The 1972 Detroit Lions season was their 43rd in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). The team improved on their previous season's output of 7–6–1, winning eight games.1972 Detroit Lions
/ref> The team missed the playoffs for the second straight season. It would also be the team's last winning season until

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

Linebacker Wayne Walker established a new team record for games played at 200. It was also the final season for longtime defensive back

Dick LeBeau Charles Richard "Dick" LeBeau ( ; born September 9, 1937) is a former American football cornerback and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He was active with the NFL for 59 consecutive seasons, 14 as a player with the Detroit Lions and ...

Offseason

NFL Draft

Notes * Detroit traded QB

Greg Barton Gregory Mark Barton (born December 2, 1959 in Jackson, Michigan) is an American sprint kayaker who competed from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. Competing in three Summer Olympics, he won four medals with two golds (K-1 1000 m, K-2 1000 m: ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in exchange for the Eagles' second- and third-round selections (40th and 65th) and second-round selection in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

. * Detroit traded the 40th selection received from Philadelphia to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

in exchange for RB

Paul Gipson Paul Theodis Gipson (March 21, 1946 – January 16, 1985) was a professional American football player who played running back for four seasons for the Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions, and New England Patriots. Biography Gipson played high scho ...

. * Detroit traded its second-round selection (41st) to Atlanta in exchange for CB Rudy Redmond, RB Sonny Campbell and Atlanta's fourth-round selection in 1973. * Detroit traded its third-round selection (68th) to Philadelphia in exchange for QB Bill Cappleman. * Detroit traded its fourth-round selection (93rd) to

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

in exchange for WR

Ron Jessie Ron Ray Jessie (February 4, 1948 – January 13, 2006) was an American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills. His best season came in 1976 with the Los Angeles Rams, ...

. * Detroit traded its fifth-round selection (120th) to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

in exchange for DT

Dick Evey Richard Theodore Evey (February 13, 1941 – May 23, 2013) was an offensive tackle and defensive tackle in the NFL. He played most of his career with the Chicago Bears. After his football career, Evey became a land developer in Blount County, ...

Roster

Schedule

Season summary

Week 13 at Bills

Standings

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1972 Detroit Lions Season Detroit Lions seasons

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...