1997 Detroit Lions

1997 Detroit Lions season
Head Coach	Bobby Ross
Home Field	Pontiac Silverdome
Results
Record	9–7
Place	3rd NFC Central
Playoff Finish	Lost Wild Card
Uniform
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Timeline
Previous Season	Next Season
1996	1998

The 1997 season marked the Lions qualifying for the playoffs. 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. The Lions scored 379 points in 1997, the fourth-most of any team in the league.

Personnel

Staff

1997 Detroit Lions staff
Front Office Owner and Chairman – William Clay Ford, Sr. Vice Chairman – William Clay Ford, Jr. Executive Vice President and COO – Chuck Schmidt Vice President of Football Operations – Larry Lee Vice President of Player Personnel – Ron Hughes Director of Pro Scouting – Kevin Colbert Head Coaches Head Coach – Bobby Ross 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 Offensive Assistant – Stan Kwan Quality Control/Offense – John Misciagna			Defensive Coaches Defensive Coordinator – Larry Peccatiello Defensive Line – Brian Baker Linebackers – Gary Moeller Defensive Backs – Richard Selcer Defensive Assistant – Don Clemons Quality Control/Defense – Dennis Murphy Special Teams Coaches Special Teams – Chuck Priefer Special Teams Assistant – Stan Kwan Strength and Conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Bert Hill Assistant Strength – Don Clemons

Regular season

The final game of the regular season, on December 21, was marked by emotional highs and lows. Sanders' 184-yard performance, including a 4th quarter touchdown, gave the Lions a 13-10 win over the New York Jets. However, the crowd was stunned when Lions LB Reggie Brown was injured while tacking Jets RB Adrian Murrell. Brown lay motionless on the Silverdome turf for 17 minutes, briefly losing consciousness. The incident brought back memories of the career-ending injuries of former Lions center Mike Utley in 1991 and Jets safety Dennis Byrd in 1992. CPR saved Brown's life on the field, and emergency surgery allowed him to recover, although he would never play in the NFL again.

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	August 31, 1997	Atlanta Falcons	W 28-17	61,244
2	September 7, 1997	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 24-17	58,234
3	September 14, 1997	at Chicago Bears	W 32-7	59,147
4	September 21, 1997	at New Orleans Saints	L 35-17	50,116
5	September 28, 1997	Green Bay Packers	W 26-15	78,110
6	October 5, 1997	at Buffalo Bills	L 22-13	78,025
7	October 12, 1997	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 27-9	72,095
8	October 19, 1997	New York Giants	L 26-20 OT	70,069
9	Bye week
10	November 2, 1997	at Green Bay Packers	L 20-10	60,126
11	November 9, 1997	at Washington Redskins	L 30-7	75,261
12	November 16, 1997	Minnesota Vikings	W 38-15	68,910
13	November 23, 1997	Indianapolis Colts	W 32-10	62,803
14	November 27, 1997	Chicago Bears	W 55-20	77,904
15	December 7, 1997	at Miami Dolphins	L 33-30	72,266
16	December 14, 1997	at Minnesota Vikings	W 14-13	60,982
17	December 21, 1997	New York Jets	W 13-10	77,624

Standings

NFC Central
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
Green Bay Packers	13	3	0	.813	422	282
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	10	6	0	.625	299	263
Detroit Lions	9	7	0	.563	379	306
Minnesota Vikings	9	7	0	.563	354	359
Chicago Bears	4	12	0	.250	263	421

Playoffs

NFC Wild Card game

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lions	0	0	3	7	10
Buccaneers	3	10	7	0	20

• stadium= Houlihan's Stadium, Tampa, Florida
• time= 4:00 p.m. EST
• weather= 57°F, partly cloudy
• TV=Fox
• TVAnnouncers= Pat Summerall and John Madden
• referee= Mike Carey
• attendance= 73,361

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

External links

• Detroit Lions on Pro Football Reference
• Detroit Lions on jt-sw.com