The Detroit Lions‘ draft history is full of highs and lows. They have a long list of great picks and perhaps a more infamous history of draft busts in Round 1.
Let’s take a look at the five best first-round picks and five worst first-round picks in franchise history. (We’re taking into account only their career with the Lions, draft position, and dominance over longevity.)
Lions best first-round draft picks
2010: DT Ndamukong Suh
The pick: No. 2 overall, Nebraska.
The buzz: Spent his five-year rookie contract with the Lions, helping them snap an 11-year playoff drought in 2011. Dominant player up front as both a run stopper and pass rush threat, the key in the team’s defensive turnaround in 2014. Defensive Rookie of the Year, and made four All-Pro teams and four Pro Bowls. Had 36 sacks in his five seasons in Detroit, playing in 78 of 80 regular-season games, before leaving for Miami in 2015.
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2007: WR Calvin Johnson
The pick: No. 2 overall, Georgia Tech.
The buzz: The Hall of Famer spent his entire nine-year career with the Lions, catching 83 touchdowns as one of the most dominant players this century at any position. Set the NFL single-season receiving record of 1,964 yards in 2012. Averaged 86.1 receiving yards per game for his career. Made four All-Pro teams and six Pro Bowls and helped the Lions reach the playoffs in 2011 and 2014.
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1991: WR Herman Moore
The pick: No. 10 overall, Virginia.
The buzz: Three consecutive first-team All-Pro appearances from 1995-97 and four Pro Bowls, gaining at least 900 receiving yards in seven straight seasons. Led NFL in catches with 123 in 1995 and 104 in 1997. Big-play receiver caught 62 touchdowns in 11 seasons with the Lions.
1989: RB Barry Sanders
The pick: No. 3 overall, Oklahoma State.
The buzz: Hall of Famer, 1997 NFL MVP, Offensive Rookie of the Year, six-time All-Pro and a Pro-Bowler in all 10 NFL seasons, all with the Lions. Was the 1988 Heisman Trophy winner. Ran for 2,053 yards in 1997, second-most in a season at the time. Scored 99 rushing touchdowns and 10 receiving. His astonishing touchdown vs. Dallas in the 1991 playoffs helped the Lions to their first (and only) playoff win since the 1957 championship. Missed just seven games, playing in 153 and rushing for 15,269 yards, still fourth all-time. Stunned the city on the eve of 1999’s training camp with his retirement fax and escape to London.
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1958: DT Alex Karras
The pick: No. 10 overall, Iowa
The buzz: Made an All-Pro team eight times, spent his entire 12-year career with the Lions. Suspended for the 1963 season for gambling, returned in 1964 and had 13 sacks and career-best 15 sacks in 1965. Finished with 100 sacks for his career (albeit unofficially, as sacks weren’t recognized by the NFL until 1982). Starred in movies (“Blazing Saddles”) and TV (“Webster”) after his NFL career was over. Died in 2012 at age 77. Belatedly inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2020 as part of its Centennial Class. “I never had to work myself up for a game,” he said. “I hated everybody, even my teammates, I never talked to anybody.”
Five honorable mentions: QB Matthew Stafford (No. 1 overall, 2009), WR Johnnie Morton (No. 21 overall, 1994), DE Robert Porcher (No. 26 overall, 1992), OT Lomas Brown (No. 6 overall, 1985), RB Billy Sims (No. 1 overall, 1980).
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Lions worst first-round draft picks
2005: WR Mike Williams
The pick: No. 10 overall, Southern California.
The buzz: General manager Matt Millen took a first-round swing on a wide receiver for the third straight year. Williams, sporting great size at 6 feet 5, dominated with 30 TDs in two seasons at USC, but was forced to sit out the 2004 college season after declaring for the 2004 draft before eventually being ruled ineligible in court. Fined six figures as a rookie by the team for being overweight over the course of his rookie year. Had 29 catches for 350 yards and a score as a rookie, but limited to eight catches in eight games the next year. Was traded with QB Josh McCown at the 2007 draft to Oakland for a fourth-round pick.
2003: WR Charles Rogers
The pick: No. 2 overall, Michigan State.
The buzz: Injuries, marijuana and a painkiller addiction derailed a promising local star. Rogers was a Saginaw and Michigan State standout, but played in just 15 NFL games over three seasons. Recorded 22 catches for 243 yards as a rookie with three scores in five games, then broke his collarbone in practice. Again broke his collarbone in the opener in 2004, missing the season, and the devastation from the injury changed him. Suspended for four games in 2005 for a third violation of the league’s substance abuse policy. Released before the 2006 opener. Died at 38 in 2019 of liver failure.
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2002: QB Joey Harrington
The pick: No. 3 overall, Oregon.
The buzz: The Heisman Trophy finalist led Oregon to an 11-1 record and conference title as a senior. Signed a six-year, $36.5 million deal with the Lions, but the team went 18-37 with him as its starter over four seasons. He led the NFL with 22 interceptions in 2003, and threw 60 touchdowns to 62 picks with a 54.7% completion percentage over his Lions career. Held a 68.1 passer rating in 58 games for Detroit. Got his wish and was traded to Miami in 2006 for an eventual 2007 fifth-round pick, and soon after returned to beat the Lions on Thanksgiving Day in Detroit. “The confidence I had that was brimming when I left Oregon was completely gone when I left Detroit,” he told the Free Press in 2020. “It created a whole lot of issues for me that went beyond performance. … In the end, things didn’t go well and I know the fans were frustrated.“
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1990: QB Andre Ware
The pick: No. 7 overall, Houston.
The buzz: Appeared in 14 games with six starts in his Lions career over four seasons, and never played in the NFL again. Won the 1989 Heisman Trophy at Houston in the run-and-shoot offense, but his draft stock was polarizing. When Lions head coach Wayne Fontes overrode the the team’s scouting director to draft Ware, the latter resigned the next day. “I believe this guy, given some time, is going to take the Lions to the Super Bowl,” Fontes said. Never won the starting job from Rodney Peete or Erik Kramer, filling in as a backup due to injury. Completed 83 of 161 passes with five scores and eight interceptions, and rushed for 217 yards on 38 attempts (5.7 yards per carry).
1987: DE Reggie Rogers
The pick: No. 7 overall, Washington.
The buzz: Limited to 11 games in two seasons with the Lions, collecting one sack. Barely made it a month into his first season before entering a counseling center. It got worse the next year: In October, he ran a stop sign and his car struck another vehicle, killing three teenagers. His blood alcohol content was later found well over the legal limit. He was waived the next summer because he broke his neck in the collision, and in 1990 was convicted of vehicular homicide and spent 13 months in prison. Played in four games with two teams in 1991-92. Died in 2013 at 49, with an autopsy revealing cocaine and alcohol intoxication.
Five honorable mentions: CB Jeff Okudah (No. 3 overall, 2020), OG Laken Tomlinson (No. 28 overall, 2015), RB Jahvid Best (No. 30 overall, 2010), QB Chuck Long (No. 12 overall, 1986), RB Lawrence Gaines (No. 16 overall, 1976).