1963 Detroit Lions season
Encyclopedia
The 1963 Detroit Lions
season was their 30th season in Detroit and their 34th season overall. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle indefinitely suspended Lions Defensive Tackle Alex Karras along with Packers Halfback Paul Hornung for placing bets on NFL teams. Five other Lions players were fined $2000 each for betting on games that they did not play in. The Lions franchise was fined $2000 each on two counts for failure to report information promptly and for lack of sideline supervision.
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.
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
season was their 30th season in Detroit and their 34th season overall. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle indefinitely suspended Lions Defensive Tackle Alex Karras along with Packers Halfback Paul Hornung for placing bets on NFL teams. Five other Lions players were fined $2000 each for betting on games that they did not play in. The Lions franchise was fined $2000 each on two counts for failure to report information promptly and for lack of sideline supervision.
NFL Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School |
| 1 | 12 | Daryl Sanders | Offensive Tackle | Ohio State |
Paper Lion
Paper Lion, published in 1966, is a non-fiction book by prominent AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer George Plimpton
George Plimpton
George Ames Plimpton was an American journalist, writer, editor, and actor. He is widely known for his sports writing and for helping to found The Paris Review.-Early life:...
.
Plimpton pitched to a lineup of baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
stars in an All-Star
All-star
All-star is a term designating an individual as having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry...
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
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
. (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
Pontiac, Michigan
Pontiac is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan named after the Ottawa Chief Pontiac, located within the Detroit metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 59,515. It is the county seat of Oakland County...
, Plimpton managed to lose yardage on each play, convincing many in the crowd that he was a professional sports clown
Clown
Clowns are comic performers stereotypically characterized by the grotesque image of the circus clown's colored wigs, stylistic makeup, outlandish costumes, unusually large footwear, and red nose, which evolved to project their actions to large audiences. Other less grotesque styles have also...
inserted for amusement purposes, not someone who was genuinely giving his best effort.
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 14, 1963 | at Los Angeles Rams St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,... |
W 23-2 | |
| 2 | September 22, 1963 | at Green Bay Packers Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions... |
L 31-10 | |
| 3 | September 29, 1963 | Chicago Bears Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League... |
L 37-21 | |
| 4 | October 6, 1963 | San Francisco 49ers San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and... |
W 26-3 | |
| 5 | October 13, 1963 | at Dallas Cowboys Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas... |
L 17-14 | |
| 6 | October 20, 1963 | Baltimore Colts History of the Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the AFC South division of the National Football League. They have won 3 NFL championships and 2 Super Bowls.... |
L 25-21 | |
| 7 | October 27, 1963 | Minnesota Vikings Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960... |
W 28-10 | |
| 8 | November 3, 1963 | at San Francisco 49ers San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and... |
W 45-7 | |
| 9 | November 10, 1963 | at Baltimore Colts History of the Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the AFC South division of the National Football League. They have won 3 NFL championships and 2 Super Bowls.... |
L 24-21 | |
| 10 | November 17, 1963 | Los Angeles Rams St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,... |
L 28-21 | |
| 11 | November 24, 1963 | at Minnesota Vikings Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960... |
L 34-31 | |
| 12 | November 28, 1963 | Green Bay Packers Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions... |
T 13-13 | |
| 13 | December 8, 1963 | Cleveland Browns Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W 38-10 | |
| 14 | December 15, 1963 | at Chicago Bears Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League... |
L 24-14 | |
Standings
| NFL Eastern Eastern and Western Divisions (NFL) 1933-69 The Eastern and Western Divisions of the National Football League, renamed the American and National Conferences in 1950 and then the Eastern and Western Conferences in 1953, were organized as a result of the disputed NFL championship of 1932... |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| Chicago Bears 1963 Chicago Bears season -Game summary:The Giants opened the scoring in the first quarter when Y. A. Tittle led New York on an 83-yard drive that was capped off by a 14-yard touchdown pass to Frank Gifford. The drive was set up by Billy Wade's fumble deep in the Giants territory. However, later in the first period, Tittle... |
11 | 1 | 2 | .917 | 301 | 144 | W-2 |
| Green Bay Packers 1963 Green Bay Packers season The 1963 Green Bay Packers season was their 43rd season in the National Football League. The club posted a 11-2-1 record under coach Vince Lombardi, earning them a second-place finish in the Western Conference. Both losses were inflicted by the eventual 1963 NFL Champions, the Chicago... |
11 | 2 | 1 | .846 | 369 | 206 | W-2 |
| Baltimore Colts 1963 Baltimore Colts season The 1963 Baltimore Colts season was the 11th season for the team in the National Football League. The Baltimore Colts finished the National Football League's 1955 season with a record of 8 wins and 6 losses and finished third in the Western Conference.... |
8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 316 | 285 | W-3 |
| Detroit Lions | 5 | 8 | 1 | .385 | 326 | 265 | L-1 |
| Minnesota Vikings 1963 Minnesota Vikings season The 1963 Minnesota Vikings season was the third year of season play for the Minnesota Vikings and the 44rd regular season of the National Football League. The Vikings finished with a record of five wins, eight losses, and one tie under head coach Norm Van Brocklin... |
5 | 8 | 1 | .385 | 309 | 390 | W-1 |
| Los Angeles Rams 1963 Los Angeles Rams season The 1963 Los Angeles Rams season was the team's 26th year with the National Football League and the 18th season in Los Angeles.-NFL Draft:-Schedule:-Standings:-References:... |
5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 210 | 350 | L-2 |
| San Francisco 49ers 1963 San Francisco 49ers season -NFL Draft:-Schedule:-Standings:-External links:* *... |
2 | 12 | 0 | .143 | 198 | 391 | L-5 |
Roster
| Quarterbacks Running Backs Wide Receivers Tight Ends |
Offensive Linemen Defensive Linemen |
Linebackers Defensive Backs Special Teams |
Reserve Lists
Rookies in italics |
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