Detroit Lions legend Joe Schmidt has died.
Schmidt’s family confirmed to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press that he died on Wednesday night. The Hall of Fame linebacker was 92.
Schmidt played for the Lions for 13 seasons from 1953 to 1965. He made the Pro Bowl 10 times and was named a First-Team All-Pro eight times. Schmidt was part of the NFL’s 100th Anniversary team in 2019.
The year after he retired from playing, Schmidt became a coach with the Lions. He was a linebackers coach for one season in 1966 before being promoted to head coach. Schmidt was the head coach in Detroit for six years.
Schmidt won championships as a player with the Lions in 1953 and 1957. The latter was the last time Detroit won a title.
Schmidt is credited for helping to revolutionize football with the modern middle linebacker position. The former seventh-round draft pick out of Pittsburgh first played outside linebacker for two seasons before moving to middle linebacker as part of a 4-3 defense. That made the 4-3 defense popular across the NFL, with many other teams trying to replicate the Lions’ success with Schmidt in the middle linebacker spot.
Schmidt was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973. He is also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
