Divisional Round, 1976: Pittsburgh 40 Baltimore 14

Game information
The Steelers, who lost four of their first five games during the season, dominated the Colts with 526 yards of total offense, while limiting Baltimore to only 170. Quarterback Terry Bradshaw completed 14 of 18 passes for 267 yards and three touchdowns, including a 76-yard one to Frank Lewis on the third play of the game, giving him the first perfect 158.3 passer rating in NFL playoff history. Steelers running back Franco Harris racked up 132 rushing yards on 18 carries, and caught 3 passes for 24 yards, despite leaving the game with an injury early in the third quarter.

Lewis' touchdown catch and a 45-yard Roy Gerela field goal gave the Steelers an early 9-0 lead. The Colts made it 9-7 late in the first period with Bert Jones' 17-yard touchdown pass to Roger Carr, but Theo Bell's 60-yard kickoff return set up a 32-yard drive to get the Steelers up 16-7 on Reggie Harrison's 1-yard touchdown run. Following a punt, they blew a scoring chance when Harrison lost a fumble at the Colts 2-yard line. But they soon made up for it with two scores in the final minute of the half. After getting the ball back, Bradshaw put the Steelers ahead 23-7 with a 29-yard touchdown pass to Lynn Swann. Then Glen Edwards intercepted a pass from Jones and returned it 26 yards to set up a 25-yard Gerela field goal that gave Pittsburgh a 26-7 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, The Colts had an odd drive in which they gained only 36 net yards in 13 plays. They faced an early 3rd and 6, but a sack on Jones was eliminated by a holding penalty that gave them a first down. Then Lydell Mitchell appeared to lose a fumble, but officials ruled him down by contact before he lost the ball. David Lee soon came on to punt, but a roughing the kicker penalty on Larry Brown allowed them to keep the ball again. The drive finally ended with a turnover on downs at the Steelers 32, and Pittsburgh went on to drive 68 yards in 11 plays, scoring on Bradshaw's 11-yard touchdown pass to Swann. Now with a 33-7 fourth quarter lead, all that remained would be a touchdown from each team, a 1-yard run by Roosevelt Leaks and a 9-yard score by Harrison.

Less than ten minutes after the conclusion of the game, a small charter plane crashed into the upper deck at Memorial Stadium. There were no deaths or injuries in the accident.

This was the second postseason meeting between the Steelers and Colts. Pittsburgh won last year's meeting.

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