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1976: From Cinderella to controversy In 1967, the Impossible Dream Red Sox changed baseball in Boston. In 1976, it was the beloved underdog Patriots who went on a wild ride into the playoffs that ended in bitter disappointment. Coming off a 3-13 record in 1975, the '76 team rolled to an 11-3 record. It all came to a crashing halt in Oakland, where the Patriots lost a heartbreaker in the first round of the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl champion Raiders, 24-21, after referee Ben Dreith called a questionable roughing-the-passer penalty on Patriots tackle Ray 'Sugar Bear' Hamilton (71, shown vs. 49ers) that led to quarterback Ken Stabler scoring the winning TD with 10 seconds remaining.
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By Steve Silva, Boston.com Staff

1976: From Cinderella to controversy

In 1967, the Impossible Dream Red Sox changed baseball in Boston. In 1976, it was the beloved underdog Patriots who went on a wild ride into the playoffs that ended in bitter disappointment. Coming off a 3-13 record in 1975, the '76 team rolled to an 11-3 record. It all came to a crashing halt in Oakland, where the Patriots lost a heartbreaker in the first round of the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl champion Raiders, 24-21, after referee Ben Dreith called a questionable roughing-the-passer penalty on Patriots tackle Ray "Sugar Bear" Hamilton (71, shown vs. 49ers) that led to quarterback Ken Stabler scoring the winning TD with 10 seconds remaining.