1964: Walker Kicks 4 Field Goals as Lions Defeat 49ers

Two NFL teams coming off of disappointing seasons met in San Francisco on September 13, 1964 to open another year amid expectations for improvement. The Detroit Lions, a perennially tough defensive team, suffered through an injury-plagued ’63 campaign in which they went 5-8-1, their first losing record after three consecutive second place finishes in the NFL Western Conference. Coached by George Wilson, they were anticipating the return of DE Darris McCord and DB Gary Lowe, who all underwent offseason surgery, plus DT Alex Karras, who was reinstated by the league following a gambling suspension. QB Milt Plum had regained the starting job in the preseason that he lost to Earl Morrall the previous year and there were outstanding receivers in flanker Terry Barr and split end Gail Cogdill.  

The 49ers were a dismal 2-12 in 1963, putting them in last place for the first time in franchise history. Red Hickey was replaced by Jack Christiansen as head coach during the season, and Christiansen was starting off his first full year at the helm. He had QB John Brodie back and recovered from a broken arm that had sidelined him for most of ‘63. The offense had suffered to the point that CB Abe Woodson, the NFL’s top kickoff returner, was looked upon as the most effective ground-gaining weapon. Injuries had also hampered the defense, and improvement was anticipated on that side of the ball as well.  

It was a cool, overcast day at Kezar Stadium with 33,204 in attendance. The 49ers went three-and-out on the game’s opening series and punted. Detroit put together a 10-play, 58-yard possession, with the biggest gain on a pass from Milt Plum to Gail Cogdill for 34 yards to the San Francisco 34 in a third-and-14 situation. Plum connected with Cogdill twice more for 16 yards and the series finally ended with Wayne Walker (pictured above) kicking a 23-yard field goal.

The home team responded by going 80 yards in six plays. On second-and-19 from their own 37, the 49ers made a big play when John Brodie threw to flanker Bernie Casey, who made an outstanding catch at the Detroit 30 and went the distance for a 63-yard touchdown. Tommy Davis added his NFL-record 157^th consecutive extra point and the Niners were ahead by 7-3.

The teams traded punts to finish out the first quarter. Starting off the second quarter, Plum threw to Terry Barr for a gain of 47 yards to the San Francisco 11, but after a short run by HB Tom Watkins, two passes fell incomplete and Walker came in to kick another field goal, this time from 16 yards.

A short series by the 49ers was followed by another scoring drive by the Lions, this time covering 47 yards in eight plays. Plum had a nine-yard pass to Cogdill and FB Nick Pietrosante and HB Dan Lewis ran effectively, with Pietrosante diving into the end zone from three yards out for a TD. Walker added the PAT and the visitors were ahead by 13-7.

Detroit had good starting field position at the San Francisco 43 following a punt but Plum threw an interception. However, after another punt by the Niners that had the Lions starting at their 15, the visitors drove to another score. Plum had another big completion to Cogdill (pictured below) on a third down play, this time for 43 yards to the San Francisco 38, and three carries by Lewis gave the Lions another first down. The drive stalled at the 23 and Walker booted his third field goal of the game, this time from 31 yards with less than a minute remaining in the half. The 49ers made a bid for points in the final seconds as Brodie threw to TE Monte Stickles for 19 yards and then to Casey for 24, but Davis missed a 39-yard field goal attempt. The Lions carried a 16-7 lead into halftime.

Detroit started off the third quarter with a 74-yard, 11-play series. Watkins ran for 15 yards on a reverse, Plum connected with Barr for 39 yards, and Pietrosante capped the drive by plunging for the last yard and a TD. Walker again added the extra point to make the score 23-7.

Now behind by 16 points, the 49ers got a boost when DB Kermit Alexander returned the ensuing kickoff 44 yards to give them good starting field position at the Detroit 40. The Niners picked up just six yards, but Davis kicked a 41-yard field goal to narrow the margin to 23-10.

The Lions had to punt on their next series and Yale Lary’s short kick had the 49ers taking over at the Detroit 38. FB J.D. Smith ran for 16 yards and, three plays later, Brodie threw to Stickles for 10 yards in a third-and-eight situation. Casey caught a Brodie pass for a seven-yard touchdown and, with Davis converting, it was suddenly just a six-point game.

The Lions again had to kick the ball away following a short possession and the 49ers were driving as the game moved into the fourth quarter. However, they came up empty when Davis missed a 38-yard field goal try.

Plum threw to Barr for 23 yards but, following a run by Lewis that lost yardage and a 15-yard penalty that moved the visitors back, Detroit again had to punt, although a clip nullified a good return by Alexander. Mired deep in their own territory, the 49ers turned the ball over when Brodie fumbled and DE Darris McCord recovered at the five yard line. A penalty moved the Lions back and they again had to settle for a field goal, but Walker was successful once more, hitting from 26 yards out. Detroit was up by nine points.

That was it for the scoring. Alexander had a 38-yard kickoff return, but the 49ers went three-and-out and had to punt and the Lions managed to control the ball until the closing seconds. They came away the winners by a score of 26-17.

Detroit led in total yards (372 to 219) and first downs (17 to 13). The Lions also recorded two sacks, to none by San Francisco, although they also were penalized 10 times, at a cost of 80 yards, to four flags thrown on the 49ers. Each team turned the ball over once.

Milt Plum completed 15 of 34 passes for 234 yards and no touchdowns while giving up one interception. Two Lions had over a hundred receiving yards, with Gail Cogdill catching 6 passes for 116 yards and Terry Barr adding 108 yards on his three receptions. Dan Lewis ran for 83 yards on 17 carries and while Nick Pietrosante picked up just 36 yards on 12 attempts, two were good for short TDs. Wayne Walker was the scoring star with 14 points on his four field goals in as many attempts (which set a club record) and two extra points.

For the 49ers, John Brodie was successful on 15 of his 33 throws for 177 yards and two TDs with no interceptions. Bernie Casey (pictured at right) had 6 catches for 119 yards and two scores. J.D. Smith ran for 42 yards on 11 carries. Kermit Alexander had 107 yards on kick returns (82 on two kickoffs and 25 on two punts), overshadowing Abe Woodson, at least for one week.

Detroit got off to a 4-1-1 start before injuries set in and the team finished up at 7-5-2 and in at fourth place in the Western Conference. It was improvement, but not enough to save Coach Wilson’s job. The 49ers won the next week at Philadelphia but went on to another losing year and a final record of 4-10, which resulted in a second straight last place finish in the conference. While the passing game was better, injuries decimated the ground attack.

Wayne Walker, an outstanding linebacker as well as placekicker, ended up booting a career-high 14 field goals out of 25 attempts and, adding 32 extra points, achieved another career best with 74 points. Terry Barr and Gail Cogdill remained productive, with Barr catching 57 passes for 1070 yards (18.1 avg.) and nine touchdowns and gaining selection to the Pro Bowl for the second consecutive year, and Cogdill accumulating 45 receptions for 665 yards (14.8 avg.) and two TDs before a shoulder injury sidelined him late in the year.

Bernie Casey continued to be a key performer for the 49ers, catching 58 passes for 808 yards (13.9 avg.) and four touchdowns. Kermit Alexander had a fine year returning kicks, averaging 24.2 yards on 20 kickoff returns (Abe Woodson had a 27.5 average on 32 returns) and 9.0 yards on 21 punt returns that included a TD. 

Rookie of the Year: Nick Pietrosante, 1959

Fullback, Detroit Lions

Age:  22 (Sept. 10)

College: Notre Dame

Height: 6’2”   Weight: 225

Prelude:

An All-American in college, Pietrosante was taken in the first round of the 1959 NFL draft by the Lions, who were looking to improve their inside running game. While there were questions regarding his speed, he more than met expectations in his rookie year.

1959 Season Summary

Appeared in 10 of 12 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Rushing

Attempts – 76
Most attempts, game - 17 (for 134 yds.) vs. Green Bay 11/26

Yards – 447 [16]
Most yards, game - 134 yds. (on17 att.) vs. Green Bay 11/26 

Average gain – 5.9 [2]

TDs – 3 [14, tied]
100-yard rushing games - 1

Pass Receiving

Receptions – 16      

Yards – 140

Average gain – 8.8

TDs – 0

Kickoff Returns

Returns – 5

Yards – 98

Average per return – 19.6

TDs – 0

Longest return – 24 yards

Scoring

TDs – 3

Points – 18

Awards & Honors:

NFL Rookie of the Year: Sporting News

Lions went 3-8-1 to finish fifth in the NFL Western Conference.

Aftermath:

Pietrosante rushed for a career-high 872 yards in 1960 and followed up with 841 yards in ’61. He was selected to the Pro Bowl following both seasons. While his numbers dropped off thereafter due to nagging injuries, he played seven years with the Lions and ran the ball 938 times for 3933 yards (4.2 avg.), making him the franchise’s all-time rushing leader at the time, and 28 touchdowns. He also caught 134 passes for 1323 yards. Pietrosante finished up his career as a backup for two years in Cleveland and ended up in 1967 with 4026 rushing yards.

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were named Rookie of the Year in the NFL, AFL (1960-69), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press – Offense or Defense, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, or the league itself – Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year). 

[Updated 2/22/17]

1960: Lions Stun Colts with 65-Yard TD on Last Play

The Baltimore Colts had won back-to-back NFL Championships in 1958 and ’59 and seemed well on their way to a third as they broke out to a 6-2 start in 1960. Head Coach Weeb Ewbank’s team still had the solid core on offense of QB Johnny Unitas, HB Lenny Moore, and end Raymond Berry and a fine defense anchored by the line that included DE Gino Marchetti and tackles Art Donovan and Gene “Big Daddy” Lipscomb. If there were major concerns, they pertained to injuries in general and, more particularly, the running game as FB Alan Ameche was showing signs of wear. They had lost to the 49ers to fall to 6-3 and on December 4 hosted the Detroit Lions, who had beaten them earlier in the year.

The Lions, coached by George Wilson, got off to a slow start at 1-4 but had then won three of their last four contests prior to the rematch with Baltimore. Traditionally a tough defensive club, the Lions were benefiting from the additions of veteran DHB Dick “Night Train” Lane and rookie DT Roger Brown. The offense also had a talented rookie in split end Gail Cogdill to add to an attack that featured the running of FB Nick Pietrosante and HB Dan Lewis.

There were 57,808 fans at Memorial Stadium for the important Western Conference matchup. The defenses dominated the first three quarters of play. In the first quarter, the Colts got on the board when rookie DE Lebron Shields blocked a punt by Yale Lary that rolled back through the end zone for a safety.

The Lions responded with a 20-yard Jim Martin field goal to go ahead by 3-2. In the second quarter, Unitas threw to Lenny Moore (pictured below) for a 60-yard touchdown, but Steve Myhra’s extra point attempt went wide and the score remained 8-3 in favor of Baltimore.

It stayed that way through the scoreless third quarter. Detroit QB Jim Ninowski had been ineffective, completing just 8 of 22 passes for 82 yards, two of which were intercepted. Unitas was having his share of difficulties as well thanks to the aggressive Lion defense. In addition to three interceptions, he had five passes deflected and lost a fumble. The pickoffs and fumble were costly, all coming in Detroit territory.

Detroit’s backup QB Earl Morrall (pictured at top) replaced Ninowski in the fourth quarter. Morrall threw a touchdown pass to HB Howard “Hopalong” Cassady that covered 40 yards and put the Lions in front by 10-8. Jim Martin added a 47-yard field goal that increased Detroit’s margin to 13-8 with 1:15 left on the clock.

Unitas and the Colts came back, however, and scored with 14 seconds to play as Moore made a sensational diving catch for a 31-yard touchdown. It seemed as though Baltimore had pulled out a tough 15-13 win. Fans stormed the field following the TD and again after DB Bruce Maher returned the kickoff 34 yards and nearly broke free. Some of the players also got into altercations on the field, causing further delay in the resumption of play.

With just seconds remaining and no timeouts, Morrall threw a short pass to end Jim Gibbons who went all the way to the end zone, a distance of 65 yards. Expecting a sideline pass, the Colt defensive backs had all dropped back accordingly and Gibbons, not the fastest of Detroit’s receivers, had clear sailing down the middle of the field. In stunning fashion, the Lions were winners by a score of 20-15.

Baltimore had the edge in total yards (387 to 302) and first downs (19 to 18). However, the Colts also turned the ball over five times, to three by the Lions, and were only able to gain 54 yards on the ground, as opposed to Detroit’s 133.

In relief of Jim Ninowski, Earl Morrall completed 5 of 6 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns with none intercepted. Nick Pietrosante rushed for 69 yards on 12 carries. Three Detroit receivers caught three passes apiece, with the long score for the winning TD giving Jim Gibbons (pictured below) a team-leading 83 yards on his three receptions while Howard Cassady gained 69, including a touchdown, and Gail Cogdill had 24 yards.

For the Colts, Johnny Unitas was successful on 22 of 40 throws for 357 yards and two touchdowns, but also gave up three interceptions. It marked the 47^th straight game in which Unitas threw a TD pass, a record streak that would be snapped the following week and remain the NFL’s longest until 2012. Raymond Berry caught 10 of those passes for 117 yards while Lenny Moore, who led the team in rushing with just 18 yards in 8 attempts, gained 139 yards and scored twice with his four pass receptions. Alan Ameche rushed for 15 yards in three attempts before suffering a career-ending Achilles tendon injury, further weakening the running game for the last two contests.

“I told Gibbons if he went down the middle, he’d probably be open,” explained Earl Morrall regarding the game-winning play. “We had no timeouts left. The Colts knew it, so I knew the middle would be open.”

“It looked like the ball was thrown near (Bob) Boyd and (Andy) Nelson, but what I can’t understand is why the other backs didn’t start converging when the ball was still in the air,” said a frustrated Weeb Ewbank, who initially had been glad that Morrall had thrown short down the middle.

It was the first time a team had swept the season series against the Colts since 1956 and the first time they lost two straight at home since ’57. The loss dropped the Colts into a tie for first in the Western Conference with Green Bay and San Francisco. The Bears were right behind at 5-4-1 and Detroit, having evened its record at 5-5, also now found itself in the race.

It continued to get worse for the Colts, who lost their remaining contests to finish up in fourth place at 6-6. The Packers topped the conference with an 8-4 record and the Lions, winners of their last four games, tied the 49ers for second with a 7-5 tally. They went on to win the first installment of the Playoff Bowl, a postseason exhibition game between the second place teams in each conference.

Earl Morrall, in his fifth of what would be an eventual 21 NFL seasons, completed 32 of 49 passes for 423 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions. He would continue to vie with Ninowski and, later, Milt Plum for the starting job with the Lions for another four years.

The third-year pro Jim Gibbons caught a career-high 51 passes for 604 yards (11.8 avg.) with one other TD in 1960. He was named to the Pro Bowl for the first of three times in his eleven-season career, all spent with Detroit.

1961: Lions Defeat Browns in 1st Playoff Bowl

The Playoff Bowl is a nearly forgotten remnant of the 1960s. Officially named the Bert Bell Benefit Bowl, it was also occasionally referred to as the Runner-up Bowl or Pro Playoff Classic. Created in honor of Bert Bell, NFL Commissioner from 1946 until his death in 1959, the game matched the second place teams in the NFL’s Eastern and Western Conferences (when the conferences were broken up into two divisions apiece in 1967, the losers of each conference championship game became the participants).

The game had no real meaning – while it was initially promoted as the playoff game to determine third place in the league, it wasn’t possible for the winner to advance and was, in fact, played after the champion had been determined. In effect, it was a postseason exhibition game designed to give football fans across the country one more chance to watch the NFL on television (along with the Pro Bowl) before heading into the offseason. The “Benefit” part pertained to the league contributing its share of the proceeds to pay into group medical, life insurance, and retirement funds for the players.

There were ten games in the series, following the 1960 through ’69 seasons. Once the merger with the AFL went fully into effect in 1970, the game ceased to exist (although there had been some thought to finding a way to continue it). The NFL doesn’t count the games among team’s playoff appearances or the league’s postseason statistics, adding to the sense of irrelevance. All of the games were played at the Orange Bowl in Miami.


The first Playoff Bowl, following the 1960 season, occurred on January 7, 1961. Participating were the Cleveland Browns, second in the Eastern Conference with an 8-3-1 record, and the Western Conference’s Detroit Lions, who ended the season at 7-5. The Browns, under Head Coach Paul Brown, had the NFL’s rushing leader, FB Jim Brown, who gained 1257 yards during the season, and the league’s top-rated passer as well in QB Milt Plum (pictured above left). Detroit, coached by George Wilson, was best known for an outstanding defense that included LB Joe Schmidt, CB Dick “Night Train” Lane, safety Yale Lary, and defensive tackles Alex Karras and rookie Roger Brown.

A lower-than-anticipated crowd of 34,981 was at the Orange Bowl for the game, which was televised nationally. The defenses dominated the scoreless first quarter, with the Lions blitzing Plum effectively. Cleveland finally broke through in the second quarter with an 81-yard scoring drive fueled by Jim Brown’s 56 rushing yards. TE Rich Kreitling caught a 9-yard TD pass from Plum, although he paid a price when he was knocked unconscious by Detroit CB Bruce Maher.

The Browns drove down to the Lions nine yard line just before the half, but DE Bill Glass deflected a pass by Plum that Karras intercepted to end the threat. Detroit took the second half kickoff and drove 76 yards, with FB Nick Pietrosante (pictured at top) making several key runs including a five-yard touchdown that tied the score at 7-7.

Shortly thereafter, safety Gary Lowe intercepted his second pass of the game and ran it back 44 yards to the Cleveland 12 yard line. Jim Martin ended up kicking a 12-yard field goal that put the Lions ahead, 10-7. Cleveland came back to tie the game once more on the first play of the fourth quarter as Sam Baker booted a 27-yard field goal.

Detroit put together a 57-yard drive that led to what was ultimately the winning touchdown, a one-yard run by HB Ken Webb. With time running out, the Browns provided the most sensational play of the game as Plum threw a short pass to HB Bobby Mitchell that the speedy halfback turned into an 89-yard touchdown. However, a bobbled snap on the extra point attempt allowed “Night Train” Lane to block Baker’s kick and preserve the 17-16 win.


Notable performances included two long punt returns by Detroit CB Jim Steffen, with one of 48 yards in which he attempted to lateral to Jim Martin at the end and missed; Martin managed to recover the ball. Milt Plum threw five interceptions (matching his total for the entire regular season), with Lowe (pictured at right) picking off three of them. Pietrosante, who had been voted team MVP by his teammates following a year in which he ran for 872 yards, was the game’s leading rusher with 89 yards on 17 carries.

The Lions went on to finish second in the next two seasons as well and won the first three Playoff Bowls; by the third one, following the 1962 campaign, Plum was their quarterback (Earl Morrall started this game at QB). The Browns also appeared in the game on three occasions (in addition to 1960, also following the 1963 and ’67 seasons) but had less success than Detroit, losing each time.