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1997 Detroit Lions
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Record: 9-7-0, Finished 3rd in NFC Central Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 379 points (23.7/g), 4th of 30 in the NFL.
Allowed 306 points (19.1/g), 10th.
Differential of 73 points (4.6/g), 7th.
Expected W-L: 10.0-6.0.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -3 (-0.2/g), 19th.
Coached by Bobby Ross (9-7-0)
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1997 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
Starters
Glossary · ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+), · CSV · PRE · Hide Non-primary Starters| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Scott Mitchell | 29 | 6 | 16 | 293 for 509, 3,484 yards, 19 td, 14 int, & 37 rushes for 83 yards and 1 td | Miami Dolphins / 4th / 93rd pick / 1990 |
| RB | Barry Sanders*+ | 29 | 8 | 16 | 335 rushes for 2,053 yards, 11 td, & 33 catches for 305 yards and 3 td | Detroit Lions / 1st / 3rd pick / 1989 |
| FB | Tommy Vardell | 28 | 5 | 10 | 32 rushes for 122 yards, 6 td, & 16 catches for 218 yards and 0 td | Cleveland Browns / 1st / 9th pick / 1992 |
| WR | Herman Moore*+ | 28 | 6 | 16 | 104 catches for 1,293 yards, 8 td | Detroit Lions / 1st / 10th pick / 1991 |
| WR | Johnnie Morton | 26 | 3 | 16 | 80 catches for 1,057 yards, 6 td, & 3 rushes for 33 yards and 0 td | Detroit Lions / 1st / 21st pick / 1994 |
| TE | David Sloan | 25 | 2 | 12 | 29 catches for 264 yards, 0 td | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 70th pick / 1995 |
| TE | Pete Metzelaars | 37 | 15 | 6 | 17 catches for 144 yards, 0 td | Seattle Seahawks / 3rd / 75th pick / 1982 |
| LT | Ray Roberts | 28 | 5 | 14 | 2 fumbles recovered | Seattle Seahawks / 1st / 10th pick / 1992 |
| LG | Mike Compton | 27 | 4 | 16 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 68th pick / 1993 |
|
| C | Kevin Glover* | 34 | 12 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 34th pick / 1985 |
| RG | Jeff Hartings | 25 | 1 | 16 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 23rd pick / 1996 |
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| RT | Larry Tharpe | 27 | 5 | 15 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 145th pick / 1992 |
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| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Robert Porcher* | 28 | 5 | 16 | 12.5 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 1st / 26th pick / 1992 |
| LDT | Mike Wells | 26 | 3 | 16 | 1.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Minnesota Vikings / 4th / 125th pick / 1994 |
| RDT | Luther Elliss | 24 | 2 | 16 | 8.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 1st / 20th pick / 1995 |
| RDE | Kerwin Waldroup | 23 | 1 | 11 | 1.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 5th / 158th pick / 1996 |
| RDE | Tracy Scroggins | 28 | 5 | 6 | 7.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 53rd pick / 1992 |
| LLB | George Jamison | 35 | 10 | 10 | 1.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 47th pick / 1984 Supp |
| LLB | Antonio London | 26 | 4 | 6 | 2.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1993 |
| MLB | Stephen Boyd | 25 | 2 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovered | Detroit Lions / 5th / 141st pick / 1995 |
| RLB | Reggie D. Brown | 23 | 1 | 16 | 2.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 1st / 17th pick / 1996 |
| LCB | Bryant Westbrook | 23 | Rook | 14 | 0.0 sacks, 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Detroit Lions / 1st / 5th pick / 1997 |
| RCB | Corey Raymond | 28 | 5 | 12 | 0.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | |
| SS | Ron Rice | 25 | 1 | 8 | 1.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | |
| FS | Mark A. Carrier | 29 | 7 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 5 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Chicago Bears / 1st / 6th pick / 1990 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Jason Hanson* | 27 | 5 | 0 | 26 of 29 field goals & 39 of 40 extra points | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 56th pick / 1992 |
| P | John Jett | 29 | 4 | 0 | 84 punts for a 42.6 average, 2 blocked | |
| PR | Glyn Milburn | 26 | 4 | 1 | 47 punt returns for a 9.2 average and 0 td | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1993 |
| KR | Glyn Milburn | 26 | 4 | 1 | 55 kick returns for a 23.9 average and 0 td | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1993 |
| Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Abrams | 23 | DB | 15 | 4 | 175 | 5-8 | Syracuse | 2/28/1974 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 54th pick / 1997 |
| Robert Bailey | 29 | DB | 15 | 0 | 176 | 5-9 | Miami (FL) | 9/3/1968 | 6 | Los Angeles Rams / 4th / 107th pick / 1991 |
| Matt Blundin | 28 | QB | 1 | 0 | 233 | 6-3 | Virginia | 3/7/1969 | 4 | Kansas City Chiefs / 2nd / 40th pick / 1992 |
| Shane Bonham | 27 | DT | 16 | 0 | 272 | 6-2 | Air Force,Tennessee | 10/18/1970 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 93rd pick / 1994 |
| Stephen Boyd | 25 | LB | 16 | 16 | 247 | 6-0 | Boston College | 8/22/1972 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 141st pick / 1995 |
| Tommie Boyd | 26 | WR | 16 | 1 | 195 | 6-0 | Toledo | 12/21/1971 | Rook | |
| Reggie D. Brown | 23 | LB | 16 | 16 | 241 | 6-2 | Texas A&M | 9/28/1974 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 17th pick / 1996 |
| Mark A. Carrier | 29 | DB | 16 | 16 | 192 | 6-1 | USC | 4/28/1968 | 7 | Chicago Bears / 1st / 6th pick / 1990 |
| Pete Chryplewicz | 23 | TE | 10 | 0 | 253 | 6-5 | Notre Dame | 4/27/1974 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 5th / 135th pick / 1997 |
| Harry Colon | 28 | DB | 8 | 4 | 203 | 6-0 | Missouri | 2/14/1969 | 6 | New England Patriots / 8th / 196th pick / 1991 |
| Mike Compton | 27 | G-C | 16 | 16 | 310 | 6-6 | West Virginia | 9/18/1970 | 4 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 68th pick / 1993 |
| Luther Elliss | 24 | DT-DE | 16 | 16 | 318 | 6-5 | Utah | 3/22/1973 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 20th pick / 1995 |
| Kevin Glover* | 34 | C-G | 16 | 16 | 278 | 6-2 | Maryland | 6/17/1963 | 12 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 34th pick / 1985 |
| Ben Hanks | 26 | LB | 2 | 0 | 223 | 6-2 | Florida | 7/31/1971 | 1 | |
| Jason Hanson* | 27 | K | 16 | 0 | 182 | 5-11 | Washington State | 6/17/1970 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 56th pick / 1992 |
| Jeff Hartings | 25 | C-G | 16 | 16 | 301 | 6-3 | Penn State | 9/7/1972 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 23rd pick / 1996 |
| Hessley Hempstead | 25 | G | 16 | 1 | 295 | 6-1 | Kansas | 1/29/1972 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 7th / 228th pick / 1995 |
| Kevin Hickman | 26 | TE | 4 | 0 | 258 | 6-4 | Navy | 8/20/1971 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 186th pick / 1995 |
| George Jamison | 35 | LB | 16 | 10 | 232 | 6-1 | Cincinnati | 9/30/1962 | 10 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 47th pick / 1984 Supp |
| Greg Jeffries | 26 | DB | 15 | 2 | 195 | 5-9 | Virginia | 10/16/1971 | 4 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 147th pick / 1993 |
| John Jett | 29 | P | 16 | 0 | 197 | 6-0 | East Carolina | 11/11/1968 | 4 | |
| Richard Jordan | 23 | LB | 10 | 0 | 252 | 6-1 | Missouri Southern | 12/1/1974 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 7th / 239th pick / 1997 |
| Travis Kirschke | 23 | DT-DE | 3 | 0 | 298 | 6-3 | UCLA | 9/6/1974 | Rook | |
| Scott Kowalkowski | 29 | LB | 16 | 0 | 220 | 6-2 | Notre Dame | 8/23/1968 | 6 | Philadelphia Eagles / 8th / 216th pick / 1991 |
| Antonio London | 26 | LB | 16 | 6 | 238 | 6-2 | Alabama | 4/14/1971 | 4 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1993 |
| Van Malone | 27 | DB | 8 | 4 | 189 | 5-11 | Texas | 7/1/1970 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 57th pick / 1994 |
| Kez McCorvey | 25 | WR | 7 | 0 | 184 | 6-0 | Florida State | 1/23/1972 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 156th pick / 1995 |
| Pete Metzelaars | 37 | TE | 16 | 6 | 254 | 6-7 | Wabash | 5/24/1960 | 15 | Seattle Seahawks / 3rd / 75th pick / 1982 |
| Glyn Milburn | 26 | RB-WR | 16 | 1 | 177 | 5-8 | Oklahoma,Stanford | 2/19/1971 | 4 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1993 |
| Scott Mitchell | 29 | QB | 16 | 16 | 240 | 6-6 | Utah | 1/2/1968 | 6 | Miami Dolphins / 4th / 93rd pick / 1990 |
| Herman Moore*+ | 28 | WR | 16 | 16 | 210 | 6-4 | Virginia | 10/20/1969 | 6 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 10th pick / 1991 |
| Johnnie Morton | 26 | WR | 16 | 16 | 190 | 6-0 | USC | 10/7/1971 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 21st pick / 1994 |
| Robert Porcher* | 28 | DE-DT | 16 | 16 | 266 | 6-3 | South Carolina State | 7/30/1969 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 26th pick / 1992 |
| Daryl Porter | 23 | DB | 7 | 0 | 188 | 5-9 | Boston College | 1/16/1974 | Rook | Pittsburgh Steelers / 6th / 186th pick / 1997 |
| Tony Ramirez | 24 | T | 2 | 0 | 296 | 6-6 | Northern Colorado | 1/26/1973 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 6th / 168th pick / 1997 |
| Corey Raymond | 28 | DB | 13 | 12 | 185 | 5-11 | LSU | 7/28/1969 | 5 | |
| Frank Reich | 36 | QB | 6 | 0 | 210 | 6-4 | Maryland | 12/4/1961 | 12 | Buffalo Bills / 3rd / 57th pick / 1985 |
| Ron Rice | 25 | DB | 12 | 8 | 216 | 6-1 | Eastern Michigan | 11/9/1972 | 1 | |
| Ron Rivers | 26 | RB | 16 | 0 | 205 | 5-8 | Fresno State | 11/13/1971 | 2 | |
| Ray Roberts | 28 | T | 14 | 14 | 315 | 6-6 | Virginia | 6/3/1969 | 5 | Seattle Seahawks / 1st / 10th pick / 1992 |
| Juan Roque | 23 | T | 13 | 1 | 333 | 6-8 | Arizona State | 1/6/1974 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 35th pick / 1997 |
| Matt Russell | 24 | LB | 14 | 0 | 245 | 6-2 | Colorado | 7/5/1973 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 4th / 130th pick / 1997 |
| Barry Sanders*+ | 29 | RB | 16 | 16 | 203 | 5-8 | Oklahoma State | 7/16/1968 | 8 | Detroit Lions / 1st / 3rd pick / 1989 |
| Cory Schlesinger | 25 | FB | 16 | 2 | 247 | 6-0 | Nebraska | 6/23/1972 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 192nd pick / 1995 |
| Tracy Scroggins | 28 | DE-LB | 15 | 6 | 273 | 6-3 | Tulsa | 9/11/1969 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 2nd / 53rd pick / 1992 |
| Tony Semple | 27 | G | 16 | 1 | 286 | 6-5 | Memphis | 12/20/1970 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 154th pick / 1994 |
| David Sloan | 25 | TE | 14 | 12 | 260 | 6-6 | New Mexico | 6/8/1972 | 2 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 70th pick / 1995 |
| Marc Spindler | 28 | DE-NT-DT | 10 | 0 | 290 | 6-5 | Pittsburgh | 11/28/1969 | 7 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1990 |
| Ryan Stewart | 24 | DB | 8 | 0 | 207 | 6-1 | Georgia Tech | 9/30/1973 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 3rd / 76th pick / 1996 |
| Eric Stocz | 23 | TE | 6 | 0 | 258 | 6-4 | Westminster (PA) | 5/25/1974 | 1 | |
| Larry Tharpe | 27 | T | 16 | 15 | 300 | 6-4 | Tennessee State | 11/19/1970 | 5 | Detroit Lions / 6th / 145th pick / 1992 |
| Tommy Vardell | 28 | RB | 16 | 10 | 234 | 6-2 | Stanford | 2/20/1969 | 5 | Cleveland Browns / 1st / 9th pick / 1992 |
| Kerwin Waldroup | 23 | DE | 11 | 11 | 260 | 6-3 | Central State (OH),Michigan | 8/1/1974 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 158th pick / 1996 |
| Mike Wells | 26 | DT | 16 | 16 | 310 | 6-3 | Iowa | 1/16/1971 | 3 | Minnesota Vikings / 4th / 125th pick / 1994 |
| Bryant Westbrook | 23 | DB | 15 | 14 | 199 | 6-0 | Texas | 12/19/1974 | Rook | Detroit Lions / 1st / 5th pick / 1997 |
| Team Total | 26.6 | 16 | 241.6 | 6-1.9 | 3.5 |