At one time the Detroit Lions leading rusher, Altie Taylor was a Detroit Lion for seven of his eight seasons and was named the Offensive MVP by the team in 1973.  Taylor would have over 6,000 All-Purpose Yards as a Lion with 30 Touchdowns.

A Detroit Lion for all but his final season in the NFL, Harley Sewell was a solidifying figure at the Left Guard position.  Sewell would make four Pro Bowls and was a big part of the Lions’ success in the 1950s, helping them win the 1953 and 1957 NFL Championship.

A Detroit Lion for the best six years of his eleven-year career, with the new return rules, it is safe for us to say that Mel Gray will go down in history as the best return specialist in Lions history.  Gray wasn’t used much in the offense, but he was such a star returner amassing nearly 7,000 Return Yards with 7 TDs that he earned a spot here.  He was a three-time First Team All-Pro because of it.

From the University of Georgia, Matthew Stafford was the Lions' Quarterback from 2009 to 2020, starting every game he appeared in.  

The Lions had Calvin Johnson for the first part of Stafford's Detroit run, but he did not have much more help, and the defense was generally poor.  Stafford was considered to be an above-average QB, but his record was 16 Games below .500.  Despite his won-loss record, Stafford broke the 40-year drought by making the Pro Bowl (2014) as a Lions Quarterback.  He threw for over 4,000 Yards annually from 2011 to 2017, and did so again in 2020, his last season with Detroit, as he was traded to the Rams, becoming a household name by winning the Super Bowl in his first year there.

Overall, he threw for 45,109 Yards with 282 Touchdowns, impressive numbers that should be celebrated more than it is.

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