie season as he rushed for 625 yards while averaging 4.5 yards per
carry. The 139-yard performance against the Chiefs ended up being the best
single-game output of his career.
34-year-old MacArthur Lane led the NFL with 66 pass
receptions, which gained 686 yards, and he also added 542 rushing yards,
although averaging only 3.3 yards per attempt. Walter White caught 47 passes
for 808 yards (17.7 avg.) and scored seven TDs.
