Former Lions and Rams defensive tackle Roger Brown died Friday, the Lions announced. He was 84.
Brown made six Pro Bowls in 10 NFL seasons, seven played with the Lions and three with the Rams. Detroit made him a fourth-round choice in 1960.
Brown earned first-team All-Pro in 1962 and 1963. Sacks did not become an official statistic until 1982, but according to the Lions, Brown had seven sacks of Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr in a 1962 Thanksgiving win over the Packers.
Brown earned five consecutive Pro Bowls with the Lions from 1962-66 before joining the Rams in 1967.
“Roger Brown will always hold a special place in our team’s history,” Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp said in a statement. “A member of the Lions’ esteemed ‘Fearsome Foursome’ of the 1960s with Alex Karras, Darris McCord and Sam Williams, Roger’s career accomplishments solidify his legacy alongside some of the all-time greats of our game.”
Brown played three seasons in Los Angeles alongside Deacon Jones, Merlin Olsen and Lamar Lundy before retiring following the 1969 season.
The Lions inducted Brown, along with Karras, into the team’s hall of fame, Pride of the Lions, in 2018. Brown also earned enshrinement into the Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2015, College Football Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.