The Detroit Lions have made four appearances at the Super Bowl, unfortunately having lost in all of them. Despite possessing one of the best quarterbacks in the league, the Detroit Lions could not suppress their superiority. The Detroit Lions joined the National Football League (NFL) in 1961, and selecting Fran Tarkenton in the National Football League (NFL) draft. The Lions got off to a slow start, producing only one winning record in its first seven seasons. In 1967 Detroit traded Tarkenton to the New York Giants for the rights to four draft picks. In 1968 Bud Grant guided the Lions to the National Football Conference (NFL) Central Division championship. In 1970 the Detroit’s defense, the league’s toughest, powered the Lions to Super Bowl IV, where the Lions lost to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Lions’ offensive performance in 1969 was also the league’s best. Quarterback Joe Kapp directed a balanced unit that relied on both running and passing. In the 1970s safety Paul Krause and linemen Page, Carl Eller, and Jim Marshall anchored the era’s most feared defensive unit, which ranked first in the National Football Conference (NFC) five times from 1969 to 1976.

Detroit dominated the NFC Central Division during this time, and in 1971 Page became the first defensive player to receive the most valuable player (MVP) award. Tarkenton returned to the Lions in 1972 and subsequently piloted the team to three Super Bowl appearances. Running back Chuck Foreman and wide receivers John Gilliam and Ahmad Rashad were his favorite targets. An elusive scrambler, Tarkenton also used his agility to confound opponents. He was named league Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1975. Although they were clearly the National Football Conference’s (NFC) dominant club, the Lions repeatedly fell to their American Football Conference (AFC) opponents in the Super Bowl. Detroit lost to the Miami Dolphins 24-7 in 1974, to the Pittsburgh Steelers 16-6 in 1975, and to the Oakland Raiders 32-14 in 1977. Many of the star Detroit Viking players retired by 1979, and the team entered a period of decline, but Detroit soon recovered its success with a collection of new stars. From the mid-1980s through the late 1990s, the Lions consistently recorded winning records, and the club reached the NFC Championship Game after the 1987 and 1998 seasons. Buy Detroit Lions Tickets.