Who’s Made The Most Money Playing for the Detroit Lions?
The Detroit Lions are known for not being very good and for shelling out a ton of money in free agency. Still, with aspirations at their all-time highest for the 2023 squad, I thought it'd be fun to see who's made the most money playing for the franchise.
While there are certainly some expected names, some are forgotten to time and it's good to see their compensation still held up.
Of course, with inflation and the league's absurd payroll spike over the years, there aren't many players from before 2000 on this list. Props to the few who got the bag before getting a bag was a thing.
First things first, all of these numbers come from Spotrac. It's worth noting that NFL contracts aren't technically completely public. As such, these numbers may not be perfectly accurate, though they are as close as you're likely to find without your own sources inside the Detroit Lions building.
It might also be worth noting that this isn't a ranking of the greatest Lions ever. Some guys were overpaid. Some guys were busts. Those guys are on the list because of what they reportedly made while playing for the franchise.
Some guys didn't get paid enough. Whether it's because of the era they played in or front office negligence, if they weren't one of the top-25 highest-earners in franchise history, they aren't on the list.
So let's get to it, the 25 highest-earning Detroit Lions of all time.