I Remember 1991 as a magic season in Detroit. The Lions went 12-4 during the regular season and won the old NFC Central Division championship on the last day of the regular season. (Yes, for you youngsters there was a Central Division way before the NFL got creative and decided to add teams along the way and create four four-team divisions in each conference.)
It was also the season when the Lions won their first playoff game (after a first round bye) since they had captured the NFL championship in 1957. Thirty-four years of playoff misery came to an end with a decisive win over the Cowboys in the friendly confines of the Silverdome in front of almost eighty thousand seriously excited – and I mean SERIOUSLY EXCITED and extremely loud fans.
That day was just an amazing connection between the Lions and their hungry fans. The “Horror Dome” was a madhouse throughout the entire the game with a noise level that made it impossible to hear on the playing field.
Erik Kramer was our quarterback and had a fantastic game. I am pretty sure he completed something like thirteen straight passes and 
absolutely took apart the Dallas secondary. Things fell into place and we were able to simply outplay and handily defeat Dallas 38-6.
But, Erik Kramer wasn’t always our starter that season – in fact I don’t think anyone besides our scouting department even knew who he was as we started training camp in 1991.
I distinctly remember asking our Pro Bowl linebacker Chris Spielman who the new quarterback was in camp. He shrugged his shoulders “Some guy from Canada”.
Kramer’s only NFL experience was during the strike games of the 1987 season where he played for Atlanta – he was then cut by the Falcons and headed north for three seasons in the Canadian Football League.
Originally, he had been brought in to be a “camp thrower” and save the arms of quarterback’s Rodney Peete and former Heisman Trophy winner Andre Ware. But, like I said ’91 was a strange year.
Rodney was clearly the number one QB as we emerged from the preseason and Erik had surprisingly showed he was a better backup than former first round pick Andre Ware.
So Rodney had secured himself as the starter with Erik clearly his backup. Andre was the third option as he struggled with accuracy in the four preseason 
games. This problem would plague him his entire career. Despite Andre’s awesome athletic prowess and his intelligence there were some red flags beginning to show up on his chances to be an NFL quarterback.
Now the regular season was indeed a remarkable one for the Lions. But, it was also a really weird one as well. We opened up by getting absolutely blasted in RFK Stadium by the team now known as the Washington Football Team or whatever they are going to be called.
But then they were the Redskins and they handed us a big fat goose egg 45-0 to start our year off.
It was downright embarrassing and I especially remember the flight back to Detroit was just silent and pretty much like a morgue. Not the usual buzz about the game that is always in the air after you play win or lose – not even the ever present card games.
Just a few of the guys drinking some beer (yup, we had beer post game on the planes in those days). Absolute silence. The team was shocked at how we were so easily beaten.
Just a bunch of battered, frustrated and bewildered players and coaches. It was a painfully dismal trip home. Soon to see the TV sports, listen to the radio or read the papers on what a piss poor operation we ran and that we should all understand that everyone in Detroit would happily run us out of town.
Even the irrepressible Wayne Fontes our head coach was despondent. I tried to give him a little boost the next morning as he and I sat in his dark office by reminding him that Barry Sanders hadn’t played at all. (Barry had some bruised ribs or something that was just serious enough to keep him on the sidelines.)
At least maybe he would serve to wake up the usually overly optimistic Wayne from his funk. But, not even that could get him jump started.
“Clem … a fucking shutout. You know hard it is to be shut out in the National Football League … a fucking shutout.”
Well I did spend 27 years in the NFL and I do know hard it is to get a shutout or to be shutout. Those guys running around out there on Sunday’s are all extremely talented men. It is not only hard to get shutout – it is almost impossible.
But, the show must go on and we had fifteen more games to go. Well, I was a little depressed myself. All of us coaches were on the last year of our contracts and that meant job searching if our season continued to slide and we all got fired. Ahhh … the NFL can be such a fun place.
OK, I am getting off the track here and need to get to the point of this episode of football (mis)adventures.
Well, we end up winning the next two games beating the Packers and Miami at home and were set to head to Indianapolis for a game that was certainly 
winnable.
The defense was playing very well holding Green Bay and the Dolphins both to under 100-yards rushing and Rodney Peete was on fire at quarterback. Barry was back and he was his usual amazing self as he ran for something like 150 in our third game. Even Jim Arnold our punter ran for 20 yards (that was scary) on a botched kick. We actually looked pretty damn good despite the close scores.
Optimism had returned to the Lion team and we had played reasonably well in the Indianapolis game staking ourselves to a 16-10 lead in the third quarter. But, then the fan hit the shit. (Come on just reverse the words).
As we were driving Rodney goes down at QB. (SHIT!) The injury didn’t look too bad from where I was sitting in the coaching booth – but losing our starting QB with an unknown Erik Kramer having to now run our offense. Ahh … not so good!
The coaches and players (from both teams) and everyone else in the entire free world knew that we would just hand the ball off the Barry a few times – get out of the series and see if we could get Rodney back for the rest of the game.
Yeah, well Kramer had some ideas of his own. The very first play … yes, the first one and not the second or third one … but the very damn first play he is in the game – Erik audibles!
It is his first REAL NFL game .. on his FIRST PLAY in his first REAL NFL game … HE AUDIBLES!
Every single person in the coaching booth in unison yells “NOOOOO” There were also a few “What the fuck are you doing?” I’m sure the Detroit Lion sideline was stunned and screaming as well.
Erik checks off and calmly fires a beautiful 15-yard pass to Willie Green (I think it was Willie) for a first down!
Every single “NOOOOO”, every single “You fucking idiot” turned into “OOOHHH YEAAAHHH” and to “you fucking genius.” What a play.
Now we all laugh about it to this day, but trust me when you can see your house payment flying away just as that ball is thrown. It really isn’t one of those great moments.
Later in the drive Erik hits Willie Green for a TD (and now we all love him!) Rodney later returns to the game – Eric to the bench and the Lions go on to win their third straight game and the NFL begins to take notice of Wayne and the boys.
Oh yeah, I forgot Erik also picked up a nickname that day. The players began calling him “Brass.”
Silly, dumbass me once asked Lomas Brown our Pro Bowl left tackle why call him “Brass?” Lomas shook his head and said – because that man has “Brass Balls!” I guess after that audible and throw that nickname is certainly warranted!
Well from there we go on to win another two in a row for a five-game winning streak. But, then we had to go out to Candlestick and play the 49’ers. But, that story is for another day.