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1963 Detroit Lions season

NFL team season

NFL team season

FieldValue
logo1963-Lions-mediaiguide.jpg
teamDetroit Lions
year1963
record5–8–1
division_place4th (tied) NFL Western
coachGeorge Wilson
general_managerEdwin J. Anderson
stadiumTiger Stadium
playoffsDid not qualify
shortnavlinkLions seasons

The 1963 Detroit Lions season marked the thirtieth year of the National Football League (NFL) franchise in Detroit and 34th overall.

It was national news in April when NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle indefinitely suspended two future Hall of Famers, Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras and Packers' halfback Paul Hornung for placing bets on NFL teams. Five other Lions players were fined $2,000 each for betting on games that they did not play in. The Lions franchise was additionally fined $2,000 each on two counts for failure to report information promptly and for lack of sideline supervision. The gambling controversy proved to be an ongoing distraction throughout the season.

Things became lighthearted in August, when gonzo sports journalist George Plimpton endured the Lions' training camp process as an ostensible backup quarterback, going so far as to run a very unsuccessful series of downs in practice, to generate a story for the telling. Plimpton's 1963 training camp experience would culminate in a 1965 best-selling book, Paper Lion.

On Thanksgiving Day in Detroit, the Lions met the Packers for the thirteenth consecutive season. The game ended in a tie, the first for the Packers in five years, and it was the end of the holiday series for Green Bay. Their visit to Tiger Stadium the following year was on a Monday night in late September, and the visiting opponent for Thanksgiving was rotated, starting with the Chicago Bears.

Offseason

NFL draft

:Source:

Preseason

Paper Lion

Paper Lion, published in 1966, is a non-fiction book by prominent American writer George Plimpton. Plimpton pitched to a lineup of baseball stars in an All-Star exhibition, presumably to answer the question, "How would the average man off of the street fare in an attempt to compete with the stars of professional sports?" He chronicled this experience in his book, Out of My League. In Paper Lion, Plimpton joins the training camp of the 1963 Detroit Lions on the premise of trying out to be the team's third-string quarterback. (The coaches were aware of the deception; the players were not until it became apparent that Plimpton did not really know how to receive the snap from center.) Plimpton, then thirty-six, showed how unlikely it would be for an "average" person to succeed as a professional athlete. When finally inserted at quarterback for a series in a scrimmage conducted in Pontiac, Michigan, Plimpton managed to lose yardage on each play, convincing many in the crowd that he was a professional sports clown inserted for amusement purposes, not someone who was genuinely giving his best effort.

Regular season

Main article: 1963 NFL season

Schedule

Detroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}GameDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}DateDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}OpponentDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}ResultDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}RecordDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}VenueDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}AttendanceDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}RecapDetroit Lionsyear=1963border=2}}Sources1234567891011121314
September 14at Los Angeles RamsW 23–21–0L.A. Memorial Coliseum49,342Recap
September 22at Green Bay PackersL 10–311–1Milwaukee County Stadium45,912Recap
September 29Chicago BearsL 21–371–2Tiger Stadium55,400Recap
October 6San Francisco 49ersW 26–32–2Tiger Stadium44,088Recap
October 13at Dallas CowboysL 14–172–3Cotton Bowl27,264Recap
October 20Baltimore ColtsL 21–252–4Tiger Stadium51,901Recap
October 27Minnesota VikingsW 28–103–4Tiger Stadium44,509Recap
November 3at San Francisco 49ersW 45–74–4Kezar Stadium33,511Recap
November 10at Baltimore ColtsL 21–244–5Municipal Stadium59,758Recap
November 17Los Angeles RamsL 21–284–6Tiger Stadium44,951Recap
November 24at Minnesota VikingsL 31–344–7Metropolitan Stadium28,763Recap
November 28Green Bay PackersT 13–134–7–1Tiger Stadium54,016Recap
December 8Cleveland BrownsW 38–105–7–1Tiger Stadium51,382Recap
December 15at Chicago BearsL 14–245–8–1Wrigley Field45,317Recap
Notes: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. September 14 night game; November 28 Thanksgiving.

Roster

1963 Detroit Lions roster
Quarterbacks

:Source:

Standings

References

References

  1. United Press International, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/muskogee-daily-phoenix-and-times-democra/160264819/ "Hornung, Karras Suspended for Gambling: Detroit Club, Five Players Handed Fines,"] ''Muskogee [OK] Daily Phoenix,'' April 18, 1963, p. 23.
  2. Chuck Johnson, [https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XwcqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=UCcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6637%2C6586181 "Lions tie Packers, 13 to 13,"] ''Milwaukee Journal,'' Nov. 29, 1963, part 2, p. 22.
  3. NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, {{ISBN. 0-7611-2480-2, p. 395
Info: Wikipedia Source

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