Detroit Lions Top 50: #9-5 with VIDEO

The Detroit Lions Top 50 players of all-time, Detroit Jock City countdown has been quite the journey, but the fun is just beginning! We’ve finally reached the top 10 and I have to warn you — there are some surprises ahead!

9. Alex Karras, DT, 1958-1970 (Suspended for 1963 season)

Alex Karras was a unique character and a very good football player.

Karras was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft by the Detroit Lions in 1958.

He quickly became one of the dominant defensive tackles in the NFL, playing for 12 seasons (1958-1962, 1964-1970) with the same team, but missing the 1963 season for gambling activities.

From 1960 to 1966, he played next to Roger Brown, the two were a formidable pair of defensive tackles, until the latter was traded to the Los Angeles Rams.

From 1958 to 1970, the Lions were over .500 six of the 13 years. However they only made the playoffs once, in 1970, with a 10-4 win-loss record. Despite not allowing a touchdown in the divisional round, the Lions lost to the Dallas Cowboys 5-0, in his first playoff game and final time on the football field.

Karras earned the nickname “iron man” since he missed only one game due to injury in his 12 NFL seasons. His 161 career games played are the 15th most in Lions history. He made the Pro Bowl four times, and the Hall of Fame named him a member of the 1960s All-Decade team.