Detroit Lions Honor 75th All-Time Team

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Honoring the Best
The Detroit Lions Honor Their 75th Season All-Time Team at Ford Field
By Chuck Klonke
Detroitlions.com
November 9, 2008


DETROIT, Mich. -- Bubba Baker had only one regret about Sunday's ceremony honoring the Lions' 75th anniversary team.

It's that Floyd Peters wasn't there.

"If there was no Floyd Peters, there would have been no Doug English and no Al (Bubba) Baker," said the former defensive lineman who recorded 23 sacks in 1978 -- a club record that stands today. "He made us what we are with the high standards he held us to."

Peters was Detroit's defensive line coach when Baker and English arrived on the scene.

"Every Monday, Floyd would come over to the seven of us (linemen) and criticize our play," Baker said. "He'd tell us what we could do better, and close by saying, 'you fought like a man.' That was the standard thing. It would start to tick you off."

Until one Monday in 1978 before the Lions were scheduled to play the San Diego Chargers and their outstanding quarterback, Dan Fouts. Then Peters changed his tune.

"That week he came in and said, 'nobody gets to Fouts, not with their line and his quick release,'" Baker related. "He said, 'Bubba, you're playing against Billy Shields and nobody beats him.' I just want you guys to fight like men. Then he lit a cigarette and walked off.

"We thought to ourselves, 'what a horse's rear.' Wednesday it was the same thing. Thursday, he told us, 'just don't get embarrassed.' By Sunday, we were so mad we got 11 sacks, and almost killed Fouts. Then Monday, Floyd comes in and the normal routine started over again. Talk about brilliant coaching. Before that game I remember the skin on the back of my neck crawling, wanting to get at the San Diego Chargers."

Peters died not long ago, and Baker struggled to write his family a note of condolences.

"It took me three weeks to write it," Baker said. "I loved and hated Floyd. You can't write to a grieving family and have to swear. I remember when he made me practice with a torn-off toenail. I remember when he tried to choke me at halftime. But I wouldn't be here today without Floyd Peters."

Being part of the 75th anniversary team had special meaning for each of the players chosen.

"It's like a dream come true," said Roger Brown, the massive -- at the time -- defensive tackle who sacked Green Bay quarterback Bart Starr seven times, including once for a safety, in that memorable Thanksgiving Day game in 1962.

"The only thing that could surpass this would be my enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. To be considered one of the Lions' all-time greats -- I'm excited. The biggest thrill I've had is having my picture taken with these guys."

Wayne Walker, who held the Lions record for games played with 200 until Jason Hanson -- another member of the all-time team -- broke it, was excited when he was notified of his spot on the team.

"It ranks up with being in the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame and the Idaho Sports Hall of Fame," said the man who was a fixture at linebacker for 15 seasons. "It's just wonderful because a lot of us are at the age where we are what we are.

"There's no phoniness. There's no edge to anybody. Everybody's loose and relaxed. It's wonderful to be together again. It's like a fraternity. You don't pull that jersey over your head as much as we did and not have a special feeling for the Lions. These guys are the Lions."

Walker said that it was difficult to single out a special moment in his career.

"I remember the guys in the locker room more than the games," he said. "When I came up, Bobby Layne was the quarterback and he was different from anybody. At the end of my career I played with guys like Lem (Barney) and Charlie (Sanders) and they were wonderful young guys. I remember the guys a lot more than any individual things that I did."

Walker joined the team in 1958 as a fourth-round draft pick out of the University of Idaho. Being a rookie on a team that had just won the NFL Championship was no easy chore.

"It was tough then," Walker said. "There were only 33 on the team and I was a fourth-round draft choice. I didn't consider not making the team, but it was tough. Training camp my rookie year was the most pressure I've ever been under in my life."

Brown joined the Lions in 1960, and pro football was a lot different than it is now.

"I signed for $8,000 in 1960 and our general manager, Bud Erickson, said he'd give me a $300 signing bonus," Brown recalled. "When you're in college and cashing in wine bottles for money, that's a lot. When I got my contract, it was for $7,700. He took out the $300 bonus.

"To stay in pro football in those days, it was love. You could make more money outside of football. Why did Jim Brown quit when he did? He could make more money. I stayed with it 10 years and I'm happy I did. If I could suit up today, I would."

When Brown was playing there was a postseason game called the Runner-up Bowl. It matched the two second-place teams in each conference.

"I played in five of those -- three with the Lions and two with the Rams," Brown said. "These days we might have had a chance to get to the Super Bowl with those teams, but then only two teams had a chance to win the title."

Brown isn't happy with the amount of penalties in today's game.

"It's getting like basketball," he said. "You can't play football anymore. Football's a hitting business."

Brown is also adjusting to the large coaching staffs and front office folks in today's game.

"You don't know who's in charge, who's running the team," he said. "When I played the office staff had six people -- and that included the janitor."

There were a lot of stories told among the players who attended the weekend's festivities, but it was something they'll never forget.

Hanson thought about it when he first got word that he was a member of the team.

"You look at some of those names and think, 'they have to say my name at the same time that they say theirs," said the Lions' career scoring leader. "I've played with some of them and some were legends way before my era."

For Baker it was a chance to renew old acquaintances and make a few others.

"Without Doug English, there would have been no Bubba Baker," Baker said. "Here I stand on the same team with him. That's cool. I hadn't seen him since 1982, but when I saw him yesterday, he gave me a big, old Texas hug.

"Today, I'm going to be a groupie. I'll get my picture taken with Barry (Sanders). Something like this washes away all the losses and heightens the wins. Right now, I'm in football nirvana."

Lions Unveil 75th Season All-Time TeamAll-Time Team to be Honored at November 9th Home Game vs. Jacksonville
October 31, 2008

Click here for the 75th Season Celebration Page!

75th Season All-Time Press Conference Transcripts:

CB Lem Barney

K Jason Hanson

K Eddie Murray

DL Robert Porcher

TE Charlie Sanders

VP & COO Tom Lewand

ALLEN PARK, Mich. – The Detroit Lions have announced today the Lions 75th Season All-Time Team presented by Belle Tire. The 36-member squad represents the greatest players in franchise history. Players on the all-time team span the entire 75 seasons the team has played in Detroit from QB Earl “Dutch” Clark (1934-38) to K Jason Hanson (1992-present).

During halftime of the Lions home game vs. Jacksonville November 9, the entire 75th Season All-Time Team will be introduced. Members of the 75th Season All-time Team scheduled to attend the November 9 game include: P Jim Arnold, DL Al “Bubba” Baker, CB Lem Barney, S Bennie Blades, T Lomas Brown, DL Roger Brown, WR Gail Cogdill, DL Doug English, OL Ed Flanagan, OL Kevin Glover, KR Mel Gray, K Jason Hanson, S Yale Lary, WR Herman Moore, K Eddie Murray, DL Robert Porcher, RB Barry Sanders, TE Charlie Sanders, FB Cory Schlesinger, OL Harley Sewell, RB Billy Sims and LB Wayne Walker.

Additionally, family members will represent the following: CB Jim David, S Don Doll and OL John Gordy.

Seven members of the Lions All-Time Team are deceased, including: S Jack Christiansen, QB Earl “Dutch” Clark, CB Jim David, CB Dick Lane, QB Bobby Layne, RB Doak Walker and OL Alex Wojciechowicz.

The Lions 75th Season All-Time Team was compiled by a 16-week online fan voting process on Detroitlions.com and a selection committee that consisted of five members of the media and four long-time employees of the Detroit Lions. The media portion included: Detroit News writer Mike O’Hara, Booth News writer Tom Kowalski, retired Detroit Free Press writer Curt Sylvester, retired Detroit News writer Jerry Green and radio broadcaster Jim Brandstatter. Long-time Lions employees are Assistant Director of Pro Personnel Charlie Sanders, Senior Director of Community Affairs Tim Pendell, former equipment manager Danny Jaroshewich and retired athletic trainer Kent Falb.

LIONS 75TH SEASON ALL-TIME TEAM NOTABLES
36 players have been named to the all-time team (16 offensive players, 16 defensive players and four special teams players).
12 members, or one-third, of the all-time team are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Players who played during the Pro Bowl era (since 1950) on the all-time team tallied a total of 146 Pro Bowl selections. That amounts to just over four Pro Bowl selections per player for the 34 members of the all-time team who played during the Pro Bowl era. Two players, LB Joe Schmidt (1955-64) and RB Barry Sanders (1989-98), are tied for the team record for most career Pro Bowl selections (10).

Every championship and playoff team in team history has a least one player on the all-time team, including: one from the 1935 World Championship team, 10 players were members on at least one of the Lions’ three world championship teams of the 1950s (1952-53 and 1957), 7 players played on the 1970 playoff team coached by Joe Schmidt, three players played for the 1983 team that won the NFC Central title and nine players were on the 1991 team that won the NFC Central division and played in the 1992 NFC Championship Game.

Two players were named NFL MVP: LB Joe Schmidt (1960) and RB Barry Sanders (1997).
Four players were named NFL Rookie of the Year: CB Lem Barney (1967), DL Al “Bubba” Baker (1978), RB Billy Sims (1980) and RB Barry Sanders (1989).

Perhaps no position for any NFL team has been as solidified the past 29 season as the Lions’ kicker position with the two players on the all-time team. K Eddie Murray (1980-91) and K Jason Hanson (1992-present) have combined to play 436 of the 448 regular season games played since 1990. Besides the three-game strike in 1987, the longest string of games played in the past 29 years without either of these two players was a six-game stretch in 1990.

Glad to see the greatest Lion of them all, Bobby Layne, made the list

catbox_9 wrote:

Glad to see the greatest Lion of them all, Bobby Layne, made the list

Some video for you....


The Legacy of Bobby Layne
The
author of three Lions titles, Bobby Layne was more than a
quarterback—he was a general. NFL Films profiles the late great Bobby
Layne, and the legacy he left in the Motor City.
Real One: 56k | 300k

GoGetEmTigers wrote:

catbox_9 wrote:

Glad to see the greatest Lion of them all, Bobby Layne, made the list

Some video for you....


The Legacy of Bobby Layne
The
author of three Lions titles, Bobby Layne was more than a
quarterback—he was a general. NFL Films profiles the late great Bobby
Layne, and the legacy he left in the Motor City.
Real One: 56k | 300k

Eddie Murray and Jason Hanson Rule!



Only two kickers the Lions have had since I started watching them