He played 11 NFL seasons from 1967-1977, all with the Lions, before being enshrined in Canton, Ohio, as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 1992. Barney was inducted as a member of the HOF All-Decade Team for the 1960s, was a seven-time Pro Bowl selection and a two-time Pro Bowl selection and Detroit “Pride of Lions” class in 2009. During his days in Detroit, he wore perhaps the franchise’s most sacred number, the number of 20, which was later worn by quarterback Billy Sims and Hall of Famer Barry Sanders before it was retired.
“For more than five decades, Lem dedicated himself to the betterment of others,” Jim Porter, president and CEO of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, said in a statement. “Special Olympics, United Way, Easter Seals, United Negro College Fund, and Boy Scouts of America are just a few of the many organizations that benefited from Lem’s selfless and small-minded giving back to his community. Lem was a regular in Canton during Enshrinement Week, and his constant presence here to welcome new class members will be missed.”
Drafted 34th overall by the Lions in the 1967 NFL Draft, the second-round pick out of Jackson State was a hit in Detroit from the start. He had a rookie campaign that remains one of the best in NFL history and was rightfully named the 1967 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. It was a great start to a Hall of Fame career.
Barney, who played in 140 career games, would become the first Jackson State player to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Although small, it’s an all-star group that also includes Walter Payton, who is listed a year behind Barney, Jackie Slater and Robert Brazile.
A native of Gulfport, Mississippi, Barney was born on September 8, 1945.
During his days at Jackson State, he was a ballhawk, making a career-high 26 interceptions with a school-record 11 in one year. These skills translated into the professional ranks with remarkable immediacy.
In his Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign, Barney posted 10 interceptions, leading the league in INTs, INT return yards (232) and interceptions returned for scores (three) — the latter still tied for all-time in NFL history by a rookie.
It was a foreshadowing of a career full of match breaks.
Barney stands as the only player in league history to record a punt return, punt return, punt return and INT return of 70 or more yards, according to NFL Research. For his career, he had 56 interceptions – with seven resulting in scores and 17 fumble recoveries.
Despite his exceptional greatness, Barney made just one playoff appearance in his career, which came in a 10-4 season in 1970. It was the only time the Lions posted double-digit wins during his playing career. Detroit lost, 5-0, to the Dallas Cowboys in the Division Cup.
From 1957, when the Lions won their last NFL championship, to 1982 when Detroit made back-to-back postseason appearances, the ’70 campaign stood as the only playoff berth.
It was in 1970 that Gaye tried out unsuccessfully for the Lions. The following year, Barney and bandmate Mel Farr sang background vocals on Gaye’s timeless classic “What’s Going On.”
More than two decades after Barney’s Hall of Fame was established in Canton, Ohio, he sang the National Anthem at the 2015 induction ceremony.
For more than a decade in Detroit, it was Barney’s star act that sang out.
He was a ball hawk and a playmaker, sparkling in his game no matter what his squad was up against, playing – and singing – beautifully fall after fall.