1974 New Orleans Saints season

The 1974 New Orleans Saints season was the team’s eighth as a member of the National Football League (NFL). This was their final season at Tulane Stadium as the Louisiana Superdome opened the following season. They matched their previous season's output of 5–9.^[1] The team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season.

1974 New Orleans Saints season
Owner	John W. Mecom, Jr.
Head coach	John North
Home stadium	Tulane Stadium
Results
Record	5–9
Division place	3rd NFC West
Playoffs	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	None
← 1973 Saints seasons 1975 →

Logo of New Orleans Saints (1967-1999)

Despite another losing record, the Saints defeated two of the NFC's four playoff entries, ousting the Los Angeles Rams 20–7 in week 10 and the St. Louis Cardinals 14–0 in week 13, both at home. The win over the Cardinals was the Saints’ final game at Tulane Stadium.

The Saints ended an 18-game winless streak on the road when they defeated the Atlanta Falcons in week six. However, they would not win again away from New Orleans until 1976 when they defeated the Kansas City Chiefs. From 1972 through 1975, the Saints were 1–26–1 on the road.

The win at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium allowed New Orleans to complete its first season sweep of Atlanta since the Saints and Falcons became division rivals in 1970. The Saints entered 1974 with a nine-game losing streak to their archrival, including a humiliating 62–7 rout at home in the previous season's opener. New Orleans did not sweep Atlanta again until 1983.

In a rare fluke the 1974 New Orleans Saints wore white jerseys in every game of the 1974 season. They donned white uniforms at home, and when on the road, each of their opponents opted to wear their colored uniforms.

Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 1974 NFL draft

1974 New Orleans Saints draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	13	Rick Middleton	Linebacker	Ohio State
2	36	Paul Seal	Tight end	Michigan
4	88	Rod McNeill	Running back	USC
5	113	Joel Parker	Wide receiver	Ohio State
5	121	Terry Schmidt	Cornerback	Ball State
8	201	Alvin Maxson	Running back	Southern Methodist
9	217	Phil LaPorta	Offensive tackle	Penn State
10	235	Frosty Anderson	Wide receiver	Nebraska
10	242	Tommy Thibodeaux	Guard	Tulane
11	270	Kent Merritt	Wide receiver	Virginia
12	295	Jim Buckmon	Defensive end	Pittsburgh
13	320	Mike Truax	Linebacker	Tulane
14	348	Kent Marshall	Defensive back	Texas Christian
15	373	Larry Cipa	Quarterback	Michigan
15	391	Jim Polak	Center	Purdue
16	398	Don Coleman	Linebacker	Michigan
17	426	Marvin Williams	Wide receiver	Western Illinois
Made roster

^[2]

Personnel

Staff

1974 New Orleans Saints staff

Front office President – John W. Mecom, Jr. Assistant to the President – Fred Williams Executive Vice President – Richard F. Gordon, Jr. Vice President of Administration – Harry Hulmes Business Manager and Treasurer – Eddie Jones Director of Pro Scouting – Ernie Hefferle Director of Player Personnel – Bob Whitman Head coaches Head Coach – John North Offensive coaches Quarterbacks – Lamar McHan Offensive Backs – Bob Ledbetter Receivers – Jim Phillips Offensive Line – Wimp Hewgley

Defensive coaches Defensive Line – Bob Cummings Linebackers – Doug Shively Defensive Backfield – Bud Whitehead

Roster

1974 New Orleans Saints roster

Quarterbacks (QB) 13 Larry Cipa  8 Archie Manning 12 Bobby Scott Running backs (RB) 38 Bill Butler 47 Jack DeGrenier 28 Alvin Maxson 27 Rod McNeill 34 Jess Phillips 22 Howard Stevens Wide receivers (WR) 86 Dave Davis 80 Sam Havrilak 41 Bob Newland 42 Joel Parker 49 Bob Wicks Tight ends (TE) 87 Henry Childs 85 John Beasley 84 Paul Seal

Offensive linemen (OL) 51 John Didion C 50 Jake Kupp G 67 Phil LaPorta T 73 John Mooring T 76 Don Morrison T 66 Rocky Rasley G 65 Dave Thompson T 79 Emanuel Zanders G Defensive linemen (DL) 63 Steve Baumgartner DT/DE 88 Andy Dorris DE 74 Derland Moore DT 78 Billy Newsome DE 72 Joe Owens DE 82 Bob Pollard DE/DT 75 Elex Price DT

Linebackers (LB) 55 Don Coleman OLB 59 Wayne Colman OLB 58 Joe Federspiel MLB 53 Rick Kingrea MLB 57 Jim Merlo OLB 54 Rick Middleton OLB Defensive backs (DB) 21 Greg Boyd SS 44 Chris Farasopoulos FS 24 Johnny Fuller SS 30 Ernie Jackson CB 11 Bivian Lee CB 37 Tom Myers FS 29 Mo Spencer CB Special teams (ST) 16 Tom Blanchard P 19 Bill McClard K

Reserve 89 Frosty Anderson WR (IR) 83 Len Garrett TE (IR) 39 Odell Lawson RB (IR) 48 Curtis Martin TE (IR) 25 Jerry Moore S (IR) 40 Terry Schmidt CB (IR) 17 Speedy Thomas WR (IR) Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance	Recap
1	September 15	San Francisco 49ers	L 13–17	0–1	Tulane Stadium	65,071	Recap
2	September 22	at Los Angeles Rams	L 0–24	0–2	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	64,178	Recap
3	September 29	Atlanta Falcons	W 14–13	1–2	Tulane Stadium	62,273	Recap
4	October 6	at Chicago Bears	L 10–24	1–3	Soldier Field	45,818	Recap
5	October 13	at Denver Broncos	L 17–33	1–4	Mile High Stadium	50,881	Recap
6	October 20	at Atlanta Falcons	W 13–3	2–4	Atlanta Stadium	47,217	Recap
7	October 27	Philadelphia Eagles	W 14–10	3–4	Tulane Stadium	64,257	Recap
8	November 3	at Detroit Lions	L 14–19	3–5	Tiger Stadium	43,256	Recap
9	November 10	Miami Dolphins	L 0–21	3–6	Tulane Stadium	74,289	Recap
10	November 17	Los Angeles Rams	W 20–7	4–6	Tulane Stadium	57,287	Recap
11	November 25	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 7–28	4–7	Tulane Stadium	71,907	Recap
12	December 1	at Minnesota Vikings	L 9–29	4–8	Metropolitan Stadium	44,202	Recap
13	December 8	St. Louis Cardinals	W 14–0	5–8	Tulane Stadium	57,152	Recap
14	December 15	at San Francisco 49ers	L 21–35	5–9	Candlestick Park	40,418	Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

NFC West
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Los Angeles Rams	10	4	0	.714	5–1	7–3	263	181	W1
San Francisco 49ers	6	8	0	.429	4–2	6–5	226	236	W2
New Orleans Saints	5	9	0	.357	3–3	5–6	166	263	L1
Atlanta Falcons	3	11	0	.214	0–6	3–8	111	271	W1