1997 Detroit Lions season

The 1997 Detroit Lions season was their 68th in the National Football League (NFL).

1997 Detroit Lions season
Head coachBobby Ross
General managerChuck Schmidt
OwnerWilliam Clay Ford, Sr.
Home fieldPontiac Silverdome
Results
Record9–7
Division place3rd NFC Central
Playoff finishLost Wild Card Playoffs (Buccaneers) 10–20
Pro Bowlers
Uniform

The Lions rebounded from a disastrous 1996 season, finishing 9–7 and qualifying for the playoffs for the fifth time in seven seasons – the best stretch in franchise history.

Bobby Ross replaced Wayne Fontes as head coach. The highlight of the season was Barry Sanders becoming the third player in NFL history to rush for at least 2,000 yards in a season. Sanders shared the 1997 Associated Press MVP Award with Packers quarterback Brett Favre.

As a team, the Lions set an NFL rushing record, gaining 5.51 yards per rushing attempt.[1] The Lions scored 379 points in 1997, the fourth-most of any team in the league. [2]

Offseason

NFL Draft
Main article: 1997 NFL Draft
1997 Detroit Lions draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 5 Bryant Westbrook  Cornerback Texas
2 35 Juan Roque  Tackle Arizona State
2 54 Kevin Abrams  Cornerback Syracuse
4 130 Matt Russell  Linebacker Colorado
5 135 Pete Chryplewicz  Tight end Notre Dame
5 161 Duane Ashman  Defensive end Virginia
6 168 Tony Ramirez  Guard Northern Colorado
7 206 Terry Battle  Running back Arizona State
7 232 Marcus Harris  Wide receiver Wyoming
7 239 Richard Jordan  Linebacker Missouri Southern
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff
1997 Detroit Lions staff
Front office
  • Chairman and President – William Clay Ford, Sr.
  • Vice Chairman – William Clay Ford, Jr.
  • Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer – Chuck Schmidt
  • Vice President of Player Personnel – Ron Hughes
  • Vice President of Football Administration – Larry Lee
  • Director of Pro Scouting – Kevin Colbert

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive Coordinator – Sylvester Croom
  • Quarterbacks – Marc Trestman
  • Running Backs – Frank Falks
  • Wide Receivers – Jerry Sullivan
  • Tight Ends – Bob Palcic
  • Offensive Line – Jack Henry
  • Quality Control–Offense/Administrative Assistant – John Misciagna
 Defensive coaches
  • Defensive Coordinator – Larry Peccatiello
  • Defensive Line – Brian Baker
  • Linebackers – Gary Moeller
  • Secondary – Richard Selcer
  • Defensive Assistant/Assistant Strength – Don Clemons
  • Quality Control–Defense – Dennis Murphy

Special teams coaches

  • Special Teams – Chuck Priefer
  • Offensive/Special Teams Assistant – Stan Kwan

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and Conditioning – Bert Hill

Roster
1997 Detroit Lions final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad


Rookies in italics
 active, inactive, practice squad

Regular season

The final game of the regular season, on December 21, was marked by emotional highs and lows. Entering the game at 8–7 and needing a win to secure a playoff berth, the Lions played host to the 9–6 New York Jets, who like the Lions would be eliminated from the playoffs with a loss (although the Jets still had a chance to win the AFC East and get a home playoff game). In addition, Barry Sanders entered the game with a chance to potentially break the NFL’s single season rushing record— Sanders entered the game with 1,869 rushing yards, leaving him 131 from 2,000 and 237 away from what would have been a record setting 2,106 yards, topping Eric Dickerson’s 2,105 set in 1984. The Lions won the game 13–10, clinching the playoff spot and eliminating the Jets from the playoffs. A fourth-quarter touchdown run by Sanders proved decisive, and he finished with 184 yards to top out at 2,053 for the year – with Sanders rushing for an even 2,000 yards over the final 14 games. At the time, Sanders became only the third man to rush for 2,000 yards in a season behind O. J. Simpson and Dickerson and had rushed for the second most yards in a season (since then Terrell Davis, Jamal Lewis, Chris Johnson, and Adrian Peterson have accomplished the feat; Sanders’ total is now the fourth highest total behind Dickerson's 2,105, Peterson’s 2,096 in 2012, and Lewis’ 2,066 in 2003).

The mood, however, was somewhat tempered due to a career-ending injury suffered by Lions linebacker Reggie Brown. Brown was assisting on a tackle made on Jets running back Adrian Murrell when his head was struck by another player's leg. Brown suffered a spinal cord injury on the play and lost consciousness. At one point Brown actually stopped breathing and nearly died on the field, but was resuscitated. Brown did not move for seventeen minutes, and was eventually carried by ambulance out of the Silverdome. Brown was diagnosed with a spinal cord contusion and never played in the NFL again, although surgery did enable him to continue to be mobile. Brown's injury evoked memories of former Lion Mike Utley's paralyzing injury in 1991 and former Jet Dennis Byrd’s broken neck in 1992. Brown was also not the only Lion to suffer a career ending neck injury in 1997, as defensive back Harry Colon suffered damage to his neck during an earlier game against the New York Giants.[3]

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Attendance Record
1 August 31 Atlanta Falcons W 28–17
61,244
 1-0
2 September 7 Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 24–17
58,234
 1-1
3 September 14, at Chicago Bears W 32–7
59,147
 2-1
4 September 21 at New Orleans Saints L 35–17
50,116
 2-2
5 September 28 Green Bay Packers W 26–15
78,110
 3-2
6 October 5 at Buffalo Bills L 22–13
78,025
 3-3
7 October 12 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 27–9
72,095
 4-3
8 October 19 New York Giants L 26–20 OT
70,069
 4-4
9 Bye
10 November 2 at Green Bay Packers L 20–10
60,126
 4-5
11 November 9 at Washington Redskins L 30–7
75,261
 4-6
12 November 16 Minnesota Vikings W 38–15
68,910
 5-6
13 November 23 Indianapolis Colts W 32–10
62,803
 6-6
14 November 27 Chicago Bears W 55–20
77,904
 7-6
15 December 7 at Miami Dolphins L 33–30
72,266
 7-7
16 December 14 at Minnesota Vikings W 14–13
60,982
 8-7
17 December 21 New York Jets W 13–10
77,624
 9-7

Game summaries

Week 17
1 234Total
Jets 10 000 10
• Lions 0 337 13
  • Date: December 21
  • Location: Pontiac Silverdome • Detroit, Michigan
  • Game start: 4:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: indoors (dome)

[4]

Standings
NFC Central
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(2) Green Bay Packers 13 3 0 .813 422 282 W5
(4) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10 6 0 .625 299 263 W1
(5) Detroit Lions 9 7 0 .563 379 306 W2
(6) Minnesota Vikings 9 7 0 .563 354 359 W1
Chicago Bears 4 12 0 .250 263 421 L1

Playoffs

NFC Wild Card Game: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
NFC Wild Card Game: Detroit Lions at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Lions 0 0 3710
Buccaneers 3 10 7020

at Houlihan's Stadium, Tampa, Florida

  • Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 57 °F (14 °C), partly cloudy
  • Game attendance: 73,361
  • Referee: Mike Carey
  • TV announcers (Fox): Pat Summerall and John Madden

Tampa Bay won their first playoff game since 1979 with quarterback Trent Dilfer's 9-yard touchdown pass to receiver Horace Copeland, running back Mike Alstott's 31-yard touchdown run, and two field goals. Their defense limited Lions quarterback Scott Mitchell to just 10 of 25 completions for 78 yards.

Awards and honors
  • Barry Sanders, All-Pro
  • Barry Sanders, NFC Pro Bowl Selection
  • Barry Sanders, NFL MVP
  • Barry Sanders, NFL Offensive Player of the Year
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References
  1. Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1978 to 2011, in the regular season, sorted by descending Yds/Rushing Att.
  2. Pro-Football-Reference: 1997 Detroit Lions
  3. http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1997/Lions-Harry-Colon-Injured/id-953a785f7bb17bbeabd7248ad6a8288a
  4. Pro-Football-Reference.com
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