Detroit Lions
Battle card · first-round draft history, season-by-season record, and how Lions top picks have shaped the franchise.
R1 Picks
63
Hall of Famers
2
3.2% hit rate
Avg pick slot
13.7
Highest pick
#1
Billy Sims · 1980
All-time record
373–498–6
0.429 win %
Playoff seasons
14
of 56
The Story
- Detroit Lions have made 63 first-round selections and produced 2 Hall of Famers (3.2% hit rate).
- Their highest selection on record is #1 overall in 1980, when they took Billy Sims.
- Across 56 seasons in this dataset they have a 373-498-6 record (0.429) and reached the playoffs 14 times.
- In seasons after holding at least one top-10 pick, Detroit Lions added an average of 1.5 wins versus the prior year (26 such seasons in the data).
- Their most-drafted position group is OL, taken 14 times in Round 1.
- Iowa is their go-to talent pipeline, supplying 4 first-round picks.
- Their best season was 2024: 15-2-0 (+222 point differential).
- Their worst was 2008: 0-16-0 (-249 point differential).
Wins per Season
R1 Pick Slot by Year
Position Breakdown
Point Differential by Season
Impact of Top-10 Picks (Next-Season Wins Delta)
| Draft Year | Pick | Player | Prior-Year Wins | New-Year Wins | Delta | HoF? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | #8 | Ed O'Neil | 6 | 7 | +1 | |
| 1976 | #10 | James Hunter | 7 | 6 | -1 | |
| 1979 | #10 | Keith Dorney | 7 | 2 | -5 | |
| 1980 | #1 | Billy Sims | 2 | 9 | +7 | |
| 1985 | #6 | Lomas Brown | 4 | 7 | +3 | |
| 1987 | #7 | Reggie Rogers | 5 | 4 | -1 | |
| 1988 | #3 | Bennie Blades | 4 | 4 | +0 | |
| 1989 | #3 | Barry Sanders | 4 | 7 | +3 | HoF |
| 1990 | #7 | Andre Ware | 7 | 6 | -1 | |
| 1991 | #10 | Herman Moore | 6 | 12 | +6 | |
| 1997 | #5 | Bryant Westbrook | 5 | 9 | +4 | |
| 1999 | #9 | Chris Claiborne | 5 | 8 | +3 | |
| 2002 | #3 | Joey Harrington | 2 | 3 | +1 | |
| 2003 | #2 | Charles Rogers | 3 | 5 | +2 | |
| 2004 | #7 | Roy Williams | 5 | 6 | +1 | |
| 2005 | #10 | Mike Williams | 6 | 5 | -1 | |
| 2006 | #9 | Ernie Sims | 5 | 3 | -2 | |
| 2007 | #2 | Calvin Johnson | 3 | 7 | +4 | HoF |
| 2009 | #1 | Matthew Stafford | 0 | 2 | +2 | |
| 2010 | #2 | Ndamukong Suh | 2 | 6 | +4 | |
| 2013 | #5 | Ezekiel Ansah | 4 | 7 | +3 | |
| 2014 | #10 | Eric Ebron | 7 | 11 | +4 | |
| 2019 | #8 | T.J. Hockenson | 6 | 3 | -3 | |
| 2020 | #3 | Jeff Okudah | 3 | 5 | +2 | |
| 2021 | #7 | Penei Sewell | 5 | 3 | -2 | |
| 2022 | #2 | Aidan Hutchinson | 3 | 9 | +6 |
Hall of Fame Selections
| Year | Pick | Player | Pos | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | #3 | Barry Sanders | RB | Oklahoma St. |
| 2007 | #2 | Calvin Johnson | WR | Georgia Tech |
Every First-Round Pick
| Year | Pick | Player | Pos | College | HoF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | #19 | Steve Owens | RB | Oklahoma | |
| 1971 | #21 | Bob Bell | DT | Cincinnati | |
| 1972 | #16 | Herb Orvis | DT | Colorado | |
| 1973 | #17 | Ernie Price | DE | Texas A&M-Kingsville | |
| 1974 | #8 | Ed O'Neil | LB | Penn St. | |
| 1975 | #13 | Lynn Boden | G | South Dakota St. | |
| 1976 | #10 | James Hunter | DB | Grambling St. | |
| 1976 | #16 | Lawrence Gaines | RB | Wyoming | |
| 1978 | #11 | Luther Bradley | DB | Notre Dame | |
| 1979 | #10 | Keith Dorney | T | Penn St. | |
| 1980 | #1 | Billy Sims | RB | Oklahoma | |
| 1981 | #16 | Mark Nichols | WR | San Jose St. | |
| 1982 | #15 | Jimmy Williams | LB | Nebraska | |
| 1983 | #13 | James Jones | FB | Florida | |
| 1984 | #20 | David Lewis | TE | California | |
| 1985 | #6 | Lomas Brown | T | Florida | |
| 1986 | #12 | Chuck Long | QB | Iowa | |
| 1987 | #7 | Reggie Rogers | DE | Washington | |
| 1988 | #3 | Bennie Blades | DB | Miami (FL) | |
| 1989 | #3 | Barry Sanders | RB | Oklahoma St. | HoF |
| 1990 | #7 | Andre Ware | QB | Houston | |
| 1991 | #10 | Herman Moore | WR | Virginia | |
| 1992 | #26 | Robert Porcher | DE | South Carolina St. | |
| 1994 | #21 | Johnnie Morton | WR | USC | |
| 1995 | #20 | Luther Elliss | DT | Utah | |
| 1996 | #17 | Reggie Brown | LB | Texas A&M | |
| 1996 | #23 | Jeff Hartings | C | Penn St. | |
| 1997 | #5 | Bryant Westbrook | DB | Texas | |
| 1998 | #20 | Terry Fair | DB | Tennessee | |
| 1999 | #9 | Chris Claiborne | LB | USC | |
| 1999 | #27 | Aaron Gibson | T | Wisconsin | |
| 2000 | #20 | Stockar McDougle | T | Oklahoma | |
| 2001 | #18 | Jeff Backus | T | Michigan | |
| 2002 | #3 | Joey Harrington | QB | Oregon | |
| 2003 | #2 | Charles Rogers | WR | Michigan St. | |
| 2004 | #7 | Roy Williams | WR | Texas | |
| 2004 | #30 | Kevin Jones | RB | Virginia Tech | |
| 2005 | #10 | Mike Williams | WR | USC | |
| 2006 | #9 | Ernie Sims | LB | Florida St. | |
| 2007 | #2 | Calvin Johnson | WR | Georgia Tech | HoF |
| 2008 | #17 | Gosder Cherilus | T | Boston Col. | |
| 2009 | #1 | Matthew Stafford | QB | Georgia | |
| 2009 | #20 | Brandon Pettigrew | TE | Oklahoma St. | |
| 2010 | #2 | Ndamukong Suh | DT | Nebraska | |
| 2010 | #30 | Jahvid Best | RB | California | |
| 2011 | #13 | Nick Fairley | DT | Auburn | |
| 2012 | #23 | Riley Reiff | T | Iowa | |
| 2013 | #5 | Ezekiel Ansah | DE | BYU | |
| 2014 | #10 | Eric Ebron | TE | North Carolina | |
| 2015 | #28 | Laken Tomlinson | G | Duke | |
| 2016 | #16 | Taylor Decker | T | Ohio St. | |
| 2017 | #21 | Jarrad Davis | LB | Florida | |
| 2018 | #20 | Frank Ragnow | C | Arkansas | |
| 2019 | #8 | T.J. Hockenson | TE | Iowa | |
| 2020 | #3 | Jeff Okudah | CB | Ohio St. | |
| 2021 | #7 | Penei Sewell | OL | Oregon | |
| 2022 | #2 | Aidan Hutchinson | DE | Michigan | |
| 2022 | #12 | Jameson Williams | WR | Alabama | |
| 2023 | #12 | Jahmyr Gibbs | RB | Alabama | |
| 2023 | #18 | Jack Campbell | LB | Iowa | |
| 2024 | #24 | Terrion Arnold | DB | Alabama | |
| 2025 | #28 | Tyleik Williams | DT | Ohio St. | |
| 2026 | #17 | Blake Miller | OT | Clemson |