The Greatest Detroit Lions Players of All Time
The more Thanksgivings you've had with the Detroit Lions, who began that tradition in 1934, the more you bring to a vote for their greatest players. Every player here is named on at least 5 of the 17 Lions honor rolls and all-time rankings counted for this list: the Pride of the Lions plus retired numbers, the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the team's 2019 All-Time Team, and fourteen press rankings. Players left off no more than six of the sources that could have named them start in the top group; everyone else who clears the door starts below them, and your votes set the order from there.
Calvin Johnson is #1 on “The Greatest Detroit Lions Players of All Time”.
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Calvin Johnson
He caught 14 passes on 16 targets for 329 yards on October 27, 2013, and Detroit beat Dallas 31-30. Detroit's wide receiver from 2007 through 2015, he came to the club in the 2007 draft out of Georgia Tech. Those 329 yards were, at the time, the most any NFL receiver had gained in a game decided in regulation. He walked away in March 2016, at 30, and reached the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021, the earliest year the rules allowed. In 2012 he'd piled up 1,964 receiving yards, setting the NFL's single-season mark, and he made 6 consecutive Pro Bowls, 2010 to 2015. You'll find him on 16 of the 17 sources counted for this list.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvin_Johnson - 2
Bobby Layne
With 4:10 to play in the 1953 NFL Championship Game and Detroit down 16-10, he took the Lions 80 yards in 8 plays from their own 20, and his 33-yard touchdown throw to Jim Doran tied it before the extra point made it 17-16. The Lions had acquired him in 1950 for receiver Bob Mann, and he was their quarterback until October 1958, when Pittsburgh got him for Earl Morrall and 2 draft choices. That title was the 2nd in a row with him under center, after 1952, and the 1957 title team also carried him on its roster. Count him on 14 of the 17 sources behind this list.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Layne - 3
Barry Sanders
His 10 Detroit seasons, 1989 to 1998, never produced fewer than 1,000 rushing yards. A 3rd overall pick in that 1989 draft, he carried 23 times for 220 yards and 4 touchdowns against Minnesota on November 24, 1991, as Detroit won 34-14. Rushing titles went his way in 1990, 1994, 1996 and 1997. In 1997 he gained 2,053 yards, ended the year on a run of 14 straight games over 100 yards, setting an NFL record, and split the Associated Press MVP award with Brett Favre. He retired on July 27, 1999, 1,457 yards short of Walter Payton's career rushing mark. Every one of the 17 sources counted here names him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Sanders - 4
Joe Schmidt
During the 1957 NFL Championship Game he intercepted a Cleveland pass, and the Lions won 59-14, a week after his interception in a 31-27 playoff win at San Francisco. He was a Detroit linebacker from 1953 through 1965, having come in as a 7th-round pick that first year. That 1957 title was the 2nd of his career, after 1953. His teammates elected him captain in August 1956, a job he kept for 9 years. Pro Bowl selections came 10 years running, 1954 to 1963; for 1957 an Associated Press poll of NFL writers named him the league's Lineman of the Year, and in 1973 the Pro Football Hall of Fame added his name. He's named on 12 of the 17 sources on this list.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Schmidt_(American_football) - 5
Lem Barney
His NFL debut, on September 17, 1967, brought a touchdown on the first pass Green Bay's Bart Starr aimed at him: he caught it and went 24 yards to the end zone. He covered receivers and returned kicks for the Lions from 1967 to 1977, after Detroit drafted him that year. That rookie season brought 10 interceptions, and his 3 touchdown returns among them set an NFL rookie mark that Ronnie Lott and Janoris Jenkins later equaled; he was the Associated Press's top defensive rookie for 1967. He ended his career with 56 interceptions, 7 of them returned for touchdowns, and 7 Pro Bowl selections. Look for him on 15 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lem_Barney - 6
Night Train Lane
Acquired from the Chicago Cardinals for lineman Gerry Perry on August 22, 1960, he played cornerback in Detroit through 1965. That first Lions season he picked off a Johnny Unitas pass against Baltimore and ran it back 80 yards to score, and the 30-17 final was Detroit's first victory of 1960. He intercepted 21 passes as a Lion and was a Pro Bowler after 1960, 1961 and 1962; in 1961 and 1962 he was also an Associated Press first-team All-Pro. In 1961 he grabbed Jon Arnett's face mask to make a tackle, a year before the NFL's 1962 rule against grasping an opponent's face mask. Of the 17 sources, 12 name him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_Train_Lane - 7
Alex Karras
He tackled Chicago's Billy Wade in the end zone on October 28, 1962, a 3rd-quarter safety, and Detroit beat the Bears 11-3 at Tiger Stadium. He was a Lion from 1958 to 1962, missed 1963 under a league suspension after admitting bets on NFL games, and returned for 1964 to 1970 after Pete Rozelle reinstated him in March 1964. In 2020 the Pro Football Hall of Fame elected him on its Centennial Slate. Across those 2 stints he appeared in 161 games, 156 of them as a starter. Add him up and it's 12 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Karras - 8
Matthew Stafford
As time expired on November 22, 2009, he threw his 5th touchdown pass, finishing with 422 yards in a 38-37 win over Cleveland. Detroit's 1st overall pick that spring, he was its quarterback from 2009 to 2020. In 2011 he threw for 5,038 yards with 41 touchdown passes as the Lions made the playoffs for the first time since 1999, and both Pro Football Weekly's and the Associated Press's 2011 Comeback Player awards went to him. In 2012 he threw 727 passes, setting a single-season NFL record. He left in a March 2021 trade to the Rams with 45,109 passing yards and 282 touchdown passes as a Lion. He's on 11 of the 16 sources that could have named him, since he is not eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame while he is active.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Stafford - 9
Herman Moore
December 4, 1995, brought him 14 catches for 183 yards against Chicago, a club record for catches in a game at the time. He was a Lions receiver from 1991 through 2001, and that 1995 season he caught 123 passes, an NFL record until 2002, for 1,686 yards, a club record for its day, with 14 touchdowns among them. Each season from 1994 through 1997 gave him more than 1,000 receiving yards and a place in the Pro Bowl. By the time he finished in Detroit, his totals came to 670 catches for 9,174 yards and 62 scores, before a last year with the Giants in 2002. His name appears on 11 of the 17 sources counted for this list.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Moore - 10
Doak Walker
His rights came to Detroit from the Boston Yanks in exchange for John Rauch, and he was the Lions' halfback and kicker from 1950 to 1955. As a rookie in 1950 he led all NFL scorers with 128 points, and the Associated Press and United Press both chose him as their first-team All-Pro halfback that year and the next. Detroit won the 1952 and 1953 NFL titles with him in the backfield, and in 1955 he was the league's top scorer again, with 96 points. He stepped away after that season at 28 with 534 points, which ranked 3rd in league history as of 1955, and the Lions retired his No. 37 on December 11, 1955. You can find him on 10 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doak_Walker - 11
Chris Spielman
From 1988 through 1995 he anchored the Lions at linebacker. His 195 tackles in 1994 set a club single-season high, and he led the team in tackles for 7 straight seasons. Counting from 1973, when the team started keeping the figure, nobody in Lions history had more than his 1,138 tackles by the time he left. He was a 4-time Pro Bowl pick, and his playing days ended with Buffalo in 1996 and 1997, long before his 2021 Pride of the Lions induction. Count 10 of the 17 sources in his favor.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Spielman - 12
Dick LeBeau
Cleveland drafted him in 1959, then cut him in training camp, and Detroit signed him a few months later. Detroit kept him at cornerback for 14 seasons, 1959 through 1972. In 1970 he intercepted a career-high 9 passes, and Detroit went 10-4 and made the playoffs. Pro Bowl nods for 1964, 1965 and 1966 came his way, and no NFL cornerback had appeared in more consecutive games than his 171 until Ronde Barber passed him. His 62 interceptions stood as the Lions' career record when his playing career ended, and in 2010 he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a player. Of the 17 sources counted here, 9 include him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_LeBeau - 13
Yale Lary
On October 13, 1957, he intercepted 2 Los Angeles Rams passes, and his 63-yard return of one led to Detroit's winning touchdown. A Lions defensive back and punter from 1952 to 1953 and again from 1956 to 1964, he spent 1954 and 1955 in military service. His punting average topped the league in 1959, 1961 and 1963, the last at 48.9 yards, and he picked off 50 passes in his career. While he was playing he also served in the Texas House of Representatives, from 1959 to 1963. Detroit's 1952, 1953 and 1957 title teams all had him in uniform. He shows up on 6 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yale_Lary - 14
Jack Christiansen
Thanksgiving 1951 gave him punt returns of 71 and 89 yards for touchdowns against Green Bay, the 2nd game that rookie season in which he did it. He'd been taken in round 6 in 1951 and spent 8 seasons in Detroit's secondary, 1951 to 1958. His 8 career punt return touchdowns were an NFL record until 1989. In 1953 his 12 interceptions were the league's most, he tied for that lead with 10 in 1957, and 1970 brought his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction. Detroit's secondary in those years was known as Chris's Crew, and the Lions won 3 titles in his 8 seasons. His count comes to 6 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Christiansen - 15
Charlie Sanders
As a rookie in 1968 he caught 40 passes for 533 yards and got a Pro Bowl invitation that season. He was Detroit's tight end from 1968 through 1977. His career line reads 7 Pro Bowls, 336 catches, 4,817 yards and 31 touchdowns. He hurt a knee in a 1976 exhibition game and kept playing into November 1977. The 1970s All-Decade Team, picked by Pro Football Hall of Fame voters, has him at tight end, and he was inducted in 2007, 30 years after his final season. Across the 17 sources counted here, he's on 7.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Sanders - 16
Lou Creekmur
All 12 of his 1952 starts came at offensive tackle, his first season there after 2 years at guard, and Detroit finished it as NFL champion. Philadelphia's 26th-round pick in 1948, he was acquired by Detroit and wore Lions colors from 1950 to 1959. Between 1950 and 1958 he played in every preseason, regular-season and postseason game, through dislocated shoulders and knee injuries. The Pro Football Hall of Fame called his name in 1996, his 32nd year of eligibility. Pro Bowl berths came 8 years running from 1950 through 1957, and he was chosen first-team All-Pro 6 times by the Associated Press. The tally for him is 6 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Creekmur - 17
Dutch Clark
A touchdown run of more than 40 yards in the 1935 NFL Championship Game was his, and Detroit beat the New York Giants 26-7. He suited up for the franchise when it was the Portsmouth Spartans, in 1931 and 1932, coached at Colorado School of Mines in 1933, and was a Lion from 1934 to 1938, the last 2 years as player-coach. His number 7 hangs retired in Detroit, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame's inaugural class of 1963 had him in it. Scoring titles were his in 1932, 1935 and 1936, and United Press picked him as the NFL's best player for 1935 and 1936. In all, 5 of the 17 sources list him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Clark - 18
Billy Sims
Candlestick Park hosted a 1983 divisional playoff where he gained 114 yards on 20 carries, though San Francisco came back to win. No. 1 in the 1980 draft, he was Detroit's running back through 1984. He scored 3 touchdowns in his NFL debut, his rookie year ended at 1,303 rushing yards with 13 scores on the ground, and in 1981 he ran for 1,437, with Pro Bowl selections following his 1980, 1981 and 1982 seasons. A knee injury against Minnesota on October 21, 1984 ended his career, and his 5,106 rushing yards were a Lions career high at that point. He sits on 8 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Sims - 19
Jason Hanson
In 2008 he didn't miss from 50 yards and beyond, making all 8 such tries for a team that finished 0-16, and on December 14 he passed Morten Andersen for the most 50-yard field goals anyone in the NFL had made at the time. His kicking career ran from 1992 through 2012, every season of it in Detroit. When he retired in April 2013, his 21 seasons and 327 games with the same club were NFL records, and his 495 field goals and 2,150 points were Lions records. He kicked 17 game-winning field goals, 9 of them in overtime. Among the 17 sources counted for this list, 8 name him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Hanson - 20
Lomas Brown
He started 15 games at offensive tackle in 1991, a season in which Detroit went 12-4 and played for the NFC title. A Lion from 1985 to 1995, he made the 1985 All-Rookie team chosen by the Pro Football Writers Association. He played 164 games for Detroit and started all but one of them. His run of 7 straight Pro Bowls started in 1990, with 6 of them as a Lion, and after 11 Detroit seasons he played 7 more elsewhere. His name went up on the Pride of the Lions display in 2023. That adds up to 6 of the 17 sources.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lomas_Brown
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