Legendary Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson will be inducted into the Pride of the Lions this upcoming season.
The Pride of the Lions is a permanent display inside Ford Field that honors the team's greatest players in history.
Watch our interview with Calvin Johnson after the surprise below
Lions Chief Operating Officer Mike Disner surprised Johnson with the honor during his golf outing which took place Monday at Detroit Golf Club.
Last year, the team inducted offensive tackle Lomas Brown, and Johnson will join 20 other players who are in the Pride of the Lions.
The team will honor Johnson during halftime of their homecoming game on Sept. 30, a Monday Night Football matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.
"When I look around Ford Field, there are two things missing. The first is a Super Bowl banner that hopefully Coach Campbell, the players, can work their butts off this year to try and achieve. Second, is Calvin's name in the rafters," Disner said.
Watch a video of the surprise below
The players in the Pride of the Lions are:
- Lomas Brown
- Chris Spielman
- Roger Brown
- Alex Karras
- Herman Moore
- Lem Barney
- Jack Christiansen
- Dutch Clark
- Lou Creekmur
- Jason Hanson
- Dick "Night Train" Lane
- S Yale Lary
- Bobby Lane
- Dick LeBeau
- Barry Sanders
- Charlie Sanders
- Joe Schmidt
- Dick Stanfel
- Doak Walker
- Alex Wojciechowicz
Johnson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021 and there had been a rift with the Lions after he retired in 2015 and the team asked him to pay back part of his signing bonus.
However, over the past couple of years, the team has worked on mending its relationship with Johnson and he has been to more and more team events.
In a 2023 article from Eric Woodyard of ESPN, Johnson has credited Disner for helping mend the relationship with the team.
"I always say Mike Disner's been a huge part of bringing this thing back together with the team," Johnson said to ESPN. "So I'm appreciative of them, appreciative of the whole organization allowing me to have it here and collabing with me in doing that because it's a heck of an experience for these kids."
He played nine seasons for the Lions, totaling 731 catches, 11,619 career receiving yards and 83 career touchdowns.
When he retired, Johnson held several NFL records, including the most receiving yards in a season (1,964 in 2012) and most consecutive games with 100 or more receiving yards.
He still holds the Lions record for most receptions and receiving yards.
