The 2002 season was the Detroit Lions' 73rd in the National Football League (NFL). It was the Lions’ inaugural season at the new Ford Field in Downtown Detroit and their first in the city since the team left Tiger Stadium after the 1974 season. Following the season, Marty Mornhinweg was fired and Steve Mariucci was hired as the Lions' head coach. The Lions entered the 2002 season looking to improve on their 2–14 record from 2001 and make the playoffs for the first time since 1999.
They improved on their record, winning 3 games. However, the new stadium didn't help the team overall, and they continued to disappoint, beginning the season with three consecutive losses. By week 9, the Lions had a 3–5 record after a win over the Dallas Cowboys. However, after that win, the Lions lost their remaining 8 games to finish the season 3–13 and failed to reach the playoffs. The Lions also went 0–8 on the road for the second straight season. As a result, Marty Mornhinweg was fired after the season. In his 2 seasons as head coach, the Lions went 5–27 for a winning percentage of .156.
Offseason Additions Subtractions G Ray Brown (49ers) QB Charlie Batch (Steelers) FS Corey Harris (Ravens) LB Scott Kowalkowski (retirement) WR Bill Schroeder (Packers) WR Johnnie Morton (Chiefs) TE Mikhael Ricks (Chiefs) DE Tracy Scroggins (retirement) LB Jeff Gooch (Buccaneers) TE David Sloan (Saints) WR Az-Zahir Hakim (Rams) CB Terry Fair (Panthers)
NFL draft
Undrafted free agents + 2002 undrafted free agents of note Player Position College Pierre Brown Wide receiver Wayne State Robert Chapman Linebacker Southern Crance Clemons Cornerback UTEP Mike Collins Defensive tackle Ohio State Eddie Drummond Wide receiver Penn State Aaron Edmonds Punter BYU Chris Glantzis Defensive end Bowling Green Abdual Howard Safety Florida State Marcel Howard Tackle Iowa State Kenny Jackson Defensive tackle Ole Miss Antwan Lake Defensive tackle West Virginia James McCall Tackle West Virginia Labrone Mitchell Wide receiver Georgia James Mungro Running back Syracuse Dave Pavich Kicker Kent State Ken Philpot Linebacker Eastern Michigan Kris Ryan Fullback Penn Josh Thornhill Linebacker Michigan State
Personnel Staff
Roster
Regular season In addition to their regular games against NFC North rivals, the Lions under the NFL's new scheduling formula played games against teams from the NFC South and from the AFC East. They also played the Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals, who had the fourth best records from 2001 of the teams placed in their respective divisions.
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 8 at Miami Dolphins L 21–49 0–1 Pro Player Stadium 72,216 2 September 15 at Carolina Panthers L 7–31 0–2 Ericsson Stadium 71,951 3 September 22 Green Bay Packers L 31–37 0–3 Ford Field 61,505 4 September 29 New Orleans Saints W 26–21 1–3 Ford Field 60,023 5 Bye 6 October 13 at Minnesota Vikings L 24–31 1–4 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 64,013 7 October 20 Chicago Bears W 23–20 2–4 Ford Field 60,421 8 October 27 at Buffalo Bills L 17–24 2–5 Ralph Wilson Stadium 72,710 9 November 3 Dallas Cowboys W 9–7 3–5 Ford Field 61,789 10 November 10 at Green Bay Packers L 14–40 3–6 Lambeau Field 63,313 11 November 17 New York Jets L 14–31 3–7 Ford Field 61,720 12 November 24 at Chicago Bears L 17–20 3–8 Memorial Stadium 62,375 13 November 28 New England Patriots L 12–20 3–9 Ford Field 62,109 14 December 8 at Arizona Cardinals L 20–23 3–10 Sun Devil Stadium 28,640 15 December 15 Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 20–23 3–11 Ford Field 61,942 16 December 22 at Atlanta Falcons L 15–36 3–12 Georgia Dome 69,307 17 December 29 Minnesota Vikings L 36–38 3–13 Ford Field 60,233
Game summaries Week 1: at Miami Dolphins
Week 2: at Carolina Panthers
Week 3: vs. Green Bay Packers
Week 4: vs. New Orleans Saints
Week 6: at Minnesota Vikings
Week 7: vs. Chicago Bears
Week 8: at Buffalo Bills
Week 9: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 10: at Green Bay Packers
Week 11: vs. New York Jets
Week 12: at Chicago Bears After winning the coin toss to begin overtime, because of the windy conditions, Marty Mornhinweg chose to have the Lions kick off instead of receive, affectionately known as "taking the wind". This decision backfired after the Bears took the ball and kicked a field goal on their drive. It was later mocked by Chris Berman on Monday Night Countdown the next night.
Week 13: vs. New England Patriots
Week 14: at Arizona Cardinals
Week 15: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 16: at Atlanta Falcons
Week 17: vs. Minnesota Vikings
Standings Division
Conference
References
External links 2002 Detroit Lions at Pro-Football-Reference.com