1972 New Orleans Saints season
The 1972 New Orleans Saints season was the team's sixth as a member of the National Football League (NFL). They failed to improve on their previous season’s output of 4–8–2, winning only two games.[1] The team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season.
| 1972 New Orleans Saints season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | John W. Mecom, Jr. |
| Head coach | J. D. Roberts |
| Home field | Tulane Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 2–11–1 |
| Division place | 4th NFC West |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | None |
The Saints suffered through their second 2–11–1 season in three years, tying with the Philadelphia Eagles for the second worst record in the league, only surpassed by the Houston Oilers’ 1–13. Coincidentally, one of the Saints' two wins came at the Eagles' expense. It would be their worst until they went 2–12 in 1975.
Offseason
NFL draft
| 1972 New Orleans Saints draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Royce Smith | Guard | Georgia | |
| 2 | 31 | Willie Hall | Linebacker | USC | |
| 3 | 60 | Bob Kuziel | Center | Pittsburgh | |
| 3 | 74 | Tom Myers * | Safety | Syracuse | |
| 4 | 85 | Mike Crangle | Defensive end | Tennessee-Martin | |
| 4 | 99 | Joe Federspiel | Linebacker | Kentucky | |
| 4 | 101 | Mike Coleman | Defensive end | Knoxville College | |
| 5 | 111 | Bill Butler | Running back | Kansas State | |
| 5 | 112 | Carl Johnson | Guard | Nebraska | Played offensive tackle in college |
| 5 | 126 | Bob Davies | Defensive back | South Carolina | |
| 6 | 137 | Wayne Dorton | Guard | Arkansas State | |
| 6 | 150 | Curt Watson | Running back | Tennessee | |
| 7 | 164 | Ernie Jackson | Defensive back | Duke | |
| 8 | 189 | Ron Vinson | Wide receiver | Abilene Christian | |
| 9 | 216 | Kent Branstetter | Defensive tackle | Houston | |
| 10 | 241 | Andy Kupp | Guard | Idaho | |
| 11 | 267 | Paul Dongieux | Linebacker | Mississippi | |
| 12 | 293 | Steve Lockhart | Tight end | Arkansas State | |
| 13 | 320 | Cephus Weatherspoon | Wide receiver | Fort Lewis | |
| 14 | 345 | Steve Barrios | Wide receiver | Tulane | |
| 15 | 372 | Rusty Lachaussee | Quarterback | Tulane | |
| 16 | 397 | Joe Balthrop | Guard | Tennessee | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Personnel
Staff
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
| |||||
Roster
| Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Reserve lists
Practice squad
| ||||||
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 17 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 14–34 | 0–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 66,303 |
| 2 | September 25 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 17–20 | 0–2 | Tulane Stadium | 70,793 |
| 3 | October 1 | San Francisco 49ers | L 2–37 | 0–3 | Tulane Stadium | 69,840 |
| 4 | October 8 | at New York Giants | L 21–45 | 0–4 | Yankee Stadium | 62,507 |
| 5 | October 15 | Atlanta Falcons | L 14–21 | 0–5 | Tulane Stadium | 66,294 |
| 6 | October 22 | at San Francisco 49ers | T 20–20 | 0–5–1 | Candlestick Park | 59,167 |
| 7 | October 29 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 21–3 | 1–5–1 | Tulane Stadium | 65,664 |
| 8 | November 5 | at Minnesota Vikings | L 6–37 | 1–6–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 49,784 |
| 9 | November 12 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 20–36 | 1–7–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 58,850 |
| 10 | November 19 | at Detroit Lions | L 14–27 | 1–8–1 | Tiger Stadium | 53,752 |
| 11 | November 26 | Los Angeles Rams | W 19–16 | 2–8–1 | Tulane Stadium | 64,325 |
| 12 | December 3 | at New York Jets | L 17–18 | 2–9–1 | Shea Stadium | 62,496 |
| 13 | December 10 | New England Patriots | L 10–17 | 2–10–1 | Tulane Stadium | 64,889 |
| 14 | December 17 | Green Bay Packers | L 20–30 | 2–11–1 | Tulane Stadium | 65,881 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||
Standings
| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| San Francisco 49ers | 8 | 5 | 1 | .607 | 3–2–1 | 6–4–1 | 353 | 249 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 3–3 | 5–5 | 269 | 274 | L2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 6 | 7 | 1 | .464 | 4–2 | 5–5–1 | 291 | 286 | L2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 2 | 11 | 1 | .179 | 1–4–1 | 2–8–1 | 215 | 361 | L3 |
Notable events
- In their third game against the 49ers, the Saints became the thirty-second NFL team, and the first since the 1970 Cleveland Browns, to score only a safety in a full game. This was done again in the last week of the regular season by the San Diego Chargers, but after that was done only by the 1980 Buffalo Bills, the 1983 Minnesota Vikings, the 1993 Cincinnati Bengals, 2011 Atlanta Falcons, and 2013 Jacksonville Jaguars.
References
- 1972 New Orleans Saints
- "1972 New Orleans Saints draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 10, 2014.
- "All-Time Roster". NewOrleansSaints.com. Archived from the original on June 18, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
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