List of Detroit Lions seasons
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The team plays its home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit. Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and called the Portsmouth Spartans, the team began play in 1928 as an independent professional team.[1] The 2015 season was their 86th in the NFL.
The Lions have won four NFL championships, tied for 9th overall in total championships amongst all 32 NFL franchises; although the last was in 1957, which gives the club the second-longest NFL championship drought behind the Arizona Cardinals. The Lions are the only franchise to finish a full (non-strike shortened) regular season with no wins or ties since the move to sixteen season games in 1978, going 0–16 during the 2008 NFL season. They are also one of four current teams, and the only one in the NFC, to have never played in the Super Bowl.
Seasons
- Note: The Finish, Wins, Losses, and Ties columns list regular season results and exclude any postseason play. Italicized numbers mean that the records are subject to change each week due to regular season or postseason games being played.
NFL champions (1950–1969) | Super Bowl Champions (1970–present) | Conference Champions | Division Champions | Wild Card Berth | One-Game Playoff Berth |
NFL season | Team season | League | Conference | Division | Regular Season | Post Season Results | Awards | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | |||||||
Portsmouth Spartans | ||||||||||
1930 | 1930 | NFL | 8th | 5 | 6 | 3 | The NFL did not hold playoff games until 1932 | |||
1931 | 1931 | NFL | 2nd | 11 | 3 | 0 | ||||
1932 | 1932 | NFL | 3rd[note 1] | 6 | 2 | 4 | Lost Playoff Game (at Bears) 0–9 | |||
1933 | 1933 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 6 | 5 | 0 | |||
Detroit Lions | ||||||||||
1934 | 1934 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 10 | 3 | 0 | |||
1935 | 1935 | NFL | Western | 1st | 7 | 3 | 2 | Won NFL Championship (1) (Giants) 26–7 | ||
1936 | 1936 | NFL | Western | 3rd | 8 | 4 | 0 | |||
1937 | 1937 | NFL | Western | 2nd (T) | 7 | 4 | 0 | |||
1938 | 1938 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 7 | 4 | 0 | |||
1939 | 1939 | NFL | Western | 3rd | 6 | 5 | 0 | |||
1940 | 1940 | NFL | Western | 3rd | 5 | 5 | 1 | |||
1941 | 1941 | NFL | Western | 3rd | 4 | 6 | 1 | |||
1942 | 1942 | NFL | Western | 5th | 0 | 11 | 0 | |||
1943 | 1943 | NFL | Western | 3rd | 3 | 6 | 1 | |||
1944 | 1944 | NFL | Western | 2nd (T) | 6 | 3 | 1 | Frank Sinkwich (MVP) | ||
1945 | 1945 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 7 | 3 | 0 | |||
1946 | 1946 | NFL | Western | 5th | 1 | 10 | 0 | |||
1947 | 1947 | NFL | Western | 5th | 3 | 9 | 0 | |||
1948 | 1948 | NFL | Western | 5th | 2 | 10 | 0 | |||
1949 | 1949 | NFL | Western | 4th | 4 | 8 | 0 | |||
1950 | 1950 | NFL | National | 4th | 6 | 6 | 0 | |||
1951 | 1951 | NFL | National | 2nd (T) | 7 | 4 | 1 | |||
1952 | 1952 | NFL | National | 1st (T) | 9 | 3 | 0 | Won National Conference Playoff (Rams) 31–21 Won NFL Championship (2) (at Browns) 17–7 |
||
1953 | 1953 | NFL | Western | 1st | 10 | 2 | 0 | Won NFL Championship (3) (Browns) 17–16 | ||
1954 | 1954 | NFL | Western | 1st | 9 | 2 | 1 | Lost NFL Championship (at Browns) 10–56 | ||
1955 | 1955 | NFL | Western | 6th | 3 | 9 | 0 | |||
1956 | 1956 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 9 | 3 | 0 | |||
1957 | 1957 | NFL | Western | 1st | 8 | 4 | 0 | Won Western Conference Playoff (at 49ers) 31–27 Won NFL Championship (4) (Browns) 59–14 |
George Wilson (COY) | |
1958 | 1958 | NFL | Western | 5th | 4 | 7 | 1 | |||
1959 | 1959 | NFL | Western | 5th | 3 | 8 | 1 | |||
1960 | 1960 | NFL | Western | 2nd (T) | 7 | 5 | 0 | |||
1961 | 1961 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 8 | 5 | 1 | |||
1962 | 1962 | NFL | Western | 2nd | 11 | 3 | 0 | |||
1963 | 1963 | NFL | Western | 4th (T) | 5 | 8 | 1 | |||
1964 | 1964 | NFL | Western | 4th | 7 | 5 | 2 | |||
1965 | 1965 | NFL | Western | 6th | 6 | 7 | 1 | |||
1966 | 1966 | NFL | Western | 6th (T) | 4 | 9 | 1 | |||
1967 | 1967 | NFL | Western | Central | 3rd | 5 | 7 | 2 | Mel Farr (OROY) Lem Barney (DROY) | |
1968 | 1968 | NFL | Western | Central | 4th | 4 | 8 | 2 | Earl McCullouch (OROY) | |
1969 | 1969 | NFL | Western | Central | 2nd | 9 | 4 | 1 | ||
1970 | 1970 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 10 | 4 | 0 | Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Cowboys) 0–5 | |
1971 | 1971 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 7 | 6 | 1 | ||
1972 | 1972 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 8 | 5 | 1 | ||
1973 | 1973 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 6 | 7 | 1 | ||
1974 | 1974 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 7 | 7 | 0 | ||
1975 | 1975 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 7 | 7 | 0 | ||
1976 | 1976 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 6 | 8 | 0 | Greg Landry (CBPOY) | |
1977 | 1977 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 6 | 8 | 0 | ||
1978 | 1978 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 7 | 9 | 0 | Al Baker (DROY) | |
1979 | 1979 | NFL | NFC | Central | 5th | 2 | 14 | 0 | ||
1980 | 1980 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 9 | 7 | 0 | Billy Sims (OROY) | |
1981 | 1981 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 8 | 8 | 0 | ||
1982 | 1982 | NFL | NFC | ---- | 8th[note 2] | 4 | 5 | 0 | Lost First Round (at Redskins) 7–31 | |
1983 | 1983 | NFL | NFC | Central | 1st | 9 | 7 | 0 | Lost Divisional Playoffs (at 49ers) 23–24 | |
1984 | 1984 | NFL | NFC | Central | 4th | 4 | 11 | 1 | ||
1985 | 1985 | NFL | NFC | Central | 4th | 7 | 9 | 0 | ||
1986 | 1986 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 5 | 11 | 0 | ||
1987 | 1987 | NFL | NFC | Central | 5th | 4 | 11 | 0 | ||
1988 | 1988 | NFL | NFC | Central | 4th | 4 | 12 | 0 | ||
1989 | 1989 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 7 | 9 | 0 | Barry Sanders (OROY) | |
1990 | 1990 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 6 | 10 | 0 | ||
1991 | 1991 | NFL | NFC | Central | 1st | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won Divisional Playoffs (Cowboys) 38–6 Lost NFC Championship (at Redskins) 10–41 |
Wayne Fontes (COY) |
1992 | 1992 | NFL | NFC | Central | 5th | 5 | 11 | 0 | ||
1993 | 1993 | NFL | NFC | Central | 1st | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Packers) 24–28 | |
1994 | 1994 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 9 | 7 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Packers) 12–16 | Barry Sanders (OPOY) |
1995 | 1995 | NFL | NFC | Central | 2nd | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Eagles) 37–58 | |
1996 | 1996 | NFL | NFC | Central | 5th | 5 | 11 | 0 | ||
1997 | 1997 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 9 | 7 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Buccaneers) 10–20 | Barry Sanders (MVP) |
1998 | 1998 | NFL | NFC | Central | 4th | 5 | 11 | 0 | ||
1999 | 1999 | NFL | NFC | Central | 3rd | 8 | 8 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Redskins) 13–27 | |
2000 | 2000 | NFL | NFC | Central | 4th | 9 | 7 | 0 | ||
2001 | 2001 | NFL | NFC | Central | 5th | 2 | 14 | 0 | ||
2002 | 2002 | NFL | NFC | North | 4th | 3 | 13 | 0 | ||
2003 | 2003 | NFL | NFC | North | 4th | 5 | 11 | 0 | ||
2004 | 2004 | NFL | NFC | North | 3rd | 6 | 10 | 0 | ||
2005 | 2005 | NFL | NFC | North | 3rd | 5 | 11 | 0 | ||
2006 | 2006 | NFL | NFC | North | 4th | 3 | 13 | 0 | ||
2007 | 2007 | NFL | NFC | North | 3rd | 7 | 9 | 0 | ||
2008 | 2008 | NFL | NFC | North | 4th | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
2009 | 2009 | NFL | NFC | North | 4th | 2 | 14 | 0 | ||
2010 | 2010 | NFL | NFC | North | 3rd | 6 | 10 | 0 | ||
2011 | 2011 | NFL | NFC | North | 2nd | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Saints) 28–45 | Matthew Stafford (CBPOY) |
2012 | 2012 | NFL | NFC | North | 4th | 4 | 12 | 0 | ||
2013 | 2013 | NFL | NFC | North | 3rd | 7 | 9 | 0 | ||
2014 | 2014 | NFL | NFC | North | 2nd | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Cowboys) 20–24 | |
2015 | 2015 | NFL | NFC | North | 3rd | 7 | 9 | 0 | ||
Totals 4 Division Titles 4 Conference Titles 4 NFL Titles |
535 | 634 | 32 | (1930–2015, regular season) | ||||||
7 | 12 | 0 | (1930–2015, playoffs) | |||||||
542 | 646 | 32 | (1930–2015, regular season and playoffs) |
See also
Notes
- ↑ Finished tied for 1st (by winning percentage) at 6-1-4; lost tiebreaker playoff game to the Bears, which dropped them to 3rd place (by winning percentage). The tiebreaker game was considered a regular season game, so 3rd place at 6-2-4 is the Spartan's final standing.
- ↑ Due to a strike-shortened season in 1982, all teams were ranked by conference instead of division.
References
- "Detroit Lions History". CBS Sportsline. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
- "Detroit Lions History". Football @ JT-SW.com. John M. Troan. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
- ↑ "The Portsmouth Spartans" (PDF). Pro Football Researchers. Retrieved September 28, 2013.