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1975 St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) season

{{short description|NFL team season}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}

{{Infobox NFL team season

| team = St. Louis Cardinals (NFL)

| teamdisplay = St. Louis Cardinals

| year = 1975

| record = 11–3

| division_place = 1st NFC East

| coach = Don Coryell

| owner = Bill Bidwill

| stadium = Busch Memorial Stadium

| playoffs = Lost Divisional Playoffs
(at Rams) 23–35

| pro_bowlers = C Tom Banks
G Conrad Dobler
T Dan Dierdorf
QB Jim Hart
RB Terry Metcalf
RB Jim Otis
RB Mel Gray
CB Roger Wehrli
K Jim Bakken

| shortnavlink = Cardinals seasons

}}

The 1975 St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 56th year with the National Football League and the 16th season in St. Louis. The club scored 356 points while the defense gave up 276 points.NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN|0-7611-2480-2}}, p. 298 The team appeared in the playoffs for the second consecutive year, by winning the NFC East with a record of eleven wins and three losses (the best finish in the Coryell era). They never returned the playoffs during a full NFL season until 1998, by which time they moved from St. Louis to Arizona.

The team was nicknamed the “Cardiac Cards”, because eight of their games were decided in the final minute of play; the Cardinals went 7–1 in these games.{{cite web|title=Hulu.com: 1975 St. Louis Cardinals NFL team highlights |url=http://www.hulu.com/watch/151811/team-highlights-st-louis-cardinals |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/65YdRqwfm?url=http://www.hulu.com/watch/151811/team-highlights-st-louis-cardinals |archive-date=2012-02-19 |url-status=live |access-date=2012-02-16 }}

After this season, the Cardinals never reached the top of the NFC East again. They would not again have a division title until 33 years later, after they had moved to Arizona, and later to the NFC West.

Offseason

= NFL Draft =

{{main article|1975 NFL Draft}}

{{NFL team draft start

| year = 1975

| teamname = St. Louis Cardinals

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 1

| pick = 21

| player = Tim Gray

| position = Safety

| college = Texas A&M

| notes =

| maderoster = yes

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 2

| pick = 46

| player = Jim Germany

| position = Running back

| college = New Mexico State

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 5

| pick = 124

| player = Harvey Goodman

| position = Offensive tackle

| college = Colorado

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 6

| pick = 152

| player = Larry Jameson

| position = Defensive tackle

| college = Indiana

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 7

| pick = 177

| player = Steve Beaird

| position = Running back

| college = Baylor

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 8

| pick = 188

| player = John Adams

| position = Defensive tackle

| college = West Virginia

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 8

| pick = 202

| player = Louis Lauriano

| position = Defensive back

| college = Long Beach State

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 10

| pick = 255

| player = Mike McGraw

| position = Linebacker

| college = Wyoming

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 11

| pick = 280

| player = Jerry Latin

| position = Running back

| college = Northern Illinois

| notes =

| maderoster = yes

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 12

| pick = 308

| player = Ben Jones

| position = Wide receiver

| college = LSU

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 13

| pick = 333

| player = Steve Lindgren

| position = Defensive end

| college = Hamline

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 14

| pick = 358

| player = Ritch Bahe

| position = Wide receiver

| college = Nebraska

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 15

| pick = 386

| player = Ron Franklin

| position = Defensive tackle

| college = Boise State

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 16

| pick = 411

| player = Mark Miller

| position = Wide receiver

| college = Missouri

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft entry

| round = 17

| pick = 436

| player = Ken Monroe

| position = Running back

| college = Indiana State

| notes =

| maderoster = no

}}

{{NFL team draft end

| probowl = no

| hof = no

}}

Roster

class="toccolours" style="text-align: left;"
colspan="9" style="background-color: #870619; color: white; text-align: center;"|St. Louis Cardinals roster
style="font-size: 95%;" valign="top" | Quarterbacks

{{NFLplayer|17|Jim Hart|d=American football}}

{{NFLplayer|12|Gary Keithley}}

{{NFLplayer|11|Dennis Shaw}}

Running backs

{{NFLplayer|31|Josh Ashton}}

{{NFLplayer|34|Steve Jones|d=American football}}

{{NFLplayer|32|Jerry Latin|rookie=y}}

{{NFLplayer|21|Terry Metcalf}}

{{NFLplayer|27|Eddie Moss}}

{{NFLplayer|35|Jim Otis|FB}}

Wide receivers

{{NFLplayer|85|Mel Gray|d=wide receiver}}

{{NFLplayer|30|Gary Hammond}}

{{NFLplayer|84|Ike Harris|rookie=y}}

{{NFLplayer|82|Earl Thomas|d=wide receiver}}

Tight ends

{{NFLplayer|88|J. V. Cain}}

{{NFLplayer|81|Jackie Smith}}

| style="width: 25px;" |

| style="font-size: 95%;" valign="top" |Offensive linemen

{{NFLplayer|61|Hank Allison|T/G}}

{{NFLplayer|54|Tom Banks|d=American football|C}}

{{NFLplayer|51|Tom Brahaney|C}}

{{NFLplayer|72|Dan Dierdorf|T}}

{{NFLplayer|66|Conrad Dobler|G}}

{{NFLplayer|60|Roger Finnie|T/G}}

{{NFLplayer|64|Bob Young|d=offensive lineman|G}}

Defensive linemen

{{NFLplayer|79|Bob Bell|d=American football|DE}}

{{NFLplayer|70|Leo Brooks|d=American football|DT}}

{{NFLplayer|76|Charlie Davis|d=defensive tackle|DT}}

{{NFLplayer|75|Bob Rowe|d=American football|DT}}

{{NFLplayer|74|Council Rudolph|DE}}

{{NFLplayer|78|Ron Yankowski|DE}}

| style="width: 25px;" |

| style="font-size: 95%;" valign="top" | Linebackers

{{NFLplayer|57|Mark Arneson}}

{{NFLplayer|59|Pete Barnes}}

{{NFLplayer|50|Greg Hartle}}

{{NFLplayer|53|Steve Neils}}

{{NFLplayer|67|Larry Stallings}}

{{NFLplayer|55|Ray White|d=American football}}

Defensive backs

{{NFLplayer|26|Dwayne Crump|CB}}

{{NFLplayer|41|Clarence Duren|FS}}

{{NFLplayer|33|Tim Gray|rookie=y|CB/S}}

{{NFLplayer|36|Ken Reaves|SS}}

{{NFLplayer|43|Norm Thompson|d=American football|CB}}

{{NFLplayer|45|Jim Tolbert|CB/S}}

{{NFLplayer|22|Roger Wehrli|CB}}

Special teams

{{NFLplayer|25|Jim Bakken|K}}

{{NFLplayer|80|Jeff West|d=American football|rookie=y|P}}

| style="width: 25px;" |

| style="font-size: 95%;" valign="top" | Reserve lists

Practice squad

rookies in italics

Regular season

= Schedule =

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Week

!style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Date

!style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Opponent

!style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Result

!style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Record

!style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Venue

!style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"| Attendance

style="background:#cfc"

! 1

| September 21

| Atlanta Falcons

| W 23–20

| 1–0

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 42,172

style="background:#fcc"

! 2

| September 28

| at Dallas Cowboys

| L 31–37 {{small|(OT)}}

| 1–1

| Texas Stadium

| 52,417

style="background:#cfc"

! 3

| October 5

| New York Giants

| W 26–14

| 2–1

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 44,919

style="background:#fcc"

! 4

| {{dow tooltip|October 13, 1975}}

| at Washington Redskins

| L 17–27

| 2–2

| RFK Stadium

| 54,693

style="background:#cfc"

! 5

| October 19

| Philadelphia Eagles

| W 31–20

| 3–2

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 45,242

style="background:#cfc"

! 6

| {{dow tooltip|October 25, 1975}}

| at New York Giants

| W 20–13

| 4–2

| Shea Stadium

| 49,598

style="background:#cfc"

! 7

| November 2

| New England Patriots

| W 24–17

| 5–2

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 45,907

style="background:#cfc"

! 8

| November 9

| at Philadelphia Eagles

| W 24–23

| 6–2

| Veterans Stadium

| 60,277

style="background:#cfc"

! 9

| November 16

| Washington Redskins

| W 20–17 {{small|(OT)}}

| 7–2

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 49,919

style="background:#cfc"

! 10

| November 23

| at New York Jets

| W 37–6

| 8–2

| Shea Stadium

| 53,169

style="background:#fcc"

! 11

| November 27

| Buffalo Bills

| L 14–32

| 8–3

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 41,899

style="background:#cfc"

! 12

| December 7

| Dallas Cowboys

| W 31–17

| 9–3

| Busch Memorial Stadium

| 49,701

style="background:#cfc"

! 13

| December 14

| at Chicago Bears

| W 34–20

| 10–3

| Soldier Field

| 35,052

style="background:#cfc"

! 14

| December 21

| at Detroit Lions

| W 24–13

| 11–3

| Pontiac Municipal Stadium

| 64,656

style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|St. Louis Cardinals|year=1975|border=2}}"

|colspan="8"| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

= Standings =

{{1975 NFC East standings}}

{{1975 NFC Central standings}}

{{1975 NFC West standings}}

= Game summaries =

== Week 1: vs. Atlanta Falcons ==

{{Americanfootballbox

|bg=

|bg2=

|titlestyle=

|state=autocollapse

|title=

|date=Sunday, September 21

|time=1:00 p.m.

|road=Falcons

|R1= 7|R2=6 |R3=7 |R4=0

|home=Cardinals

|H1= 7|H2=6 |H3=0 |H4=10

|stadium=Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri

|attendance=

|weather={{convert|54|°F|°C|1}}, wind {{convert|10|mph|km/h knots}}

|referee=

|TV=

|TVAnnouncers=

|reference=[https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/197509210crd.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com]

|scoring=

First quarter

Second quarter

  • STL – Jim Bakken 22-yard field goal – Cardinals 10–7
  • ATL – Dave Hampton 6-yard run (kick failed) – Falcons 13–10
  • STL – Jim Bakken 39-yard field goal – Tied 13–13

Third quarter

  • ATL – Dave Hampton 1-yard run (Nick Mike-Mayer kick) – Falcons 20–13

Fourth quarter

  • STL – Earl Thomas 8-yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick) – Tied 20–20
  • STL – Jim Bakken 25-yard field goal – Cardinals 23–20

|stats=

Falcons

  • Steve Bartkowski
    8/16, 81 Yds, INT
  • Dave Hampton
    23 Rush, 135 Yds, 2 TD
  • Woody Thompson
    3 Rec, 29 Yds

Cardinals

  • Jim Hart
    12/23, 150 Yds, TD, 2 INT
  • Terry Metcalf
    20 Rush, 99 Yds, TD
  • Mel Gray
    3 Rec, 65 Yds

}}

Postseason

= NFC Divisional Playoff =

{{Americanfootballbox

|bg=

|bg2=

|titlestyle=

|state=

|title=

|date=

|time=

|road=Cardinals

|R1=0 |R2=9 |R3=7 |R4=7

|home=Rams

|H1=14 |H2=14 |H3= 0|H4=7

|stadium=Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

|attendance=72,650

|weather=

|referee=Dick Jorgensen

|TV=CBS

|TVAnnouncers=

|reference=

|scoring=

|stats=

}}

Awards and records

  • Terry Metcalf, NFL Leader, 2,462 Combined Net Yards NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN|0-7611-2480-2}}, p. 443

= Milestones =

  • Terry Metcalf, Second Consecutive 2000 Combined Net Yards Season (816 Rush Yards, 378 Pass Receiving Yards, 285 Punt Return Yards, 960 Kick Return Yards, 23 fumble return yards)

References

{{Reflist}}

Sources

  • [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/crd/1975.htm?redir Cardinals on Pro Football Reference]
  • [http://www.jt-sw.com/football/pro/results.nsf/Teams/1975-stl Cardinals on jt-sw.com]

{{Arizona Cardinals}}

{{Arizona Cardinals seasons}}

{{1975 NFL season by team}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:1975 St. Louis Cardinals (Nfl) Season}}

St. Louis

Category:Arizona Cardinals seasons

Category:NFC East championship seasons