1957 Detroit Lions season

1957 Detroit Lions season
OwnerDetroit Football Company
General managerNick Kerbawy
Head coachGeorge Wilson
Home stadiumBriggs Stadium
Results
Record8–4
Division place1st NFL Western (playoff)
PlayoffsWon Conference Playoff
(at 49ers) 31–27
Won NFL Championship
(vs. Browns) 59–14
All-Pros
5
Pro Bowlers
7

The 1957 season was the Detroit Lions' 28th season in the National Football League (NFL), their 24th as the Detroit Lions, and their first under head coach George Wilson. Despite dropping one more game than the previous season, the Lions tied the San Francisco 49ers for first place in the NFL Western Conference. In the tiebreaker game, the Lions defeated the 49ers 31–27 to advance to their fourth championship appearance of the decade. Playing as underdogs, the Lions defeated the Cleveland Browns 59–14 to win their fourth NFL championship. As of the 2024 season, this is the last time the Lions have appeared in an NFL title game, the second-longest drought in the NFL and fourth-longest in the four major sports.

In the penultimate regular season game with the Cleveland Browns on December 8, Hall of Fame quarterback Bobby Layne was lost for the season with a broken right ankle. With backup Tobin Rote in at quarterback in the second quarter,[1] the Lions won that game and overcame a ten-point deficit at halftime the following week to defeat the Chicago Bears 21–13, whom they had lost to three weeks earlier at home.[2] They ended the regular season with three consecutive wins and an 8–4 record. All four losses were within the Western Conference, splitting the two games with all but the Green Bay Packers, whom they swept.

Schedule

Regular season

Main article: 1957 NFL season

According to the team, a total of 39,844 season tickets were sold by the Lions for the 1957 campaign.[3] The Lions played their home games in Briggs Stadium (Tiger Stadium), which had a regular listed seating capacity of 46,194, with an additional 7,000 bleacher seats for football to bring total capacity to 53,194.[3]

Game Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Sources
1 September 29 at Baltimore Colts L 14–34 0–1 Memorial Stadium 40,112 [4]
2 October 6 at Green Bay Packers W 24–14 1–1 New City Stadium 32,132 [5]
3 October 13 Los Angeles Rams W 10–7 2–1 Briggs Stadium 55,764 [6]
4 October 20 Baltimore Colts W 31–27 3–1 Briggs Stadium 55,764 [7]
5 October 27 at Los Angeles Rams L 17–35 3–2 L.A. Memorial Coliseum 77,314 [8]
6 November 3 at San Francisco 49ers L 31–35 3–3 Kezar Stadium 59,702 [9]
7 November 10 at Philadelphia Eagles W 27–16 4–3 Connie Mack Stadium 29,320 [10]
8 November 17 San Francisco 49ers W 31–10 5–3 Briggs Stadium 56,915 [11]
9 November 24 Chicago Bears L 7–27 5–4 Briggs Stadium 55,769 [12]
10 November 28 Green Bay Packers W 18–6 6–4 Briggs Stadium 54,301 [13]
11 December 8 Cleveland Browns W 20–7 7–4 Briggs Stadium 55,814 [14]
12 December 15 at Chicago Bears W 21–13 8–4 Wrigley Field 41,088 [15]
Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.

Playoffs

Main article: 1957 NFL playoffs
Game Date Opponent Result Venue Attendance Sources
Conference December 22 at San Francisco 49ers W 31–27 Kezar Stadium 60,118 [17]
Championship December 29 Cleveland Browns W 59–14 Briggs Stadium 55,263 [18]

Standings

NFL Western Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Detroit Lions 8 4 0 .667 6–4 251 231 W3
San Francisco 49ers 8 4 0 .667 7–3 260 264 W3
Baltimore Colts 7 5 0 .583 6–4 303 235 L2
Los Angeles Rams 6 6 0 .500 5–5 307 278 W2
Chicago Bears 5 7 0 .417 4–6 203 211 L1
Green Bay Packers 3 9 0 .250 2–8 218 311 L3
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Roster

Detroit Lions 1957 roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Receivers

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Reserve lists

rookies in italics

Season summary

At the "Meet the Lions" banquet on Monday, August 12, seventh-year head coach Buddy Parker surprised the audience by abruptly announcing his resignation;[19][20] longtime assistant coach George Wilson was promoted the following day.[21][22] Two weeks later, Parker became the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. [23][24]

Pre-season

Week 1: at Baltimore

Team 1 234Total
Detroit 7 007 14
• Baltimore 7 17100 34

The Lions opened the regular season on the road with a 34–14 loss to the Baltimore Colts on September 29. Quarterback Johnny Unitas threw four touchdown passes while the Baltimore defense held the Lions to 23 rushing yards and intercepted Bobby Layne three times. Detroit's touchdowns were scored by Howard Cassady (a short run for his first NFL touchdown) and Jerry Reichow on a 32-yard pass from backup quarterback Tobin Rote.[25]

Week 2: at Green Bay Packers

Quarter 1 2 34Total
Lions 14 3 0724
Packers 0 0 01414

at New City Stadium, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Game information

Week 3: Los Angeles Rams

Team 1 234Total
Rams 0 700 7
• Lions 0 1000 10
Scoring summary
Q2LAArnett 12 yard pass from Van Brocklin (Cothren kick)LA 7–0
Q2DETReichow 16 yard pass from Rote (Layne kick)Tie 7–7
Q2DETLayne 25 yard field goalDET 10–7

[26]

Week 4: Baltimore Colts

Team 1 234Total
Colts 7 1460 27
• Lions 0 3721 31
Scoring summary
Q1BALMutscheller 15 yard pass from Unitas (Rechichar kick)BAL 7–0
Q2DETMartin 47 yard field goalBAL 7–3
Q2BALMoore 72 yard pass from Unitas (Rechichar kick)BAL 14–3
Q2BALMutscheller 66 yard pass from Unitas (Rechichar kick)BAL 21–3
Q3BALMoore 4 yard pass from Unitas (kick failed)BAL 27–3
Q3DETJunker 14 yard pass from Rote (Layne kick)BAL 27–10
Q4DETCassady 26 yard pass from Layne (Layne kick)BAL 27–17
Q4DETJohnson 1 yard run (Layne kick)BAL 27–24
Q4DETCassady 29 yard pass from Layne (Layne kick)DET 31–27

[27]

Playoffs vs. San Francisco

Main article: 1957 NFL playoffs
Team 1 234Total
• Detroit 0 71410 31
San Francisco 14 1030 27
  • Date: December 22
  • Location: Kezar Stadium, San Francisco
  • Game attendance: 60,118

On December 22, the Lions defeated the San Francisco 49ers, 31–27, in a Western Conference playoff game. The two teams had finished the regular season tied in the standings at 8–4, which called for a tiebreaker game.

The 49ers took a 24–7 lead at halftime, as Y. A. Tittle threw three touchdown passes in the first half. A field goal early in the third quarter extended the lead to 27–7, then the Lions responded with 24 unanswered points. Detroit's touchdowns were scored by Steve Junker on a four-yard pass from Tobin Rote, two runs by Tom Tracy (1-yard and 58-yard runs), and Gene Gedman on a two-yard run.[28]

NFL Championship Game

Team 1 234Total
Cleveland 0 770 14
• Detroit 17 141414 59
Main article: 1957 NFL Championship Game

On December 29, the Lions defeated the Cleveland Browns 59–14 in the NFL championship game. The Browns had been favored to win by three points. Tobin Rote, filling in at quarterback after Bobby Layne broke his ankle on December 8,[1] was credited with "a brilliant performance" as he completed 12 of 19 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for a touchdown, leading the Lions to their greatest point total in history.[29] The Lions capitalized on five interceptions and two fumble recoveries, including a 19-yard interception return for touchdown by Terry Barr, and held Cleveland star rookie Jim Brown to 69 rushing yards on 20 carries.[29][30]

The longest play of the game was a 78-yard touchdown pass from Rote to Jim Doran. Rookie Steve Junker was the Lions' leading scorer with 12 points on touchdown receptions covering 26 and 23 yards. Jim Martin followed with 11 points on eight extra-point conversions and a 31-yard field goal.[30] The victory gave the Lions their third NFL championship in six years. It was also referred to as "the perfect revenge" for the Browns' 56–10 rout of the Lions in the title game in 1954.[29]

References

  1. ^ a b "Lions lose Layne but win, 20-7". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. December 9, 1957. p. 26.
  2. ^ "Lions uphill fight whips Bears, 21-13". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. December 16, 1957. p. 31.
  3. ^ a b Edward M. "Bud" Erickson (ed.), Detroit Lions Facts Book 1963: Press, Radio, TV. Detroit, MI: Detroit Football Company, 1963, p. 4.
  4. ^ "Detroit Lions at Baltimore Colts - September 29th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  5. ^ "Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers - October 6th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  6. ^ "Los Angeles Rams at Detroit Lions - October 13th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  7. ^ "Baltimore Colts at Detroit Lions - October 20th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  8. ^ "Detroit Lions at Los Angeles Rams - October 27th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  9. ^ "Detroit Lions at San Francisco 49ers - November 3rd, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  10. ^ "Detroit Lions at Philadelphia Eagles - November 10th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  11. ^ "San Francisco 49ers at Detroit Lions - November 17th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  12. ^ "Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions - November 24th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  13. ^ "Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions - November 28th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  14. ^ "Cleveland Browns at Detroit Lions - December 8th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  15. ^ "Detroit Lions at Chicago Bears - December 15th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  16. ^ Johnson, Chuck (November 29, 1957). "Lion mudders beat Green Bay in rain". Milwaukee Journal. p. 13, part 2.
  17. ^ "Divisional Round - Detroit Lions at San Francisco 49ers - December 22nd, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  18. ^ "Championship - Cleveland Browns at Detroit Lions - December 29th, 1957". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  19. ^ "Buddy Parker quits as Detroit grid coach". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. August 13, 1957. p. 16.
  20. ^ Diles, Dave (August 13, 1957). "Parker quits Lions". Owosso Argus-Press. Michigan. Associated Press. p. 11.
  21. ^ "George Wilson to coach Lions". Pittsburgh Press. United Press. August 13, 1957. p. 30.
  22. ^ "Aide succeeds Buddy Parker". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. August 14, 1957. p. 22.
  23. ^ Sell, Jack (August 28, 1957). "Parker new coach of Steelers". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 1.
  24. ^ Livingston, Pat (August 28, 1957). "Parker takes over Steeler reins". Pittsburgh Press. p. 48.
  25. ^ Bob Latshaw (September 29, 1957). "Colts Kick Lions in the Teeth, 34-14". Detroit Free Press. pp. 37, 41 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-Jan-05.
  27. ^ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-Jan-05.
  28. ^ Lyall Smith (December 23, 1957). "The Lions' 1957 Fight Song: 'Oh, We Won Because We Won --'". Detroit Free Press. p. 33 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ a b c Latshaw, Bob (December 30, 1957). "Lions Win, 59–14! 55,263 See Browns Humbled; It's [sic] Third Title in Six Years". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1–2.
  30. ^ a b "Cleveland Browns 14 at Detroit Lions 59". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
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