Former Lions Pro Bowler Pat Studstill has passed away at age 83

In case you missed it last weekend, the Lions community lost a legend as Pat Studstill passed away at age 83.

The Detroit Lions fell to 0-6 this season with a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. The franchise community lost someone over the weekend, with The Detroit News reporting former Lions wide receiver and punter Pat Studstill passed away at his Los Angeles home last Saturday.

Studstill played for the Lions for 1961-1967. In 1965, he made the Pro Bowl as a punter with league-most 78 punts and a 42.8 yard average. He led the league in receiving yards in 1966 with 1,266, and earned another Pro Bowl selection that year. In that 1966 campaign, he had an NFL record streak of five straight games with 125 or more receiving yards, which Calvin Johnson matched in 2012. Studstill’s Lions’ franchise-record 700 receiving yards over that stretch was surpassed by Johnson over his 2012 five-game run (702 yards).

Studstill was also a productive return man for the Lions when he got those opportunities. He had a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown as a rookie, then led the league in punt return yards in his second season, averaging 15.8 per return in 1962.

Studstill went on to play for the Los Angeles Rams (1968-1971) and New England Patriots (1972) before retiring.

Pat Studstill had an interesting post-playing career

In 1974, Studstill served as a technical advisor for the original The Longest Yard movie. He then went into acting, appearing in over 200 comercials in both voice-over and on-camera work. He also had acting credits on tv shows like “The Dukes of Hazzard”, “Magnum, P.I.” and “The Incredible Hulk.” He appeared as himself in “Paper Lion” while he was still a player.

Studstill is survived by his wife, Rita, three kids (son Pat III, daughters Lisa and Shannon), three grandchildren (Nicholas, Amelie and Lucas) and sister Eva.