'Jurassic Park,' MJ's halftime and more trends from Detroit's last division title
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Anthony Gharib, ESPN
The Detroit Lions‘ 30-24 win against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday clinched their first division title since the 1993 season.
Their six-point lead was nearly challenged when the Vikings regained possession with 2:23 left in the fourth quarter and drove down to Detroit’s 30-yard line. Ifeatu Melifonwu iced the game by intercepting Nick Mullens to give the Lions their 11th win of the season and first-ever NFC North title; the division was called the NFC Central until 2002.
Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown and rookie Sam LaPorta have spearheaded an offense averaging 394 yards and 27.9 points per game. Running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs have combined for 1,782 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns.
Here’s a look back at what the world looked like the last time the Lions won their division, 10,948 days ago.
From cubs to Lions
Only four players on the current 53-man Detroit roster were born when the team clinched the division on Jan. 2, 1994, after defeating the Green Bay Packers: Jake McQuaide, Graham Glasglow, Teddy Bridgewater and Taylor Decker, according to ESPN Stats and Information.
All born in 1994, Dan Skipper, Kalif Raymond, Taylor Decker and Goff missed out by a couple of months. The youngest Lions player (Gibbs) wouldn’t be born until nearly 10 years later, in March 2003.
Jordan shocks the sports world
Coming off his third straight NBA title, Michael Jordan’s first retirement came before the 1993-94 season. The Chicago Bulls star cited a loss of motivation and the desire “to prove something as a basketball player.”
In February 1994, Jordan signed with the Chicago White Sox and spent one season with the Birmingham Barons in Double-A. He returned to basketball in March 1995.
Mariah Carey leads Billboard Hot 100
Carey’s hit song “Hero” was the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 during the first week of January 1994. The track spent 30 weeks on the charts and four weeks at No. 1.
Janet Jackson’s “Again” slotted at No. 2, while Ace of Base, Bryan Adams/Rod Stewart/Sting and Meat Loaf rounded out the top five.
“Jurassic Park” becomes a blockbuster
The release of Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park” in June 1993 dominated the box office. It broke the opening weekend record with $50 million and grossed $338 million for the top movie of the year.
“Jurassic Park” overtook “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” as the highest grossing film of all-time, a record that stood until “Titanic” in 1998.
Michael Jackson rocks Super Bowl XXVII
The King of Pop put together one of the most memorable halftime shows during Super Bowl XXVII at the Rose Bowl.
Jackson was the first big name to perform during halftime of the Super Bowl, setting the stage for future stars to do the same. NBC had higher ratings during Jackson’s halftime set than in the first half of the game, according to The New York Times.
The Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills 52-17, the first of two consecutive Super Bowl victories.
