SAN FRANCISCO - The Detroit Lions were steaming. It was halftime of the Western Conference playoff game, and they were losing. On the road against the 49ers, the Lions were facing a 24-7 deficit. Y.A. Tittle was throwing all over the Lions, and it looked like the 49ers would advance to their first NFL Championship Game.
Then, at halftime, something changed. With the locker rooms at Kezar Stadium right next to each other, the Lions heard the 49ers celebrating their big halftime lead. And they got mad.
San Francisco kicked another field goal early in the third quarter to make it 27-7. And then the Lions roared back. Tom Tracy, who holds the NFL record for most passing yards by a non-quarterback, scored two rushing touchdowns in the third quarter, including a 57-yard run. Gene Gedman added another touchdown in the fourth quarter to give the Lions the lead, and a short field goal provided the final margin. Detroit's 31-27 victory sent them to the NFL Championship game and stunned the San Francisco crowd.
Bouyed by their win over the 49ers, the Lions went on to the championship game against the Browns and kept the momentum going, crushing Cleveland 59-14. It was the Lions' second title in five seasons. They haven't won one since, a drought of 53 years that is the second-longest in the NFL.
Showing posts with label Detroit Lions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Detroit Lions. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
November 8, 1970: Dempsey for 63
NEW ORLEANS - The Lions couldn't have been taking this seriously. The Saints were on their own 45 yard line - not even at midfield yet - and the field goal team was out on the field. Were they really going to try a 63-yard field goal?
What also looked strange was the Saints' kicker. Second-year kicker Tom Dempsey was built more like a linebacker than a kicker, a big, bulky player who was one of the team's heaviest players. He was also born without a right hand and an incomplete right foot. The lack of a hand wasn't a big issue for a player who wasn't expected to handle the ball or make a tackle, but it was weird for a kicker to have half a foot. Dempsey got over that with specially made shoes that were flat in front and featured a wooden arch for support. It was with that arch that Dempsey struck the ball on his kicking attempts.
Trailing the Lions 17-16 late in the fourth quarter on November 8, 1970, the Saints were short on options. With the ball 55 yards away from the end zone, they decided to try an impossibly long field goal rather than a Hail Mary of some kind. Out trotted Dempsey, getting ready for a field goal that would be the longest in league history by 7 yards. He lined up for his kick at the Saints 37 yard line, something that looked comically far away from the goal posts. Even with the goal posts in the front of the end zone in those days, it still seemed impossible that he was even trying this.
The Lions sure thought it was impossible, and they gave a half-hearted attempt at blocking it. As the snap came, Dempsey strode forward and crushed the ball. A couple of Detroit players later said the ball made a cracking sound when it hit his foot, sounding ilke a baseball bat hitting a ball. It soared through the air right down the middle, clearing the crossbar by two feet.
While the Lions were almost too stunned to even react, the Saints were jubilant, lifting Dempsey into the air in celebration. It was a rare moment of celebration for the Saints, who won only two games that year. It was also the highlight of Dempsey's career. He left the Saints after that season and bounced around the league, playing for four more teams until retiring in 1979. His career field goal percentage of 61 percent was pretty pedestrian, and he probably would have been forgotten completely if not for his record-shattering kick.
Shoes similar to Dempsey's were outlawed in 1977, with the new rule saying that any player with a prothesis that wore a modified shoe must have the shoes shape conform to that of a standard shoe. While it was never determined definitively whether Dempsey got an unfair advantage from his shoe, the rule was known as the "Dempsey Rule" anyway. While his record 63-yard kick has since been equalled, it has never been topped in a regular season game.
What also looked strange was the Saints' kicker. Second-year kicker Tom Dempsey was built more like a linebacker than a kicker, a big, bulky player who was one of the team's heaviest players. He was also born without a right hand and an incomplete right foot. The lack of a hand wasn't a big issue for a player who wasn't expected to handle the ball or make a tackle, but it was weird for a kicker to have half a foot. Dempsey got over that with specially made shoes that were flat in front and featured a wooden arch for support. It was with that arch that Dempsey struck the ball on his kicking attempts.
Trailing the Lions 17-16 late in the fourth quarter on November 8, 1970, the Saints were short on options. With the ball 55 yards away from the end zone, they decided to try an impossibly long field goal rather than a Hail Mary of some kind. Out trotted Dempsey, getting ready for a field goal that would be the longest in league history by 7 yards. He lined up for his kick at the Saints 37 yard line, something that looked comically far away from the goal posts. Even with the goal posts in the front of the end zone in those days, it still seemed impossible that he was even trying this.
The Lions sure thought it was impossible, and they gave a half-hearted attempt at blocking it. As the snap came, Dempsey strode forward and crushed the ball. A couple of Detroit players later said the ball made a cracking sound when it hit his foot, sounding ilke a baseball bat hitting a ball. It soared through the air right down the middle, clearing the crossbar by two feet.
While the Lions were almost too stunned to even react, the Saints were jubilant, lifting Dempsey into the air in celebration. It was a rare moment of celebration for the Saints, who won only two games that year. It was also the highlight of Dempsey's career. He left the Saints after that season and bounced around the league, playing for four more teams until retiring in 1979. His career field goal percentage of 61 percent was pretty pedestrian, and he probably would have been forgotten completely if not for his record-shattering kick.
Shoes similar to Dempsey's were outlawed in 1977, with the new rule saying that any player with a prothesis that wore a modified shoe must have the shoes shape conform to that of a standard shoe. While it was never determined definitively whether Dempsey got an unfair advantage from his shoe, the rule was known as the "Dempsey Rule" anyway. While his record 63-yard kick has since been equalled, it has never been topped in a regular season game.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
July 28, 1999: Can't catch him
LONDON - Nobody could figure out how to stop Barry Sanders when he was playing football, so it shouldn't have been a surprise that nobody could figure out when or why he was retiring.
In 1998, Sanders ran for more than 1,400 yards, his 10th consecutive 1,000-yard season. Lions fans were uncharacteristically excited about the 1999 season, because if Sanders ran for 1,400 yards again - a number he had reached 7 times in his 10-year career - he'd pass Walter Payton as the NFL's all-time rushing leader.
Instead, though, Sanders shocked everybody. On July 28, he faxed a statement to the Wichita Eagle, his hometown paper, announcing his retirement from the NFL, effective immediately. He then boarded a plane for London, where reporters tracked him down at London Heathrow Airport, where he confirmed he was hanging it up.
Football fans were stunned. Sanders still seemingly had a lot left in the tank, and his performance hadn't taken any noticeable drop. In fact, he had rushed for 2,000 yards just the year before. He had been healthy his entire career, too, so injuries weren't a reason for his retirement.
Some people speculated that the constant losing Sanders endured as a member of the Lions wore on him. He at first denied this, but years later confirmed that was a major reason for wanting to walk away. He said he had lost the love of the game.
What he left behind was a wealth of highlight clips as one of the most exciting runners in NFL history. Neither particularly fast nor strong, Sanders nonetheless struck fear in his opponents with his unmatched agility, bouncing off and spinning around and cutting past helpless defenders for a decade. In his later years, teams would institute a defensive policy where if a defender missed a tackle on Sanders near the line of scrimmage, they should stay put rather than chase after him; Sanders was just as likely to come back to the same spot.
Sanders was a once-in-a-lifetime player, the kind of player fans will remember long after his retirement. Lions fans remember with pride the 10-year stretch where they had the best player in football; video game fans remember the games they had where the Lions were one of the "banned" teams, where a gentleman's agreement said you couldn't pick the Lions because of the unfair advantage Sanders gave you. He was a true one-of-a-kind talent.
In 1998, Sanders ran for more than 1,400 yards, his 10th consecutive 1,000-yard season. Lions fans were uncharacteristically excited about the 1999 season, because if Sanders ran for 1,400 yards again - a number he had reached 7 times in his 10-year career - he'd pass Walter Payton as the NFL's all-time rushing leader.
Instead, though, Sanders shocked everybody. On July 28, he faxed a statement to the Wichita Eagle, his hometown paper, announcing his retirement from the NFL, effective immediately. He then boarded a plane for London, where reporters tracked him down at London Heathrow Airport, where he confirmed he was hanging it up.
Football fans were stunned. Sanders still seemingly had a lot left in the tank, and his performance hadn't taken any noticeable drop. In fact, he had rushed for 2,000 yards just the year before. He had been healthy his entire career, too, so injuries weren't a reason for his retirement.
Some people speculated that the constant losing Sanders endured as a member of the Lions wore on him. He at first denied this, but years later confirmed that was a major reason for wanting to walk away. He said he had lost the love of the game.
What he left behind was a wealth of highlight clips as one of the most exciting runners in NFL history. Neither particularly fast nor strong, Sanders nonetheless struck fear in his opponents with his unmatched agility, bouncing off and spinning around and cutting past helpless defenders for a decade. In his later years, teams would institute a defensive policy where if a defender missed a tackle on Sanders near the line of scrimmage, they should stay put rather than chase after him; Sanders was just as likely to come back to the same spot.
Sanders was a once-in-a-lifetime player, the kind of player fans will remember long after his retirement. Lions fans remember with pride the 10-year stretch where they had the best player in football; video game fans remember the games they had where the Lions were one of the "banned" teams, where a gentleman's agreement said you couldn't pick the Lions because of the unfair advantage Sanders gave you. He was a true one-of-a-kind talent.
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