The Detroit Lions were never just unlucky — they were altered. One flag, one draft pick and two early retirements changed the direction of the franchise for decades, creating a legacy built as much on missed chances as memorable stars.
The Detroit Lions’ history is defined as much by pivotal moments as by painful hypotheticals. For every breakthrough, there is a play, a decision or a stroke of bad fortune that altered the franchise’s path. What if Josh Reynolds made the catch? What if Taylor Decker was ruled eligible? What if Billy Sims never suffered a career-ending knee injury? The Lions’ timeline is filled with “what ifs,” but only a few fundamentally reshaped the organization. Here are the three most consequential moments that continue to linger over franchise history.
Honorable mentions
Wide receiver Titus Young remains one of the great unfinished stories. In two seasons with Detroit, Young produced 990 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns, flashing the ability to become a long-term complement to Calvin Johnson. His combination of speed and physicality had defenses scrambling, and the potential of pairing him with Johnson was tantalizing. Instead, off-field issues ended his career prematurely. Detroit reached the playoffs in 2014 and 2016 but failed to advance, leaving open the question of whether an additional reliable weapon could have changed those outcomes.
Another inflection point came in 2018 with the hiring of Matt Patricia. What initially appeared to be a culture-changing move quickly unraveled. Patricia finished 13-29-1, lost the locker room and stalled the development of multiple young players. That decision set the franchise back years and forced a complete reset. Without that misstep, the Lions’ rebuild — and the eventual arrival of Dan Campbell — may have followed a very different timeline.
Then there is the 2022 draft. Had Jacksonville selected Aidan Hutchinson first overall, Detroit would have been denied a foundational defensive piece. Hutchinson quickly became the identity of the Lions’ pass rush, and without him, the defense would have been left searching for an anchor.
What if the flag was never picked up in Dallas?
The 2014 NFC wild-card game against the Cowboys remains one of the most controversial moments in franchise history. Detroit held a late fourth-quarter lead and faced third-and-1 at the Dallas 46-yard line. Matthew Stafford’s pass intended for Brandon Pettigrew fell incomplete, but officials initially flagged linebacker Anthony Hitchens for defensive pass interference.
The call would have given Detroit a first down and pushed the Lions into scoring position. Instead, after a conference, the officials picked up the flag — a rare and stunning reversal. Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant also ran onto the field without a helmet, an infraction that went uncalled. Detroit was forced to punt and eventually lost 24-20. Dallas was eliminated the following week, reinforcing the sense that Detroit let a legitimate postseason opportunity slip away.
What if the Lions drafted Aaron Donald over Eric Ebron?
Few decisions better illustrate organizational failure than Detroit’s choice in the 2014 NFL Draft. Holding the 10th overall pick, the Lions selected tight end Eric Ebron while Aaron Donald, a defensive tackle from Pittsburgh, remained on the board.
Donald went on to redefine the position. He became an eight-time All-Pro, three-time Defensive Player of the Year and the most dominant interior defender of his era. Offensive game plans were built around avoiding him, often unsuccessfully. Donald anchored a Rams defense that won Super Bowl LVI, finishing his career as a first-ballot Hall of Famer and one of the greatest defensive players in NFL history.
Ebron, meanwhile, struggled with drops and inconsistency in Detroit. He never surpassed 715 receiving yards or five touchdowns in a season with the Lions and was gone after four years. That same draft also produced All-Pros Taylor Lewan, Odell Beckham Jr. and Zack Martin, making the miss even more glaring. Had Detroit landed Donald, the franchise would have had a generational cornerstone capable of altering games, and seasons on his own.
What if Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson didn’t retire early?
The early retirements of Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson remain the most devastating hypotheticals of all. Sanders walked away in 1999 while still the league’s most explosive running back. A few additional seasons likely would have pushed him beyond 20,000 rushing yards and kept Detroit competitive into the early 2000s.
Johnson’s decision to retire after the 2015 season carried similar consequences. Even with some decline, he likely would have remained among the league’s elite receivers into his early 30s, stabilizing Matthew Stafford’s prime and adding wins during the late 2010s. Together, Sanders and Johnson would not have guaranteed a Super Bowl, but they almost certainly would have delivered sustained relevance, playoff success and organizational credibility.
The Lions’ past is filled with regret and missed opportunity, but the present finally offers optimism. With Dan Campbell as head coach and Brad Holmes as general manager, Detroit appears to have learned from its most painful “what ifs” — and is finally building a future that does not rely on them.