Arizona Cardinals and Detroit Lions players: who played for both

Who played for both the Cardinals and Lions?

116 players were on both the Arizona Cardinals and the Detroit Lions rosters between 1960 and 2026, including Ray Brown, Dave Krieg, Matt Prater and Josh McCown. 64 of them were with the Cardinals first and 47 with the Lions first; 5 joined both in the same season.

Did you know?

  • Leo Sugar is the earliest on this list to complete the pair: Cardinals first, then the Lions from 1962.
  • Ben Stille is the most recent: Cardinals first, then the Lions from 2026.
  • Lomas Brown spent the most seasons across the two: 3 with the Cardinals and 11 with the Lions.
  • 10 of them had two or more separate spells with one of the teams, such as Kyle Vanden Bosch.
  • Most common positions on this list: LB (20), DL (14), DB (14), QB (10).

How many can you name?

Name players who were on both the Cardinals and the Lions. The surname is enough. 0 / 116

All 116 players, most seasons first

Seasons on each roster (1960–2026). A gap of a season or more starts a new spell.
PlayerPosCardinalsLions
Ray BrownG1986–19882002–2003
Dave KriegQB19951994
Matt PraterK2021–20242014–2020
Josh McCownQB2002–20052006
Lomas BrownT1996–19981985–1995
Dwight FreeneyDE20152017
Mark RoyalsP19871995–1996
Adrian PetersonRB20172020
Anquan BoldinWR2003–20092016
Cory ReddingDE2015–20162003–2008
Al BakerDL1983–19861978–1982
Andre RobertsWR2010–20132016
Drew StantonQB2013–20172008–2011
Larry FooteILB20142009
Chris OldhamDB1991–19941990
J.B. BrownDB19981999–2000
Joe RobbDL1961–19671968–1971
Josh BynesLB2017–20182014–2016
Leonard DavisG2001–20062011
Paris LenonOLB2010–20122006–2008
Kent GrahamQB1996–19971995
Kyle Vanden BoschDE2001–2002, 20042010–2012
Tramaine BrockCB20192020
Bill TriplettRB1962–1963, 1965–19661968–1972
Dave AhrensLB1981–19841988
Jeff DriskelQB20232019
Joshua DobbsQB20232022, 2026
Logan ThomasTE20142019
Matt JoyceT1996–20002001–2004
Oday AboushiOL20182019–2020
Pat CarterTE1996–19971988
Tahir WhiteheadLB20212012–2017
Bryant JohnsonWR2003–20072009–2010
Devon KennardLB2020–20222018–2019
Evan BrownOL2024–20252020–2022
Kurt AllermanLB1977–1979, 1982–19841985
Mike DawsonDL1976–19821983
Miller FarrDB1970–19721973
Rob FredricksonOLB1999–20021998
Robert MasseyDB1991–19931994–1995
Bob BellDL1974–19781971–1973
Caraun ReidDL20192014–2015, 2017
Darren FellsTE2014–20162017, 2021
Dave LittleTE19901991
Ezekiel TurnerLB2018–20232024–2025
Jessie ClarkRB1988–19891988
Josh WoodsLB20232021–2022
Larry TharpeOL19951992–1994, 1997–1998
Michael BrimDB19881989
Niko NogaLB1984–19881989–1991
Sam WycheQB19761974
Troy WaltersWR20062007
Wayne SmithDB1982–19861980–1982
Anthony BellLB1986–19901991
Ben GrahamP2008–20112011
Ben NiemannLB20222024
Charles WashingtonDB2019–20222016–2018
George IzoQB19601965
Jimmy HillDB1960–19641965
Joe SchmiesingDL1968–19711972
Kareem MartinLB2014–20172020
Mario BatesRB1998–19992000
Matthew MulliganTE20142016
Micheal SpurlockWR20062013
Andre ChachereDB2019, 2023–20242018
Bernard WilsonDL1994–19981993
Billy GambrellWR1963–19671968
Brad OatesOL1976–1977, 1979–19801978
Brandon McDonaldCB20102010–2011
Crezdon ButlerCB2011–20122015–2016
Darrell DanielsTE2018–20212023
Derrick MooreRB1996–19971993–1994
Ernie ClarkLB19681963–1967
Langston MooreDT2005–20062006–2008
LeVar WoodsOLB2001–20042005–2006
Marcus BellDT2001–20032004–2006
Marcus CooperCB20162018
Ross TravisTE20212021
Roy LopezDL2023–2024, 20262025
Stoney CaseQB1995–19982000
Terrence HoltFS20072003–2006
Tommy BennettDB1996–20002001
Trystan ColonOL2023–20242025
Bobby PriceDB20232020–2022
Bobby WilliamsDB1966–19671969–1971
Eric BanksDL2022–20232021–2022
Jacquies SmithDE20182017
Jeremy RossWR20162013–2014
Jermar JeffersonRB20252021–2024
Julian OkwaraLB20242020–2023
Kevin StrongDL20232019–2021
Larry SwiderP19801979
Reginald SwintonWR20052003–2004
Terry MillerLB1971–19741970
Zach ZennerRB20192015–2018
Bam KnightRB2025–20262023
Ben StilleDL2023–20242026
Chris JonesDB2018–20192020
David BloughQB20222019–2021
Gene HamlinOL19731972
Hugh McInnisTE1960–19621964
Jammie RobinsonDB20242025
Monte LeeLB19611963–1964
Thurston ArmbristerLB20182016–2017
Trevor NowaskeLB20232023–2026
Troy JohnsonWR1986–19871989
Will HoldenOL2017–20182021
Hakeem VallesTE20162017–2018
Leo SugarDL19601962
Mike MelinkovichDL1965–19661967
Zaviar GoodenOLB20162016
Gary HaddDL19891988
Jon BrooksLB19801979
Mike AlfordOL19651966
Mike McGrawLB19761977
Rick OgleLB19711972

From the nflverse roster files (CC BY 4.0), refreshed 2026-10-06. A season counts when the player was on the roster: from 2002 on, at least one regular-season or playoff week as active, injured reserve or inactive (practice squad alone does not count); 1960–2001 use the season rosters.Cardinals seasons include the St. Louis Cardinals (1960–87) and the Phoenix Cardinals (1988–93).

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Arizona Cardinals and…

Bears 107Commanders 107Giants 104Chargers 100Vikings 100Titans 100Eagles 9949ers 99Browns 97Jets 93

Detroit Lions and…

Colts 117Browns 111Saints 111Falcons 110Dolphins 109Rams 108Seahawks 107Commanders 10649ers 105Buccaneers 104

All team pairs

Questions

How many players have played for both the Arizona Cardinals and the Detroit Lions?

116 in the nflverse roster files from 1960 to 2026, including Ray Brown, Dave Krieg, Matt Prater and Josh McCown. Players whose time with one of the teams was practice squad only, or before 1960, are not counted.

Who was the first player on this list to play for both?

Leo Sugar: Arizona Cardinals first, then the Detroit Lions from 1962.

Who has played for both recently?

Joshua Dobbs, Evan Brown, Ezekiel Turner, Roy Lopez, Trystan Colon and Jermar Jefferson and 4 more, with a season on one of the two rosters in 2025 or 2026.

Does a player count if the team has moved or changed its name?

Yes. Seasons count for today's franchise, the way the league keeps team history. Cardinals seasons include the St. Louis Cardinals (1960–87) and the Phoenix Cardinals (1988–93).

Rosters from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). Team logos are trademarks of their respective teams (logos via TheSportsDB). Independent and not affiliated with the NFL or any team. Credits