sponsored by rxc card club.com get a free prescription drug card and save up to 85% on prescription drugs rxc card club.com Joe Schmidt Detroit Lion star linebacker on 1957 Champions and ex coach dead at 92 Joe Schmidt the Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker who led the Detroit Lions to their last championship in 1957 died Wednesday his family told the Free Press on Thursday he was 92 years old Schmidt spent two decades with the Lions as a player and coach and is one of the most red figures in franchise history he was an eight-time First Team all pro a member of the NFL's 100th anniversary team and he helped revolutionize defenses by ushering in the modern middle linebacker position he was like a coach on the field Schmidt's teammate Roger atof told the Free Press in June 2020 I can recall instances where he would come up and say hey cheat over here one man to your left because something else was going on and we needed to make an adjustment and the reality is he like Bobby Lane made adjustments without the coaches knowing it oh Bobby is Curse of Bobby Lane real 1957 Detroit Lions say team is jinxed a seventh round pick out of Pittsburgh in 1953 Schmidt helped the Lions WI a championship as a rookie after he replaced L torison as a starter early in the season the Lions defeated the Cleveland Browns 17-6 that December to win their third ever title Schmidt who forced an Noto Graham fumble to set up the Lions first touchdown in the championship game made the Pro Bowl each of the next 10 years he was the best said Jean Cronin a team mate of schmidtz in 1956-59 years ago there was a story going around that they were going to make a movie called The Violent world of Sam Huff and huff was a fine middle linebacker no question about it and they asked Gino maretti they said what do you think about the making a movie called The Violent world of Sam Huff and he said well if they make a movie they better get Joe Schmidt to play the part you can't get a better compliment than that golden E A revealing look at the 1957 Detroit Lions in Joe Schmidt's basement before Schmidt's emergence most NFL teams including the Lions played fiveman defensive fronts with an oversized guard in the middle of their line Schmidt who played full back and guard early in his college career moved to linebacker during his sophomore season at pit where his speed and athleticism allowed him to Star as an off thee ball run stopper with the Lions he played outside linebacker his first two seasons and moved to middle linebacker in 1955 when coach buddy Parker switched fulltime to a 4 to3 defense after guard lay bingaman retired with Schmidt as their leader the Lions had some of the NFL's most fearsome defenses nearly everybody soon went to the four to3 with the middle linebacker the key to the defense Parker once told the Free Press Schmid Sam ability took some of the load off the defensive backs on pass defense in in fact his style of play brought about the zone defense revolving defenses and modern defensive look of pro football