1961 Detroit Lions season

The 1961 Detroit Lions season was the 32nd season in franchise history. Detroit was runner-up in the Western conference at 8–5–1, then won a second Playoff Bowl game against the Philadelphia Eagles that was played in the Orange Bowl, 38–10.[1]

1961 Detroit Lions season
Head coachGeorge Wilson
Results
Record8–5–1
Division place2nd NFL Western
Playoff finishWon NFL Playoff Bowl
(vs. Eagles) 38–10

This was also the first season that the silhouetted blue lion logo appeared on the helmets.

Regular season
Main article: 1961 NFL season

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Attendance
1 September 17 at Green Bay Packers W 17–13 1–0
32,150
2 September 24 at Baltimore Colts W 16–15 2–0
49,825
3 October 1 San Francisco 49ers L 0–49 2–1
38,065
4 October 8 Chicago Bears L 17–31 2–2
53,854
5 October 15 Los Angeles Rams W 14–13 3–2
53,295
6 October 22 Baltimore Colts L 14–17 3–3
48,447
7 October 29 at Los Angeles Rams W 28–10 4–3
54,019
8 November 5 at San Francisco 49ers T 20–20 4–3–1
46,267
9 November 12 at St. Louis Cardinals W 45–14 5–3–1
54,123
10 November 19 at Minnesota Vikings W 37–10 6–3–1
57,808
11 November 23 Green Bay Packers L 9–17 6–4–1
43,272
12 December 3 at Chicago Bears W 16–15 7–4–1
51,017
13 December 10 Minnesota Vikings W 13–7 8–4–1
42,655
14 December 17 Philadelphia Eagles L 24–27 8–5–1
44,231

Standings
NFL Western Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Green Bay Packers 11 3 0 .786 9–3 391 223 W1
Detroit Lions 8 5 1 .615 7–4–1 270 258 L1
Chicago Bears 8 6 0 .571 7–5 326 302 W2
Baltimore Colts 8 6 0 .571 6–6 302 307 W1
San Francisco 49ers 7 6 1 .538 6–5–1 346 272 L1
Los Angeles Rams 4 10 0 .286 3–9 263 333 L1
Minnesota Vikings 3 11 0 .214 3–9 285 407 L2

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

Roster
Detroit Lions roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists
  • currently vacant

rookies in italics

Source:

Playoff Bowl

The Playoff Bowl matched the runners-up of the two conferences to determine third place in the league. It was played in January at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, the week following the NFL Championship game. This season's participants, Detroit and Philadelphia, had met three weeks earlier in the last game of the regular season, a three-point Eagles' road win,[2][3] and were slightly favored in Miami.[4]

This was the second year for the game and the Lions repeated as winners;[1] it is classified by the NFL as an exhibition game, rather than postseason.

Round Date Opponent Result Venue Attendance
Playoff Bowl January 6, 1962 Philadelphia Eagles W 38–10 Orange Bowl 25,612
Source:[1][5]

Awards and records

References
  1. "Detroit storms past Philadelphia, 38-10". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. January 7, 1962. p. 1B.
  2. "Eagles 27, Lions 24". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 18, 1961. p. 3B.
  3. "Lucky to finish 2nd, says coach of Lions". Toledo Blade. (Ohio). Associated Press. December 18, 1961. p. 23.
  4. "Eagles slight choice over Lions today". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. January 6, 1962. p. 4, part 2.
  5. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 369
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