Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

The 1983 Lions went into Candlestick and nearly toppled the 49ers. San Fran at that point did not yet have the mystique they would come to earn. They followed up their first Super Bowl year with a 3-6 hangover season in 1982. The next year they win the Division at 10-6 (though I feel they were a bit better than their record)

Detroit ends up a 9-7 Division Champion after starting 1-4. Other than Billy Sims the team is fairly nondescript, though their defense is quite good giving up the 2nd fewest points in the league. Doug English and William Gay both have good years getting to the QB. Sims rushes for 1000+ in 13 games. QB and WR are question marks.

Still they somehow are able to hold San Fran to only 290 total yards even with Gary Danielson throwing a nightmarish 5 interceptions. They trailed 17-9 heading into the 4th and were somehow able to rally and take a 23-17 lead before San Fran took it back. Still they were a 42 yard Murray field goal away from going to RFK for the Championship Game.

Redskins were a juggernaut offensively that year though their D could be suspect at times. You could definitely move the ball on them. But they also were a D that would bend but not break and come up with the big sack or Int at the right moment.

Redskins played Detroit earlier in the season and crushed them. 38-17 and it prob could've been worse. However since that game the Lions defense had come together quite well and did a tremendous job shutting down opposition passing attack and forcing turnovers.

Maybe Detroit would've been roadkill, but I'm wondering if the Lions coming off a magical win in San Fran and playing with house money could've pulled off what the Raiders would eventually do. If maybe they would look past a 9-7 Lions team. San Fran nearly got it done in the 4th too with a furious comeback short circuited by a questionable PI call.

Just trying to think about how bizarre a Lions-Raiders Super Bowl would've been.

sheajets wrote:The 1983 Lions went into Candlestick and nearly toppled the 49ers. San Fran at that point did not yet have the mystique they would come to earn. They followed up their first Super Bowl year with a 3-6 hangover season in 1982. The next year they win the Division at 10-6 (though I feel they were a bit better than their record)

Detroit ends up a 9-7 Division Champion after starting 1-4. Other than Billy Sims the team is fairly nondescript, though their defense is quite good giving up the 2nd fewest points in the league. Doug English and William Gay both have good years getting to the QB. Sims rushes for 1000+ in 13 games. QB and WR are question marks.

Still they somehow are able to hold San Fran to only 290 total yards even with Gary Danielson throwing a nightmarish 5 interceptions. They trailed 17-9 heading into the 4th and were somehow able to rally and take a 23-17 lead before San Fran took it back. Still they were a 42 yard Murray field goal away from going to RFK for the Championship Game.

Redskins were a juggernaut offensively that year though their D could be suspect at times. You could definitely move the ball on them. But they also were a D that would bend but not break and come up with the big sack or Int at the right moment.

Redskins played Detroit earlier in the season and crushed them. 38-17 and it prob could've been worse. However since that game the Lions defense had come together quite well and did a tremendous job shutting down opposition passing attack and forcing turnovers.

Maybe Detroit would've been roadkill, but I'm wondering if the Lions coming off a magical win in San Fran and playing with house money could've pulled off what the Raiders would eventually do. If maybe they would look past a 9-7 Lions team. San Fran nearly got it done in the 4th too with a furious comeback short circuited by a questionable PI call.

Just trying to think about how bizarre a Lions-Raiders Super Bowl would've been.

The weird thing is that the Lions always played tough against those Bill Walsh Niner teams...and they won quite a few outright. The Lions against the Redskins was a different story...they lost 18 in row to Washington from 1966 to 1998.

Considering that very obvious, beyond-outrageous fact that the Lions were still ISO their very first victory in DC at the time - and wouldn't finally achieve such a feat in another THIRTY years - and also did lose there during that regular season as well, and by a 38-17 mark, I could not imagine at all Detroit doing any better than they'd do eight years later in DC for the NFCC! Washington would have dominated for three quarters as they did vs San Fran, but would have continued to do so in the 4th Q! Lions' passing game obviously wouldn't have the fire-power to keep up! In such a case, SBXVIII would have been between two teams who "only" had to face 9-7 teams to get there!

Yes, the '81 Lions had a putrid 1-7 road record as opposed to '83 doing better away from the Silverdome at 3-5, but at least they had that nice double-feather in their cap with wins over both 'Catch'-opponents-to-be. No other wins in '81 against winning teams besides KC on Thanksgiving, but they at least played against five other winners besides SF & Dallas. Two years later, they only play against four winning teams, beating (destroying) only Pittsburgh on Thanksgiving who were suddenly in free-fall mode. The Lions in '83 were 2-6 outside their division! But going 5-1 against three respectable 8-8 division foes in GB, Chi, and Minny nothing to sneeze too hard over, I guess. Still not bad.

Giving next-year's World Champs all they could handle at Candlestick was a respectable way to go out, but IMO they weren't as good as they were two years prior and I strongly feel they give nothing at all to Washington who beats them real handily which likely makes them even more a favorite over LA going into SBXVIII. It all really was a 'mirage' going into the playoffs and should have seen as such by then. The big, 12-2 vs 12-2 super-hyped Wash@Dal showdown penultimate week was seen as a "battle between the two 'best' teams", but the Raiders (who, yes, would meanwhile actually lose at home to the Cardinals) should have never really been 'hidden' in the shadows. They beat the Cowboys at Big D earlier on and - without Marcus, mind you - just barely lost at RFK!!

Also, I wonder what that does to SF the next year. They claim that the bad calls in the 1983 NFC Title Game gave them extra motivation in 84. Without that, they probably still win the next year, but who knows.