Lions Give Widenhofer Chance to Rebuild His Coaching Career

As one of the creators of Pittsburgh’s “Steel Curtain” defense, Robert (Woody) Widenhofer has experienced football coaching nirvana.

From 1973 to 1983, he helped put together a defense that ranks with the best in National Football League history. Starting as the linebackers coach and eventually becoming defensive coordinator, he helped the Steelers to an unmatched four Super Bowl victories.

But for Widenhofer, now the Detroit Lions’ defensive coordinator, the glory ended when he left the Steelers after the 1983 season. It was an experience that took him through a doomed football league and four losing college football seasons.

Hired by the Oklahoma Outlaws of the now-defunct United States Football League, Widenhofer left after a 6-12 season, when the Outlaws merged with the Arizona Wranglers and Wrangler Coach George Allen took control of the team.

Widenhofer became coach at the University of Missouri, where he had played linebacker in the mid-1960s. His efforts to reinvigorate the school’s football program failed and he became the school’s first coach to have four consecutive losing seasons. Last November, after a 3-7-1 finish, Widenhofer resigned, avoiding what many believed to be an inevitable firing.

Widenhofer, now 46, is back in the place where he thrived--the NFL. And he’s back in Detroit, where he grew up, in charge of the Lions’ defense. Detroit, 0-3 in the exhibition season, will play the Rams tonight at Anaheim Stadium.

The Lions, who finished 4-12 last season and tied for last place with Green Bay in the NFC Central Division, might never be mistaken for the Steelers of the ‘70s. But Widenhofer isn’t complaining.

“I really missed this level,” Widenhofer said, after a Lions’ practice this week at UC Irvine. “(As a college coach) you really end up being more of an administrator, a public relations guy, a baby sitter.

“I’ve always enjoyed the actual coaching.”

He hasn’t enjoyed the experience of losing more games than his teams won. When Widenhofer was with the Steelers, Pittsburgh never had a losing season. On his own, the game slapped him down.

“Losing is so tough,” he said. “It’s very tough mentally because you have a tendency to put a lot of pressure on yourself. I always thought of myself as a good teacher, a hard working coach and all of a sudden, you’re losing.

“It teaches you what humility is.”

It also taught Widenhofer that he is better suited to coach in the NFL, where the players are employees, not students.

Michigan State Coach George Perles, who, like Widenhofer, coached the Steelers’ defense and became a head coach in the USFL before taking over as coach of his alma mater, said Widenhofer’s strength is teaching complex coverages to professionals. At the college level, Perles said, “You can’t do it because by the time they learn it, they graduate.”

There was plenty of time to teach the players who made up the Steel Curtain.

When Widenhofer was hired by Pittsburgh Coach Chuck Noll in 1973 from the University of Minnesota, he became part of a staff that included two future head coaches. Bud Carson, now Cleveland Browns coach, directed the secondary and Perles coached the linemen. Widenhofer coached the linebackers--Jack Ham, Jack Lambert and Andy Russell. Mel Blount, Joe Greene and Ham already have been inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

So dominating was the Steelers’ defense in its heyday that in one stretch in 1976 it shut out five of nine opponents. In Super Bowl IX, the Steelers’ first, the defense held Minnesota to 17 yards rushing and 119 total yards in beating the Vikings, 16-6.

Russell, who graduated from Missouri two years before Widenhofer did, said the young coach gained the players’ respect by listening to their suggestions in practice and sometimes implementing them.

“It was a thrilling experience to work with someone who was that open-minded and had the strength to allow players to disagree,” Russell said.

Widenhofer inherits a defense put together by Lion Coach Wayne Fontes, who was defensive coordinator until Darryl Rogers was fired with five games remaining last season.

Statistically, it’s a slightly below-average NFL defense, 18th of 28 teams in total yardage allowed last season.

But the defense has allowed only one touchdown in each of the Lions’ three exhibition losses and Widenhofer says he sees improvement. He said the young linebacking corps that he oversees might be among the best in the league.

And, of course, if Barry Sanders, the Lions’ No. 1 draft pick, signs and helps boost the revamped offense, which was the NFL’s worst last year, some of the pressure might be taken off the defense.

Coming from as low as they have been, success for the Lions is likely a long way off, and Widenhofer won’t have an easy time in his return to his first love.

But for now it’s still the preseason and because the Lions won’t be thrown to the Cardinals for real for another week, there is still hope. Especially when outside linebacker Michael Cofer, the Lions only defensive Pro Bowl choice last year, can point to Widenhofer’s previous success.

“He brings a tremendous amount of knowledge because he’s been to the Super Bowl,” Cofer said. “Just that alone gives him the respect (of the players). They’re saying, ‘This guy knows what it takes to win.’ ”