In 1978 the NFL expanded to a 16-game regular season schedule. This followed a 14-game schedule which was in place since 1961.
There have been four teams in NFL history that have had winless seasons. Only two of those teams have gone winless in the expanded 16-game format. Those teams with a ‘perfect’ 0-16 season are the 2008 Detroit Lions and the 2017 Cleveland Browns.
These truly awful seasons followed the 2007 Lions (7-9) and 2016 Browns (1-15). The major difference between the 08′ Lions and 17′ Browns is that the Lions were actually trying!
The Browns effectively tanked their seasons with no less than sixteen rookies on their roster.
So who’s the worst of the worst?
Detroit baby.
Detroit went 7-9 only one season earlier which was the Lion’s best record in seven seasons. They also went a perfect 4-0 in the 2008 pre-season. The Lions entered the 2008 regular season with high hopes.
It however all went downhill and fast. In a sign of things to come the Lions were down 21-0 to the Atlanta Falcons after only the 1st quarter of play in the season opener.
In Week 5 the Lions lost 12-10 to the Minnesota Vikings. The difference ended up being quarterback Dan Orlovsky’s infamous run out of the end zone for a safety (more on that later).
At 0-7 the Lions signed former Pro Bowl quarterback Daunte Culpepper to a two year contract in a desperate bid to kick start their season. After five starts he was replaced due to injury.
In the last game of the season the Lion’s visited the Green Bay Packers. The ‘perfect season’ was sealed with a 71-yard TD pass caught by Donald Driver for the Packers. After their 31-21 point loss to the Packers it brought their total points allowed to 517 for the season. This is the second most points allowed in a single season in NFL history.
The Lions had a total of five different quarterbacks take snaps during the season. None of them ended up with a positive TD/INT ratio nor a passer rating of more than 73.0.
The Lions finished 30th in the league for offence and 32nd in the league for defence.
The Lions were rewarded with the 1st pick of the 2009 NFL Draft after their ‘perfect’ season. In desperate need of a quarterback the Lions drafted Matthew Stafford out of the University of Georgia.
After leading Detroit to a 2-14 record in his rookie season, Stafford now holds almost every passing record in Lion’s franchise history along with many NFL records.
If there was one shining light from the 2008 season itself, it was the performance of wide receiver Calvin ‘Megatron’ Johnson.
In Megatron’s breakout 08′ year he finished the season 5th in receiving yards (1331), 7th in receiving yards per game (83.2) and led the league in touchdowns (12). The entire Lion’s team itself only passed for 18 touchdowns for the entire season.
The 2009 season was the start of one of the most lethal partnerships in NFL history. Between Stafford and Johnson the two have smashed many franchise records as well as NFL records in the process.
Before retirement in 2016 Johnson became the fastest man ever to 11,000 receiving yards. He also has the record for the most receiving yards in a single season which he broke in 2012 (1,964).
In Lion’s franchise history Johnson has the most ever career receiving touchdowns (83), most career receiving yards (11,619) and most touchdowns in a single season (16).
At the end of the 2018 season Stafford has a TD–INT record of 237–129, 62.4% pass completion percentage and a QB Rating of 88.4. He has also made the Pro Bowl in 2014 following their breakthrough 11-5 where they lost in the NFC Wild Card Game against the Cowboys 20–24.
So effective and prolific was the Stafford/Johnson partnership, Johnson has the most receiving yards in a single game in regulation time (329) with Stafford at quarterback. A record that is 2nd overall most in NFL history and only 7 yards shy of the outright record (336).
Lion’s Head Coach Rod Marinelli topped off the season when he said to a reporter “I’m not 0-10! You’re 0-10” after their 10th loss of the season.
The 0-16 2008 Detroit Lions can however be defined in one single play .. Dan Orlovsky’s safety against the Vikings.
In an attempt to burn any memories of the 2008 season the Lions immediately re-branded. Consistent with the Lions ’mission and direction’ the logo was updated with the lion updated to appear more fiercer.
Following on from 2008, 12 of the 45 players who had started at least one game for the Lions never played again in the NFL.
In the following seasons with Stafford at the helm their best finishes have been playoff loses in the Wildcard rounds in 2011, 2014 and 2016. The season records for these seasons were 10-6, 11-5 and 9-7 respectively.
Ten years after the now infamous ‘perfect season’, the Lions started the 2018 season with new head coach Matt Patricia. The lions finished with a record of 6-10 in an inconsistent season. They will however be rewarded with the 8th pick of the 2019 NFL Draft.
The Lions will be looking to reinforce their biggest priorities next season by bringing in a strong defensive end and a cornerback. They’re also in need of a wide receiver and perhaps, the next Calvin Johnson awaits them in the draft to complement Stafford as he begins to hit the prime of his career.
Matthew Stafford has at least restored respectability to the worst team in NFL history. So long as Stafford knows where the end-zone finishes, they’re in safe hands.