Detroit Lions Top 5 Quarterbacks of All Time

(last updated on February 7, 2026)

Dan Campbell has made the Detroit Lions very relevant in the NFL again. In the 2023 season, they had an agonizing defeat in the NFC Championship Game at San Francisco, and in 2024 they were one of the leading contenders to win the Super Bowl before another brutal playoff loss. Yes, the Lions have never even been to a Super Bowl, but the franchise has won four NFL titles (1935, 1952, 1953, & 1957). And Lions fans can claim to have had maybe the best running back of all time in Barry Sanders. There is no question this team and city have endured some lean years, but it appears their fortunes may have changed. Although the Lions don’t have a Super Bowl appearance, it doesn’t mean they haven’t had some high-performance quarterbacks in the Motor City. Perhaps their current QB can help the Lions break that Super Bowl drought. Start your engines as we speed to the Motor City and fuel up on the top quarterbacks of all time for the Detroit Lions.

I’m not going to lie … after the first few guys on this list, the options are not as stellar, but Greg Landry would be the best of that bunch and still one of the top quarterbacks ever for the Detroit Lions. Landry was a Lions quarterback from ‘68 to ‘78. In that time, they only reached the playoffs once (1970). Greg did have three seasons of 2,000+ passing yards in the Motor City. His Pro Bowl year in 1971 was his high-water mark when he had 2,237 yards in the air, 16 TDs, and a league-best 16.4 Y/C. Landry’s best attribute was probably his rushing ability. His six seasons of 200+ rushing yards (twice above 500) are impressive for a QB. In fact, his 6.4 Y/A is actually higher than Barry Sanders. Yes, it’s a smaller sample size, but 389 attempts, 2,502 rushing yards, and 19 rushing touchdowns aren’t shabby for a quarterback. Number 11’s all-time stats aren’t Canton-worthy, but they sit high in franchise rankings: fourth in wins (40-41-3), fourth in passing TDs (80), and fifth in passing yards (12,451). Greg Landry played over a decade in Detroit, and those years of steady service make him one of the best quarterbacks in Lions history.

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If you watched the NFL in the 90s, then you remember Scott Mitchell. This big lefty (listed at 6 ‘6, 240) was the Detroit Lions quarterback for parts of five seasons and produced impressive-enough numbers to be one of the best QBs in Lions history. Signed as a free agent from Miami in 1994, the Lions hoped Mitchell would be the quarterback that could get Barry Sanders and company to the Super Bowl. He fell short of the big game but did get them to the playoffs in ‘94, ‘95, and ‘97. Scott got hurt for the year midway through the ‘94 season but came back with a vengeance in ‘95: 4,338 passing yards, 32 TDs to only 12 picks, and a 92.3 passer rating. The Lions went 10-6 but lost to the Eagles in the NFC Wild Card round. Over the ‘96 and ‘97 seasons, Mitchell combined for 6,401 yards in the air and 36 TD strikes. In ‘97, Detroit once again went down in the Wild Card round. Scott Mitchell didn’t fulfill those Super Bowl aspirations in Detroit, but he certainly deserves a spot with top Lions quarterbacks of all time.

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Earlier it was mentioned how the Detroit Lions are very relevant again in today’s NFL. Well, their current quarterback is a major reason why: Jared Goff. Goff was the first overall pick of the 2016 draft by the Rams. After a solid run with LA, this career Californian was sent to the cold Motor City in 2021 for Matthew Stafford. Since then, he has been nothing but steady for the Lions … a phenomenal completion % (67.9) … 21,451 passing yards and counting … 149 TDs to only 47 INTs … a 101.3 passer rating. Most importantly, the team has been competitive in Motown; his career record as the Lions starting QB is 48-33-1. In 2023 they made it to the NFC Championship Game, and the Lions went 15-2 in 2024 before being upset in the Divisional Round. They narrowly missed the playoffs in 2025. A lot of NFL pundits and fans don’t put Goff in the upper tier of quarterbacks, and that may be valid to a degree, but if you parse over his career stats, you will see where this guy ranks. Only age 31, he is already in the top 30 all time in passing yards (39,622) and passing touchdowns (256) and in the top 15 for completion % (65.8). If Jared Goff adds a Lombardi Trophy to his resume, then he may silence those national critics, but he already has a place at the table with the best Detroit Lions quarterbacks ever. 

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We all know that the Detroit Lions haven’t been to a Super Bowl, but they have won four NFL championships, and Bobby Layne played a huge role in three of them. This NFL Hall of Famer is undoubtedly one of the top Lions quarterbacks of all time. In 1950, Layne’s first year in Detroit, he led the league in passing yards (2,323). The following year he did better and led the league in completions (152), passing yards (2,403), and passing touchdowns (26). 1952 and 1953 were mirrors of each other: the Lions won the division, and they beat the Cleveland Browns in the title game. In 1953, Layne led a memorable game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter for a 17-16 championship win over Cleveland. This Blond Bomber led the Lions to another title in 1957. Bobby had a famous reputation on and off the field, but he was a beloved teammate and true gamer. Even though the 1950s weren’t a passing-rich era of football, #22 is still second in Lions history with 53 wins as the starting QB, third in touchdown passes (118), and third in passing yards (15,710). Bobby Layne is a familiar name for old-time football fans, and he was one of the best Detroit Lions quarterbacks of all time.  

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I would imagine it was painful for Detroit Lions fans to see Matthew Stafford win a Super Bowl with the Rams the season after he left the Motor City. If you put the pain aside and analyze the stats, Matthew Stafford is very arguably the greatest quarterback ever for the Detroit Lions. He is by far the team’s all-time leader in wins (74), completions (3,898), passing yards (45,109), and passing TDs (282). Picked first overall in the 2009 draft, Matt had a breakout year in 2011: a 63.5 completion %, 5,038 passing yards, and a team-record 41 TD passes. That year he also got Detroit back to the postseason after an 11-year absence; the Lions returned to the playoffs in 2014 and 2016. Unfortunately, all three of those playoff appearances were one and done. Stafford’s team success was limited in Motown, but nine seasons of 20+ TD passes and eight seasons of 4,000+ yards show that he did his job. He even had a monumental 520-yard passing performance against Green Bay on January 1, 2012 (eighth-highest total of all time). If the football gods have a sense of fairness, maybe they’ll let the Lions win the Super Bowl with the man they acquired for Stafford. Matthew Stafford is still a very productive QB in the NFL, and he was maybe the best quarterback the Detroit Lions ever had.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, January 30th, 2025 at 3:24 pm and is filed under Top Lists. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.