Glover Quin – 2014
Statistics: 16 games played, 7 interceptions*, 73 total tackles, 99% of defensive snaps played
*Led NFL
Retrospective: One of the most reliable and impactful Lions defenders of the last decade, Glover Quin is another player that could have had several seasons be appropriate for this list. 2014 however saw him make significant contributions to a top-tier defense.
He had made an excellent first impression with the Lions in his first season with the team the year prior, yet Quin became a playmaking ballhawk in 2014, earning his first and only Pro Bowl nod and leading the league with seven interceptions. That nearly matched his career total up to that point of eight.
His most memorable play of the year came at a critical moment. In a Week 7 home game, his interception of quarterback Drew Brees late in the fourth quarter led to a game-winning touchdown drive against the New Orleans Saints. It was an important part of the Lions’ mid-season four-game winning streak, three of them of four or fewer points.
Quin would also finish the season on a tear, picking off a pass in four of their last five games, with each pick coming in a win. It included a sliding, juggling grab against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a convincing win.
Perhaps most impressively, Quin was counted on in basically every situation. He played every defensive snap of the season, save for a handful in Weeks 1 and 17, including their heartbreaking playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys. It would become a hallmark of Quin’s time with the Lions; he played in 95% of the team’s defensive snaps in his six seasons in Detroit. He was undoubtedly one of the Lions’ best free-agent signings of the decade, and it paid off in a big way in 2014.