The Detroit Lions are headed to the NFC Championship Game for just the second time in franchise history. They’ll visit the San Francisco 49ers inside Levi’s Stadium Sunday afternoon as the Lions look to punch their ticket to a first-ever Super Bowl appearance.
Despite the Lions’ overall struggles through the years, they do have a rich history of star players suiting up in the Motor City. We’re talking about an organization that did win four titles before the Super Bowl era.
With Detroit very much a darling around the football world, we figured it made sense to look at the 10-best Detroit Lions players in history.
Related: 10 fast facts about last time Detroit Lions won a championship
10. Lomas Brown, offensive tackle
Brown played 11 seasons for the Detroit Lions, from 1985-1995. That span saw him earn six Pro Bowl appearances as the team’s starting left tackle before he left for the Arizona Cardinals in free agency. That included Second-Team NFL All-Pro honors during Detroit’s last run to the NFC Championship Game in 1991.
9. Chris Spielman, linebacker
An absolute dog. That’s the best way to describe Spielman’s eight-year run with the Lions. He earned Pro Bowl trips in each of his first five seasons with the team after Detroit made him a second-round pick out of Ohio State in the 1988 NFL Draft. He also played a huge role in the Lions’ last trip to the conference title game in 1991, recording 126 tackles and three forced fumbles.
8. Dick LeBeau, defensive back
Even after retiring from the game some half-century ago, LeBeau still ranks 10th on the all-time NFL interceptions list with 62. Having spent all 14 of his seasons with the Lions, the Pro Football Hall of Famer earned three consecutive Pro Bowl trips. Over the course of a seven-year span from 1965-1971, he recorded a whopping 41 interceptions. Talk about being a true ball-hawk.
7. Herman Moore, wide receiver
Before Calvin Johnson did his thing with the Detroit Lions, there was Herman Moore. This four-time Pro Bowl wide receiver dominated from 1994-97, averaging 101 receptions for 1,362 yards and 11 touchdowns. It’s stunning just how productive he was while having to catch passes from the bust that was Scott Mitchell in Detroit.
Related: Comparing Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff to Brock Purdy
6. Matthew Stafford, quarterback
It was a whole scene as Matthew Stafford led his Los Angeles Rams team into Detroit for the NFC Wild Card Playoffs. Stafford had starred for the Lions for 12 seasons after they made him the No. 1 pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. He finished his Lions career as the franchise’s all-time leader in wins (74), passing yards (45,109) and passing touchdowns (282). It did not equate to much team-wide success, but he was the face of this franchise for more than a decade.
5. Alex Karras, defensive tackle
Before he became known for playing roles on the small screen and big screen, Karras was an absolutely dominant figure for the Detroit Lions. The defensive tackle recorded eight All-Pro honors from 1958-1970 with Detroit. Unofficially, he ended his career in the Motor City with 100 sacks. Of course, Karras’ career was plagued by a scandal that saw him suspended for the entire 1963 season for allegedly gambling.
4. Dick Night Train Lane, cornerback
Night Train Lane played his final six NFL seasons as a member of the Lions. During that six-year span, the Pro Football Hall of Famer recorded 20 interceptions while earning four Pro Bowl trips. Lane might have been better known for his runs with the Los Angeles Rams and then-Chicago Cardinals. But the dude was an absolute star in Detroit.
3. Calvin Johnson, wide receiver
Johnson only played nine seasons with the Lions, opting to retire while he was in his prime. It pushes him down on our list of the best Detroit Lions players of all-time. In no way does this take away what he did in Detroit. During a six-year span to close out his career from 2010-15, Johnson averaged 90 receptions for north of 1,400 total yards and 10 touchdowns. He was the most-dominant non-quarterback in the league during this span.
Related: How the Detroit Lions’ organizational failure derailed Calvin Johnson’s all-time legacy
2. Lem Barney, cornerback
How good was Barney during his 11-year run with the Lions from 1967-1977? The Hall of Famer earned a whopping seven Pro Bowl appearances. He finished with 56 career interceptions, including 32 over the course of his first four seasons in Detroit. Barney also tallied north of 4,000 punt yards as a two-way player for the Lions. Not bad for a Mississippi native that went in the second round of the 1967 NFL Draft.
1. Barry Sanders, running back
Without question, Barry Sanders is the best player in Detroit Lions football history. He was always destined to be after a record-breaking performance with Oklahoma State in college. During his decade run with the Lions before calling it quits early, Sanders averaged an otherworldly 1,527 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. He made the NFC Pro Bowl team each season with six All-Pro teams mixed in. Sanders was a first ballot Hall of Famer and is considered one of the greatest running backs in modern NFL history.
