# 1966 Detroit Lions season

The 1966 Detroit Lions season marked the team's 37th year in the National Football League (NFL). The team failed to improve on their previous season's output of 6–7–1, winning only four games. They missed the playoffs for the ninth straight year and incurred their second losing record in a row.

## Regular Season
### Schedule

| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap | Sources |
| 1 | September 11 | Chicago Bears | W 14–3 | 1–0 | Tiger Stadium | 52,225 | Recap | |
| 2 | September 18 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 3–17 | 1–1 | Pitt Stadium | 35,473 | Recap | |
| 3 | September 25 | Atlanta Falcons | W 28–10 | 2–1 | Tiger Stadium | 47,615 | Recap | |
| 4 | October 2 | at Green Bay Packers | L 14–23 | 2–2 | Lambeau Field | 50,861 | Recap | |
| 5 | October 9 | Los Angeles Rams | L 7–14 | 2–3 | Tiger Stadium | 52,793 | Recap | |
| 6 | October 16 | at Baltimore Colts | L 14–45 | 2–4 | Memorial Stadium | 60,238 | Recap | |
| 7 | October 23 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 24–27 | 2–5 | Kezar Stadium | 36,745 | Recap | |
| 8 | October 30 | Green Bay Packers | L 7–31 | 2–6 | Tiger Stadium | 56,954 | Recap | |
| 9 | November 6 | at Chicago Bears | T 10–10 | 2–6–1 | Wrigley Field | 47,041 | Recap | |
| 10 | November 13 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 32–31 | 3–6–1 | Metropolitan Stadium | 43,939 | Recap | |
| 11 | November 20 | Baltimore Colts | W 20–14 | 4–6–1 | Tiger Stadium | 52,383 | Recap | |
| 12 | November 24 | San Francisco 49ers | L 14–41 | 4–7–1 | Tiger Stadium | 53,189 | Recap | |
| 13 | December 4 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 3–23 | 4–8–1 | L.A. Memorial Coliseum | 40,039 | Recap | |
| 14 | December 11 | Minnesota Vikings | L 16–28 | 4–9–1 | Tiger Stadium | 43,022 | Recap | |
| — | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| Notes: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. November 24: Thanksgiving. |||||||||
* A bye week was necessary in 1966, as the league expanded to an odd-number (15) of teams (Atlanta). One team was idle each week.

## Standings

NFL Western Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Green Bay Packers | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 10–2 | 335 | 163 | W5 |
| Baltimore Colts | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 7–5 | 314 | 226 | W1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 6–6 | 289 | 212 | L1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 6 | 6 | 2 | .500 | 5–5–2 | 320 | 325 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 5 | 7 | 2 | .417 | 4–6–2 | 234 | 272 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 3–8–1 | 206 | 317 | L3 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 4–7–1 | 292 | 304 | L1 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Eastern Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Dallas Cowboys | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 9–3–1 | 445 | 239 | W1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 8–5 | 326 | 340 | W4 |
| Cleveland Browns | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 9–4 | 403 | 259 | W1 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 7–5–1 | 264 | 265 | L3 |
| Washington Redskins | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 7–6 | 351 | 355 | L1 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 5 | 8 | 1 | .385 | 4–8–1 | 316 | 347 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 2–5 | 204 | 437 | L1 |
| New York Giants | 1 | 12 | 1 | .077 | 1–11–1 | 263 | 501 | L8 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.