NFL game summary for 10/17/1976:
Jim Hart's three-touchdown, 22 of 33 for 346 yard passing performance, knocked Dallas from the unbeaten list and gave the Cardinals a share of the NFC East lead with the Cowboys. Hart put St. Louis in the lead 14-10 in the second quarter with a four-yard TD pass to Terry Metcalf, then combined with Mel Gray in the third quarter for his second score, putting the game out of reach for Dallas.
Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):
| Team | Rush Yds/Gm | Pass Yds/Gm | Tot Yds/Gm | Turnovers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | OFFENSE | 168.8 (7) | 244.6 (1) | 413.4 (1) | 11 |
| DEFENSE | 126.0 (7) | 149.4 (11) | 275.4 (9) | 9 | |
 | OFFENSE | 199.6 (1) | 186.0 (9) | 385.6 (2) | 8 |
| DEFENSE | 107.2 (5) | 183.4 (21) | 290.6 (13) | 15 |
Line: Cowboys by 4
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys (5-1-0) | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| St. Louis Cardinals (5-1-0) | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
( 7- 0) DAL Billy Joe DuPree 34 yard pass from Roger Staubach (Efren Herrera kick)
( 7- 7) STL Mel Gray 54 yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick)
(10- 7) DAL Efren Herrera 35 yard field goal
(10-14) STL Terry Metcalf 4 yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick)
(10-21) STL Mel Gray 17 yard pass from Jim Hart (Jim Bakken kick)
(17-21) DAL Drew Pearson 11 yard pass from Roger Staubach (Efren Herrera kick)
DAL STL
First Downs: 23 26
Rushes-yards: 30-151 40-90
Yards/rush: 5.0 2.2
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 21-42-250-1 22-34-346-2
Sacked-yards: 4-21 0-0
Net pass yards: 229 346
Net yards/pass: 5.0 10.2
Total net yards: 380 436
Total plays: 76 (39% run) 74 (54% run)
Yards/play: 5.0 5.9
Fumbles-lost: 1-0 4-2
Turnovers: 1 4
Penalties-yards: 9-60 2-15
Attendance: 50,317
Passing:
DAL: Roger Staubach, 21 of 42 for 250 yards and 2 TDs (1 int) STL: Jim Hart, 22 of 33 for 346 yards and 3 TDs (2 int); Terry Metcalf, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
Rushing:
DAL: Robert Newhouse, 11 for 62 yards; Doug Dennison, 9 for 48 yards; Charley Young, 7 for 25 yards; Roger Staubach, 3 for 16 yards STL: Steve Jones, 19 for 33 yards; Terry Metcalf, 16 for 43 yards; Jim Otis, 5 for 14 yards
Receiving:
DAL: Scott Laidlaw, 5 for 44 yards; Billy Joe DuPree, 4 for 81 yards and 1 TD; Golden Richards, 4 for 42 yards; Drew Pearson, 2 for 35 yards and 1 TD; Preston Pearson, 2 for 23 yards; Robert Newhouse, 2 for 4 yards; Charley Young, 1 for 11 yards; Doug Dennison, 1 for 10 yards STL: Mel Gray, 7 for 152 yards and 2 TDs; Ike Harris, 5 for 59 yards; Terry Metcalf, 4 for 65 yards and 1 TD; Steve Jones, 4 for 40 yards; J.V. Cain, 2 for 30 yards
Kick returns:
DAL: Butch Johnson, 2 for 57 yards; Jim Jensen, 2 for 46 yards STL: Jerry Latin, 2 for 61 yards; Dwayne Crump, 1 for 22 yards
Punt returns:
DAL: Butch Johnson, 2 for 15 yards STL: Terry Metcalf, 1 for 0 yards
Interceptions:
DAL: Cliff Harris, 1 for 3 yards; Randy Hughes, 1 for 0 yards STL: Ray White, 1 for 4 yards
Punting:
DAL: Danny White, 6 for 262 yards STL: Terry Joyce, 4 for 152 yards
Field Goals:
DAL: Efren Herrera, 1/1
DAL: Roger Staubach, 21 of 42 for 250 yards and 2 TDs (1 int) STL: Jim Hart, 22 of 33 for 346 yards and 3 TDs (2 int); Terry Metcalf, 0 of 1 for 0 yards
Rushing:
DAL: Robert Newhouse, 11 for 62 yards; Doug Dennison, 9 for 48 yards; Charley Young, 7 for 25 yards; Roger Staubach, 3 for 16 yards STL: Steve Jones, 19 for 33 yards; Terry Metcalf, 16 for 43 yards; Jim Otis, 5 for 14 yards
Receiving:
DAL: Scott Laidlaw, 5 for 44 yards; Billy Joe DuPree, 4 for 81 yards and 1 TD; Golden Richards, 4 for 42 yards; Drew Pearson, 2 for 35 yards and 1 TD; Preston Pearson, 2 for 23 yards; Robert Newhouse, 2 for 4 yards; Charley Young, 1 for 11 yards; Doug Dennison, 1 for 10 yards STL: Mel Gray, 7 for 152 yards and 2 TDs; Ike Harris, 5 for 59 yards; Terry Metcalf, 4 for 65 yards and 1 TD; Steve Jones, 4 for 40 yards; J.V. Cain, 2 for 30 yards
Kick returns:
DAL: Butch Johnson, 2 for 57 yards; Jim Jensen, 2 for 46 yards STL: Jerry Latin, 2 for 61 yards; Dwayne Crump, 1 for 22 yards
Punt returns:
DAL: Butch Johnson, 2 for 15 yards STL: Terry Metcalf, 1 for 0 yards
Interceptions:
DAL: Cliff Harris, 1 for 3 yards; Randy Hughes, 1 for 0 yards STL: Ray White, 1 for 4 yards
Punting:
DAL: Danny White, 6 for 262 yards STL: Terry Joyce, 4 for 152 yards
Field Goals:
DAL: Efren Herrera, 1/1