Bennie Blades was a high school and college All-American, a NCAA National Champion, the Jim Thorpe Award Winner (Best College Defensive Back in America), named to multiple NFL Pro Bowls and is a member of the High school and NCAA Halls of Fame. After his stellar college playing days at the University of Miami, Bennie played 10 seasons in the NFL.

The Lions selected the 1987 Jim Thorpe Award winner and All-American with the third overall pick in the 1988 NFL Draft and Blades went on to earn NFL All-Rookie honors for the 1988 season. Known for his hard hits and aggressive play, Blades was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1991 in addition to receiving First-Team All-NFL and First-team All-NFC honors. He was the Lions’ Defensive MVP in 1992 and led the team with 132 tackles in 1996, which was one of three 100-tackle seasons he had for the Lions. Blades was a key component to a Lions’ defense that helped the team claim the 1991 NFC Central title and a berth in the NFC Championship game, along with three other playoff appearances in the 1990s. At the time of his retirement his 815 career tackles placed him second on the Lions’ all-time list.