Last month, former Detroit Lions head coach Buddy Parker was announced as a semifinalist for the 2024 class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the Coach/Contributor category. On Wednesday, the shrine to football in Canton, Ohio announced Parker is a finalist for next year's Hall of Fame class.
Parker played two seasons for the Lions (1935-1936). After serving as a position coach, he became the team's head coach in 1951 and led the team to two championships (1952 and 1953) and another NFL Championship Game (1954) over six seasons. If not for a sudden and late resignaton before the 1957 season, it could have been three titles in seven seasons with a roster he largely built. That 1957 title is of course the last championship in Lions' history.
Parker went on to coach the Pittsburgh Steelers for eight seasons (1957-64). In 15 total seasons as a head coach, he had a career record of 104-75-9 with a 3-1 mark in the postseason. Solely as the Lions' coach, he went 47-23-2 (.671 win percentage) with those two titles and the 3-1 record in the playoffs.
The Hall of Fame's press release credits Parker with being an innovator on both sides of the ball. He unveiled what we now call the two-minute offense with Hall of Famer Bobby Layne as his quarterback, while also creating defensive alignments that maximized the Hall of Fame talent he had there.
To date:
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner) August 16, 2023
Buddy Parker is still the last head coach of the Detroit Football Lions to get another head coaching gig in the NFL after leaving the team. Best coach the franchise has ever had and I’m not sure it’s close. https://t.co/wVqRNrN3sm
Former Detroit Lions coach Buddy Parker a 2024 Hall of Fame finalist
In the coach/contributor category for consideration to be in the 2024 Hall of Fame class, Parker was nominated over a long list of semifinalists that included Mike Shanahan, Mike Holmgren, Tom Coughlin and Robert Kraft. He will need the support of at least 80 percent of 50 Selection Committee balloters to earn induction when they convene in February to determine who will be inducted next August.