1958 Detroit Lions season

The 1958 season was Detroit Lions' 29th in the National Football League (NFL), their 18th playing in Briggs Stadium, and their second under head coach George Wilson. The defending NFL champions failed to improve on their 8–4 record from the previous season and finished at 4–7–1, fifth in the six-team Western Conference.[1]

1958 Detroit Lions season
Head coachGeorge Wilson
Home fieldBriggs Stadium
Results
Record4–7–1
Division place5th NFL Western
Playoff finishDid not qualify

Future Hall of Fame quarterback Bobby Layne, the Lions' primary starter through 8 seasons and leader of three championship teams, was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in return for Earl Morrall and two draft choices.[2][3] This supposedly led to Layne "cursing" the Lions, allegedly saying that Detroit "would not win for fifty years." The story is considered a hoax, as no contemporaneous account exists and Layne himself denied saying it. (Real or not, the "curse" bedeviled the Lions franchise for the next half-century, and beyond: as of 2022, 64 years after the trade, Detroit has not won another championship, and indeed has won only a single playoff contest in that time.) Meanwhile, after losing their first two games without Layne, the Steelers finished at 7–4–1, their best record in over a decade.

The Lions won only one game in the first half of the season (1–4–1),[4] then spilt the final six games; one of the poorest performances by a defending league champion in NFL history. The preseason began on a sour note in mid-August as they lost 35–19 to the 14-point underdog College All-Stars at Soldier Field in Chicago, closing the margin with a late touchdown.[5]

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance
1 September 28 at Baltimore Colts L 15–28 0–1–0 48,377
2 October 5 at Green Bay Packers T 13–13 0–1–1 32,035
3 October 12 vs. Los Angeles Rams L28–42 0–2–1 55,648
4 October 19 vs. Baltimore Colts L 14–40 0–3–1 55,190
5 October 26 at Los Angeles Rams W 41–24 1–3–1 81,703
6 November 2 at San Francisco 49ers L 21–24 1–4–1 59,213
7 November 9 at Cleveland Browns W 30–10 2–4–1 75,363
8 November 16 vs. San Francisco 49ers W 35–21 3–4–1 54,523
9 November 23 vs. Chicago Bears L 7–20 3–5–1 55,280
10 November 27 vs. Green Bay Packers W 24–14 4–5–1 50,971
11 December 7 vs. New York Giants L 17–19 4–6–1 50,115
12 December 14 at Chicago Bears L 16–21 4–7–1 38,346

Bold indicates intra-conference opponent.

Game summaries

Week 10
1 234Total
Packers 7 070 14
• Lions 10 077 24
Scoring summary
1GBMax McGee 28 yard pass from Bart Star (Paul Hornung kick)GB 7–0
1DETKen Webb 1 yard run (Jim Martin kick)Tie 7–7
1DETJim Martin 32 yard field goalDET 10–7
3GBDon McIlhenny 1 yard run (Paul Hornung kick)GB 14–10
3DETTobin Rote 1 yard run (Jim Martin kick)DET 17–14
4DETGene Gedman 4 yard run (Jim Martin kick)DET 24–14

Source:[6]

Standings
NFL Western Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Baltimore Colts 9 3 0 .750 8–2 381 203 L2
Los Angeles Rams 8 4 0 .667 7–3 344 278 W3
Chicago Bears 8 4 0 .667 7–3 298 230 W2
San Francisco 49ers 6 6 0 .500 4–6 257 324 W2
Detroit Lions 4 7 1 .364 3–6–1 261 276 L2
Green Bay Packers 1 10 1 .091 0–9–1 193 382 L7

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

References
  1. 1958 Detroit Lions
  2. Livingston, Pat (October 7, 1958). "Layne takes over as Steeler QB". Pittsburgh Press. p. 27.
  3. Sell, Jack (October 7, 1958). "Steelers get Layne for Morrall". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 1.
  4. "49ers 24, Lions 21". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 3, 1958. p. 3B.
  5. "All-Stars upset Lions, 35-19". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. August 16, 1958. p. 6.
  6. Pro-Football-Reference.com
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