Top 10 Defensive Backs In Detroit Lions History
Night Train Lane. 5. player. 50. . Defensive Back. 1960-1965
Rarely has there been a player whose nickname was such an integral part of his identity. Where Night Train Lane got his nickname is debated, it may have come from the Jimmy Forrest album by the same name or his habit of travelling by train to away games because of a fear of flying, but it eventually came to be associated with what he is most remembered for: hitting the living daylights out of opponents.
Lane was known, and feared, for the “Night Train Necktie.” Lane would clothesline the ballcarrier and yank him to the ground by the neck or the facemask, which at the time was allowed. If he did not “necktie” his opponent to the ground, Lane would simply level the ballcarrier with his forearms, sending him flying.
Lane’s origin story is just as astounding as any other part of his career. His mother found him abandoned as an infant, took him in and raised him as a single mother. He dropped out of college and joined the Army for four years before taking a job in an airplane factory. Unsatisfied with his job, he went to the Los Angeles Rams training camp to try out. He not only made the team, he set an NFL record which still stands with 14 interceptions in his rookie season in 1952, baiting quarterbacks into interceptions by playing off his receiver then closing down as the ball was released.
He was traded to the Chicago Cardinals in 1954, where he led the NFL in interceptions again that season. He was traded again to Detroit in 1960, where he spent the final six seasons of his career, intercepting 21 passes and making the Pro Bowl three times, from 1960-1962.
Lane was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974, and is a member of the NFL’s 75th Anniversary Team and the NFL 1950s All-Decade Team.
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