1999 Detroit Lions season

1999 Detroit Lions season
Head coach Bobby Ross
General manager Chuck Schmidt
Owner William Clay Ford, Sr.
Home field Pontiac Silverdome
Results
Record 8–8
Division place 3rd NFC Central
Playoff finish Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Redskins) 27–13
Uniform

The 1999 Detroit Lions season was their 70th in the league. The team improved upon their previous season's output of 5–11 and qualified for the playoffs, where they lost to the Washington Redskins in the Wild Card round.[1] This was their last playoff appearance until the 2011 season.

In 2004, Football Outsiders' Mike Tanier named the 1999 Lions as one of the "worst playoff teams ever":[2]

The Lions had just lost Barry Sanders and were starting second-year pro Charlie Batch at quarterback. They were coming off a 5–11 season. Hopes weren't high, but a 6–2 start made the Lions a surprise contender at the midway point in the season. Reality soon set in, however, and the Lions lost their last four straight. Two other NFC teams finished 8–8, but the Lions beat the Panthers during the season and held the tiebreaker over the Packers. The Redskins beat them 27–13 in the opening round of the playoffs.

Personnel

Staff

1999 Detroit Lions staff
Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive Coordinator – Sylvester Croom
  • Quarterbacks – Jim Zorn
  • Running Backs – Frank Falks
  • Wide Receivers – Jerry Sullivan
  • Tight Ends – Danny Smith
  • Offensive Line – Jack Henry
  • Offensive Assistant – Stan Kwan
  • Quality Control–Offense/Administrative Assistant – 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 and Conditioning – Rob Graf

Regular season

The season had an inauspicious beginning as future Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders suddenly retired on the eve of training camp. Undaunted, Coach Bobby Ross led the Lions to a fast start, highlighted by a Week 9 win over the then 6–1 St. Louis Rams. The following week, Coach Ross made a questionable decision to go for a failed two-point conversion after a touchdown against Arizona. The game ended with Detroit in the red zone trying to score a game-winning touchdown. After defeating the Redskins in Week 13 for the franchise's first win vs. Washington since 1965, the Lions had an 8–4 record and were the second seed in the NFC. Subsequently, the Lions lost their last four regular season games and backed into the 6th playoff seed.

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Attendance
1 September 12, 1999 at Seattle Seahawks W 28–20
66,238
2 September 19, 1999 Green Bay Packers W 23–15
76,202
3 September 26, 1999 at Kansas City Chiefs L 31–21
78,384
4 Bye
5 October 10, 1999 San Diego Chargers L 20–10
61,481
6 October 17, 1999 Minnesota Vikings W 25–23
76,516
7 October 24, 1999 at Carolina Panthers W 24–9
64,322
8 October 31, 1999 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 20–3
63,135
9 November 7, 1999 St. Louis Rams W 31–27
73,224
10 November 14, 1999 at Arizona Cardinals L 23–19
49,600
11 November 21, 1999 at Green Bay Packers L 26–17
59,869
12 November 25, 1999 Chicago Bears W 21–17
77,905
13 December 5, 1999 Washington Redskins W 33–17
77,693
14 December 12, 1999 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 23–16
65,536
15 December 19, 1999 at Chicago Bears L 28–10
50,256
16 December 25, 1999 Denver Broncos L 17–7
73,158
17 January 2, 2000 at Minnesota Vikings L 24–17
64,103

Standings

NFC Central
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1150.688270235W2
(4) Minnesota Vikings 1060.625399335W3
(6) Detroit Lions 880.500322323L4
Green Bay Packers 880.500357341W1
Chicago Bears 6100.375272341L2

Playoffs

Week Date Opponent Result
Wild Card January 8, 2000 at Washington Redskins L 27–13

NFC Wild Card Game: At Washington Redskins

NFC Wild Card Game: Detroit Lions at Washington Redskins – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Lions 0 0 01313
Redskins 14 13 0027

at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium, Washington D.C

Game information

1st quarter
  • WAS – Stephen Davis 1 yard rush (Brett Conway kick). Redskins 7–0
  • WAS – Stephen Davis 4 yard rush (Brett Conway kick). Redskins 14–0
2nd quarter
  • WAS – Brett Conway 33 yard field goal. Redskins 17–0
  • WAS – Brett Conway 23 yard field goal. Redskins 20–0
  • WAS – Albert Connell 30 yard pass from Brad Johnson (Brett Conway kick). Redskins 27–0
3rd quarter
  • no scoring
4th quarter
  • DET – Ron Rice 94 yard blocked field goal return (2 point conversion failed) Redskins 27–6
  • DET – Ron Rivers 5 yard pass from Gus Frerotte (Jason Hanson kick). Redskins 27–13
Turnovers
  • DET – 2
  • WAS – 0

References

  1. ↑ 1999 Detroit Lions
  2. ↑ Football Outsiders: Skin of the Teeth: The Worst Playoff Teams Ever

External links

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