How Lions Have Fared with 61st Overall Pick

Lions are equipped with seven total picks, including the No. 61 overall selection.

Shaun Rogers, Lions / Geoff Burke, USA TODAY Sports

Headed into this April's NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions are equipped with seven total picks, including the No. 61 overall selection.

The Lions have picked in that spot five times before, and most recently in 2007. 

Let's take a look at what the franchise has done with the 61st pick over the years.  

George Poschner 

Poschner was the Lions’ first ever selection at No. 61 overall. He was selected by the organization in 1943. 

The tight end, who never played a single snap with the Lions, starred on Georgia’s 1943 Rose Bowl-winning team. 

Also, he notably served in World War II, ultimately becoming so severely wounded that both of his legs and the fingers on his right hand had to be amputated. 

George Parozzo

The offensive tackle was drafted by Detroit in 1954 out of William & Mary. Just like Poschner, Parozzo never suited up for a single down with the Lions. 

Benny Nelson

The defensive back was taken by the Lions at No. 61 in 1964. He never ended up playing in Detroit.

Meanwhile, he was also drafted by the Houston Oilers in the 12th round of the 1964 AFL Draft. He spent a lone season with the Oilers.

Shaun Rogers 

The defensive lineman was the Lions' pick at No. 61 overall in 2001.

The big-bodied defensive tackle is easily Detroit's best ever selection with the 61st pick. In 98 games and seven seasons in Motown, he accumulated 355 total tackles, including 65 for loss, 29 sacks, six forced fumbles and nine fumble recoveries. For his efforts, he racked up two Pro Bowl appearances and a second-team All-Pro selection. 

After his time in Detroit ended, Rogers went on to also play for the Cleveland Browns, the New Orleans Saints and the N.Y. Giants. Of those three franchises, he had the most success with the Browns, with whom he earned his third and final trip to the Pro Bowl. 

Gerald Alexander

The defensive back was the 61st overall pick in the 2007 draft.

Alexander suited up for 21 games over two seasons in Detroit, and amassed 88 total tackles, including three for loss, a couple of sacks, six passes defensed and two interceptions.

He was traded by the Lions to the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2009 (for receiver Dennis Northcutt), and proceeded to play parts of two seasons in Jacksonville. He bounced around in the league after that, playing for the Carolina Panthers, the Miami Dolphins and the N.Y. Jets.

Best all-time picks at No. 61 overall

Here is a collection of the best all-time NFL Draft picks at No. 61:

S Brian Dawkins – 1996 (Nine Pro Bowls, four All-Pro selections, 2018 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee)

WR Vincent Jackson - 2005 (Three Pro Bowls, six 1,000-yard receiving seasons)

WR Allen Robinson - 2014 (One Pro Bowl, three 1,000-yard receiving campaigns)