1999 Detroit Lions season

1999 Detroit Lions season
Head Coach	Bobby Ross
General Manager	Chuck Schmidt
Home Field	Pontiac Silverdome
Results
Record	8–8
Place	3rd NFC Central
Playoff Finish	Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Redskins) 27–13
Pro Bowlers	5 TE David Sloan DT Luther Elliss DE Robert Porcher LB Stephen Boyd K Jason Hanson
Uniform
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Timeline
Previous season	Next season
1998	2000

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, with a .500 record at 8–8. It would be their sixth playoff appearance of the decade, capping one of the most successful 10-year stretches in franchise history.

In 2004, Football Outsiders’ Mike Tanier named the 1999 Lions as one of the “worst playoff teams ever”:

The Lions had just lost Barry Sanders to an abrupt retirement and started the season with second-year pro Charlie Batch at quarterback before he was lost to an injury and replaced by Gus Frerotte.

The team got out to a 6–2 start, including a win over the eventual Super Bowl Champion St. Louis Rams, that made the Lions a surprise contender at the midway point in the season. After topping out at 8–4, however, the Lions collapsed and lost their final four games.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Main article: 1999 NFL Draft

1999 Detroit Lions draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	9	Chris Claiborne	Linebacker	USC
1	27	Aaron Gibson	Tackle	Wisconsin	from San Francisco via Miami
3	70	Jared DeVries	Defensive end	Iowa	from Detroit via Miami
Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff

1999 Detroit Lions staff
	Front office Chairman and President – William Clay Ford, Sr. Vice Chairman – William Clay Ford, Jr. Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer – Chuck Schmidt Vice President of Player Personnel – Ron Hughes Vice President of Football Administration – Larry Lee Vice President of Stadium Development and Salary Cap – Tom Lewand Director of Pro Scouting – Kevin Colbert Head coaches Head Coach – Bobby Ross 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

Roster

1999 Detroit Lions roster
	Quarterbacks 10 Charlie Batch 12 Gus Frerotte 16 Cory Sauter Running backs 21 Greg Hill 33 Sedrick Irvin 26 Brock Olivo FB 34 Ron Rivers 30 Cory Schlesinger FB Wide receivers 82 Germane Crowell 84 Herman Moore 87 Johnnie Morton 83 Brian Stablein 80 Iheanyi Uwaezuoke Tight ends 81 Pete Chryplewicz 89 Walter Rasby 86 David Sloan		Offensive linemen 79 Eric Beverly C 65 Kerlin Blaise G 76 Barrett Brooks T 77 Mike Compton G 64 Jeff Hartings G 75 Tony Ramirez T 72 Ray Roberts T 74 Juan Roque T 62 Tony Semple G Defensive linemen 95 Jared DeVries DE 90 Dan Owens DE 98 James Jones DT 67 Travis Kirschke DT 92 Mike Pringley DE 93 Kelvin Pritchett DT 91 Robert Porcher DT 97 Tracy Scroggins DE 60 Paul Spicer DE		Linebackers 55 Allen Aldridge OLB 57 Stephen Boyd MLB 50 Chris Claiborne OLB 53 Andre Collins 52 Scott Kowalkowski MLB 58 Clint Kriewaldt OLB 59 Kevin O'Neill Defensive backs 35 Robert Bailey CB 44 Corwin Brown FS 31 J. B. Brown CB 39 Lamar Campbell CB 27 Mark Carrier FS 23 Terry Fair CB 28 Ron Rice SS 29 Kywin Supernaw SS 25 Tyree Talton FS 32 Bryant Westbrook CB Special teams  4 Jason Hanson K 19 John Jett P		Reserve lists 71 Aaron Gibson T (IR) 40 Dwayne Harper CB (IR) 99 Richard Jordan MLB (IR) 54 Matt Russell OLB (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics 53 Active, 3 Inactive, 4 Practice squad

Regular season

Template:Cleanup rewrite 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, Ross made a questionable decision to go for a failed two-point conversion after a touchdown against Arizona. The game ended with Detroit trailing by four points in the red zone trying to score a game-winning touchdown. The Lions would lose at Green Bay the following week, but defeat Chicago at home to get back on track.

The following week, the Lions picked up the franchise's first win vs. Washington since 1965, putting the team at an 8–4 and in sole possession of the second seed in the NFC. However, the Lions collapsed down the stretch and lost their last four regular season games to finish 8–8.

Two other NFC teams—the Packers and Carolina Panthers—finished 8–8, but the Lions beat the Panthers 24–9 in Week 7 and they held the conference record tiebreaker over the Packers, thus allowing Detroit to make the playoffs as the sixth seed despite losing their final four games.

This would be the Lions' last playoff appearance until the 2011 season.

Schedule

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

Standings

Template:1999 NFC Central standings

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 3 4 Total Lions 0 0 0 13 13 Redskins 14 13 0 0 27 at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium, Washington D.C. Date: January 8, 2000 Game time: 4:05 p.m. EST/3:05 p.m. CST Game weather: 45 °F (7.2 °C), 48% humidity https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/200001080was.htm Game information First 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 Second 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 Third quarter No scoring plays Fourth 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

External links

• 1999 Detroit Lions at Pro-Football-Reference.com