| 1972 National Football League season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular season | |||
| Duration | September 17, 1972 - December 17, 1972 | ||
| Playoffs | |||
| Start date | December 23, 1972 | ||
| AFC Champions | Miami Dolphins | ||
| NFC Champions | Washington Redskins | ||
| Super Bowl VII | |||
| Date | January 14, 1973 | ||
| Site | L.A. Coliseum, Los Angeles, California | ||
| Champions | Miami Dolphins | ||
| Pro Bowl | |||
| Date | January 21, 1973 | ||
| Site | Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas | ||
National Football League seasons
| |||
The 1972 NFL season was the 53rd regular season of the National Football League. The Miami Dolphins became the first NFL team to finish a championship season undefeated and untied when they beat the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII.
Major rule changes[]
- The inbounds lines or hashmarks were moved closer to the center of the field, 23 yards, 1 foot, 9 inches from the sidelines. The hashmarks are now 18 feet, 6 inches apart (the same width as the goalposts), cutting down on severe angles for short field goal attempts.
- If a legal receiver goes out of bounds, either accidentally or forced out, and returns to touch or catch the pass in bounds, the penalty is a loss of down (but no penalty yardage will be assessed).
- If a punt or missed field goal crosses the receivers' goal line, a member of the receiving team may advance the ball into the field of play. Previously, the ball was dead when a scrimmage kick crossed the goal line and the receivers were awarded an automatic touchback.
- All fouls committed by the offensive team behind the line of scrimmage will be assessed from the previous spot.
- Tie games, previously ignored in computing of winning percentage, were made equal to a half-game win and a half-game loss.
Division races[]
Starting in 1970, and until 2002, there were three divisions (Eastern, Central and Western) in each conference. The winners of each division, and a fourth "wild card" team based on the best non-division winner, qualified for the playoffs. The tiebreaker rules were changed to start with head-to-head competition, followed by division records, common opponents records, and conference play.
National Football Conference
| Week | Eastern | Central | Western | Wild Card | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 teams | 1-0-0 | 2 teams | 1-0-0 | 3 teams | 1-0-0 | 5 teams | 1-0-0 |
| 2 | 2 teams | 2-0-0 | MINNESOTA | 1-1-0 | LOS ANGELES | 1-0-1 | 2 teams | 2-0-0 |
| 3 | WASHINGTON | 2-1-0 | 2 teams | 2-1-0 | 2 teams | 2-1-0 | 3 teams | 2-1-0 |
| 4 | WASHINGTON | 3-1-0 | DETROIT* | 3-1-0 | LOS ANGELES | 2-1-1 | 2 teams | 3-1-0 |
| 5 | WASHINGTON | 4-1-0 | GREEN BAY | 4-1-0 | LOS ANGELES | 3-1-1 | DALLAS | 4-1-0 |
| 6 | WASHINGTON | 5-1-0 | GREEN BAY* | 4-2-0 | LOS ANGELES | 4-1-1 | 4 teams | 4-2-0 |
| 7 | WASHINGTON | 6-1-0 | GREEN BAY* | 4-3-0 | LOS ANGELES | 4-2-1 | DALLAS | 5-2-0 |
| 8 | WASHINGTON | 7-1-0 | GREEN BAY* | 5-3-0 | LOS ANGELES | 5-2-1 | DALLAS | 6-2-0 |
| 9 | WASHINGTON | 8-1-0 | GREEN BAY | 6-3-0 | LOS ANGELES | 5-3-1 | DALLAS | 7-2-0 |
| 10 | WASHINGTON | 9-1-0 | GREEN BAY | 7-3-0 | LOS ANGELES* | 5-4-1 | DALLAS | 8-2-0 |
| 11 | WASHINGTON | 10-1-0 | GREEN BAY* | 7-4-0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 6-4-1 | DALLAS | 8-3-0 |
| 12 | WASHINGTON | 11-1-0 | GREEN BAY | 8-4-0 | ATLANTA | 7-5-0 | DALLAS | 9-3-0 |
| 13 | WASHINGTON | 11-2-0 | GREEN BAY | 9-4-0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 7-5-1 | DALLAS | 10-3-0 |
| 14 | WASHINGTON | 11-3-0 | GREEN BAY | 10-4-0 | SAN FRANCISCO | 8-5-1 | DALLAS | 10-4-0 |
American Football Conference
| Week | Eastern | Central | Western | Wild Card | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 teams | 1-0-0 | 2 teams | 1-0-0 | DENVER | 1-0-0 | 2 teams | 1-0-0 |
| 2 | 2 teams | 2-0-0 | CINCINNATI | 2-0-0 | 4 teams | 1-1-0 | 2 teams | 2-0-0 |
| 3 | MIAMI | 3-0-0 | CLEVELAND | 2-1-0 | KANSAS CITY | 2-1-0 | 4 teams | 2-1-0 |
| 4 | MIAMI | 4-0-0 | CINCINNATI | 3-1-0 | KANSAS CITY | 3-1-0 | SAN DIEGO* | 2-1-1 |
| 5 | MIAMI | 5-0-0 | CINCINNATI | 4-1-0 | OAKLAND | 3-1-1 | N.Y. JETS* | 3-2-0 |
| 6 | MIAMI | 6-0-0 | CINCINNATI* | 4-2-0 | OAKLAND | 3-2-1 | PITTSBURGH* | 4-2-0 |
| 7 | MIAMI | 7-0-0 | CINCINNATI* | 5-2-0 | OAKLAND | 4-2-1 | PITTSBURGH* | 5-2-0 |
| 8 | MIAMI | 8-0-0 | PITTSBURGH | 6-2-0 | KANSAS CITY | 5-3-0 | CLEVELAND* | 5-3-0 |
| 9 | MIAMI | 9-0-0 | PITTSBURGH | 7-2-0 | OAKLAND | 5-3-1 | CLEVELAND* | 6-3-0 |
| 10 | MIAMI | 10-0-0 | CLEVELAND | 7-3-0 | OAKLAND | 6-3-1 | PITTSBURGH | 7-3-0 |
| 11 | MIAMI | 11-0-0 | CLEVELAND | 8-3-0 | OAKLAND | 7-3-1 | PITTSBURGH | 8-3-0 |
| 12 | MIAMI | 12-0-0 | PITTSBURGH | 9-3-0 | OAKLAND | 8-3-1 | CLEVELAND | 8-4-0 |
| 13 | MIAMI | 13-0-0 | PITTSBURGH | 10-3-0 | OAKLAND | 9-3-1 | CLEVELAND | 9-4-0 |
| 14 | MIAMI | 14-0-0 | PITTSBURGH | 11-3-0 | OAKLAND | 10-3-1 | CLEVELAND | 10-4-0 |
Final standings[]
W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT= Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against
x - clinched wild card berth, y - clinched division title
Note: Prior to 1972, the NFL did not include tie games when calculating a team's winning percentage in the official standings
| AFC East | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Miami Dolphins | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 385 | 171 |
| New York Jets | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 367 | 324 |
| Baltimore Colts | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 235 | 252 |
| Buffalo Bills | 4 | 9 | 1 | .321 | 257 | 377 |
| New England Patriots | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 192 | 446 |
| AFC Central | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
| y-Pittsburgh Steelers | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 343 | 175 |
| x-Cleveland Browns | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 268 | 249 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 299 | 229 |
| Houston Oilers | 1 | 13 | 0 | .071 | 164 | 380 |
| AFC West | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
| y-Oakland Raiders | 10 | 3 | 1 | .750 | 365 | 248 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 287 | 254 |
| Denver Broncos | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 325 | 350 |
| San Diego Chargers | 4 | 9 | 1 | .321 | 264 | 344 |
| NFC East | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Washington Redskins | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 336 | 218 |
| x-Dallas Cowboys | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 319 | 240 |
| New York Giants | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 331 | 247 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 4 | 9 | 1 | .321 | 193 | 303 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 2 | 11 | 1 | .179 | 145 | 352 |
| NFC Central | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
| y-Green Bay Packers | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 304 | 226 |
| Detroit Lions | 8 | 5 | 1 | .607 | 339 | 290 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 301 | 252 |
| Chicago Bears | 4 | 9 | 1 | .321 | 225 | 275 |
| NFC West | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
| y-San Francisco 49ers | 8 | 5 | 1 | .607 | 353 | 249 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 269 | 274 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 6 | 7 | 1 | .464 | 291 | 286 |
| New Orleans Saints | 2 | 11 | 1 | .179 | 215 | 361 |
Playoffs[]
- Note: Prior to the 1975 season, the home teams in the playoffs were decided based on a yearly rotation.
| Divisional Playoffs | Conf. Championship Games | Super Bowl VII | ||||||||
| December 24 - Miami Orange Bowl | ||||||||||
| Cleveland Browns | 14 | |||||||||
| December 31 - Three Rivers Stadium | ||||||||||
| Miami Dolphins | 20 | |||||||||
| Miami Dolphins | 21 | |||||||||
| December 23 - Three Rivers Stadium | ||||||||||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 17 | |||||||||
| Oakland Raiders | 7 | |||||||||
| January 14 – L.A. Coliseum | ||||||||||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 13 | |||||||||
| Miami Dolphins | 14 | |||||||||
| December 23 - Candlestick Park | ||||||||||
| Washington Redskins | 7 | |||||||||
| Dallas Cowboys | 30 | |||||||||
| December 31 - RFK Stadium | ||||||||||
| San Francisco 49ers | 28 | |||||||||
| Dallas Cowboys | 3 | |||||||||
| December 24 - RFK Stadium | ||||||||||
| Washington Redskins | 26 | |||||||||
| Green Bay Packers | 3 | |||||||||
| Washington Redskins | 16 | |||||||||
Awards[]
| Most Valuable Player | Larry Brown, Running Back, Washington |
| Coach of the Year | Don Shula, Miami |
| Offensive Player of the Year | Larry Brown, Running Back, Washington |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Joe Greene, Defensive End, Pittsburgh |
| Offensive Rookie of the Year | Franco Harris, Running Back, Pittsburgh |
| Defensive Rookie of the Year | Willie Buchanon, Cornerback, Green Bay |
References[]
- NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 1-932994-36-X)
- NFL History 1971-1980 (Last accessed December 4, 2005)
- 1972 season in details
- Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)