2003 Detroit Lions season

2003 Detroit Lions season
Owner	William Clay Ford, Sr.
General manager	Matt Millen
Head coach	Steve Mariucci
Home field	Ford Field
Results
Record	5–11
Division place	4th NFC North
Playoff finish	did not qualify
Uniform

The 2003 Detroit Lions season was the 74th season in franchise history.

Prior to the season, the Lions hired Steve Mariucci, who was well known for his tenure with the San Francisco 49ers, as their head coach. He spent two and a half seasons with the Lions until his firing in November 2005.

The season saw the team draft Charles Rogers with the second overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft. However, on-and-off the field issues, and later injuries, interrupted his career. He was released by the Lions in 2006, and immediately went out of the NFL. Much like quarterback Ryan Leaf, Rogers remains one of the biggest draft busts in the contemporary NFL.

Personnel

Staff

2003 Detroit Lions staff

Front office Owner and Chairman – William Clay Ford, Sr. Vice Chairman – William Clay Ford, Jr. President and Chief Executive Officer – Matt Millen Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer – Tom Lewand Senior Vice President of Football Administration/Legal Counsel – Martin Mayhew Director of Pro Personnel – Sheldon White Director of College Scouting – Scott McEwen Assistant Director of Pro Personnel – Charlie Sanders College Scouting Coordinator – Russ Bolinger Head coaches Head Coach – Steve Mariucci Assistant Head Coach/Linebackers – Richard Smith Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Sherman Lewis Quarterbacks – Kevin Higgins Running Backs – Tom Rathman Wide Receivers – Bobby Williams Tight Ends – Sean Kugler Offensive Line – Carl Mauck Offensive Assistant – Andy Sugarman

Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Kurt Schottenheimer Defensive Line – George Dyer Secondary – Ray Horton Defensive Assistant – Don Clemons Defensive Assistant – Johnny Holland Special teams coaches Special Teams – Chuck Priefer Assistant Special Teams and Offense – Kevin O’Dea Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Jason Arapoff Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Malcolm Blacken

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Network	Kickoff (EST)	Attendance
1	September 7, 2003	Arizona Cardinals	W 42–24	FOX	1:00pm	60,691
2	September 14, 2003	at Green Bay Packers	L 31–6	FOX	1:00pm	70,244
3	September 21, 2003	Minnesota Vikings	L 23–13	FOX	1:00pm	60,865
4	September 28, 2003	at Denver Broncos	L 20–16	FOX	4:15pm	75,719
5	October 5, 2003	at San Francisco 49ers	L 24–17	FOX	4:15pm	67,365
6	Bye
7	October 19, 2003	Dallas Cowboys	L 38–7	FOX	1:00pm	61,160
8	October 26, 2003	at Chicago Bears	L 24–16	FOX	1:00pm	61,428
9	November 2, 2003	Oakland Raiders	W 23–13	CBS	1:00pm	61,561
10	November 9, 2003	Chicago Bears	W 12–10	FOX	1:00pm	61,492
11	November 16, 2003	at Seattle Seahawks	L 35–14	FOX	4:15pm	65,865
12	November 23, 2003	at Minnesota Vikings	L 24–14	FOX	1:00pm	63,946
13	November 27, 2003	Green Bay Packers	W 22–14	FOX	12:30pm	62,123
14	December 7, 2003	San Diego Chargers	L 14–7	CBS	1:00pm	61,544
15	December 14, 2003	at Kansas City Chiefs	L 45–17	FOX	1:00pm	77,922
16	December 21, 2003	at Carolina Panthers	L 20–14	FOX	1:00pm	72,835
17	December 28, 2003	St. Louis Rams	W 30–20	FOX	1:00pm	61,006

Game summaries

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 7 7 10 0 24 • Lions 7 7 14 14 42 Date: September 7 Location: Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 60,691 Game weather: indoors (dome) Referee: Bill Carollo Television network: Fox

Scoring summary 1 ARI Anquan Boldin 7 yard pass from Jeff Blake (Bill Gramatica kick) Cardinals 7–0 1 DET Charles Rogers 4 yard pass from Joey Harrington (Jason Hanson kick) Tie 7–7 2 DET Charles Rogers 13 yard pass from Joey Harrington (Jason Hanson kick) Lions 14–7 2 ARI Freddie Jones 12 yard pass from Jeff Blake (Bill Gramatica kick) Tie 14–14 3 ARI Anquan Boldin 71 yard pass from Jeff Blake (Bill Gramatica kick) Cardinals 21–14 3 DET Eddie Drummond 57 yard punt return (Jason Hanson kick) Tie 21–21 3 DET Cory Schlesinger 8 yard pass from Joey Harrington (Jason Hanson kick) Lions 28–21 3 ARI Bill Gramatica 38 yard field goal Lions 28–24 4 DET Bill Schroeder 5 yard pass from Joey Harrington (Jason Hanson kick) Lions 35–24 4 DET Dre' Bly 48 yard interception return (Jason Hanson kick) Lions 42–24

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total Raiders 0 3 7 3 13 • Lions 10 0 7 6 23 Date: November 2 Location: Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: indoors (dome) Referee: Jeff Triplette

Scoring summary 1 DET Jason Hanson 54 yard field goal Lions 3–0 1 DET Olandis Gary 2 yard run (Jason Hanson kick) Lions 10–0 2 OAK Sebastian Janikowski 55 yard field goal Lions 10–3 3 DET Cory Schlesinger 33 yard pass from Joey Harrington (Jason Hanson kick) Lions 17–3 3 OAK Charlie Garner 7 yard run (Sebastian Janikowski kick) Lions 17–10 4 DET Jason Hanson 42 yard field goal Lions 20–10 4 OAK Sebastian Janikowski 24 yard field goal Lions 20–13 4 DET Jason Hanson 39 yard field goal Lions 23–13

Standings

NFC North
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(4) Green Bay Packers	10	6	0	.625	4–2	7–5	442	307	W4
Minnesota Vikings	9	7	0	.563	4–2	7–5	416	353	L1
Chicago Bears	7	9	0	.438	2–4	4–8	283	346	L1
Detroit Lions	5	11	0	.313	2–4	4–8	270	379	W1

External links

• 2003 Detroit Lions at Pro-Football-Reference.com