Former Detroit Lion Greg Landry, the team’s last Pro Bowl QB for nearly three decades, has died at age 77, the team announced Friday night.
‘We join the NFL community in mourning the loss of former Lions quarterback and coach Greg Landry,’ the Lions posted on social media on Friday night.
Landry was drafted by the Lions at No. 11 overall in 1968 and played 11 seasons (1968-78) for the franchise. The Massachusetts alum completed 55.5% of his passes for 12,451 yards, 80 touchdowns and 81 interceptions as a Lion, among the franchise’s career leaders.
Landry’s best season as a Lion came in 1971, when he completed 52.1% of his passes for 2,237 yards, 16 TDs and 13 interceptions en route to Pro Bowl and All-Pro nods and a ninth-place finish in Associated Press MVP voting. The Lions didn’t have another Pro Bowler under center until Matthew Stafford was so honored in 2014.
He finished his career with the Baltimore Colts (1979-81) before a stint in the USFL, with the Chicago Blitz (1983) and Arizona Wranglers (1984), brought a return to the NFL for one game with the Chicago Bears in 1984.
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Landry went on to coach in the NFL for more than a decade, most notably serving as the Lions’ quarterbacks coach in 1995-96 and the Bears’ offensive coordinator from 1988-92; he also served as the University of Illinois’ OC in 1993-94.