Where are they now? The 1991 Detroit Lions

Coach Wayne Fontes. Then: Fontes spent eight seasons as Lions coach and remains both the winningest and losingest coach in team history with a 67-71 career record. He reached the playoffs four times and is beloved by most of his former players. “I wanted to change the face of the whole Detroit Lion organization, from the custodians to the secretaries to the administrative assistants, I wanted that whole building to be excited about who we were as the Detroit Lions. And that’s what I had to do. I had to change the face of that whole organization. It was in a rut. Every year, it was the same, and I just wanted to change it. And slowly, as that changed, so did the team.” Now: The 76-year-old Fontes is retired in Florida, where he lives on the Gulf of Mexico and said he watches the sun rise and set every day. He won’t attend the reunion ceremony because of recent eye surgery but said he plans to light up a cigar when the ’91 team takes the field.

QB Erik Kramer. Then: Took over as starting quarterback after Rodney Peete tore his Achilles tendon in a Week 9 win over the Dallas Cowboys, and completed 29 of 38 passes for 341 yards and three touchdowns in the Lions’ playoff win later that year. “I just remember there was just so many good players on both sides of the ball, including special teams. We had one of the best special-teams kick returners ever in Mel Gray. He had a lot of big returns. But defense had some great games and offense had some great games. It was a good run, a good combination.” Now: The 51-year-old Kramer said this spring that he wants to work in suicide prevention with kids after surviving his own suicide attempt last year.

RB Barry Sanders. Then: One of the best running backs the NFL has ever seen, Sanders ran for 1,548 yards and a career-high 16 touchdowns in 1991. He had 12 carries for 69 yards against the Cowboys, with 47 of it coming on a memorable fourth-quarter touchdown run. Now: Sanders, 48, remains an ambassador for the Lions and the NFL, making several public appearances a year in Detroit and at league events.

WR Herman Moore. Then: The Lions’ first-round pick in 1991, Moore played as a backup as a rookie but went on to catch 670 passes in 11 seasons in Detroit. “That wasn’t our most athletic team. We’ve had better teams. I think our 1995 team and maybe even some other units were more athletic. It was just the sheer will and closeness. You couldn’t break us apart. We were a family, truly, in every sense of the word.” Now: The 46-year-old entrepreneur is involved with plenty of businesses, including his own sports technology company, coffee roasting and the nonprofit Tackle Life Foundation.

WR Willie Green. Then: Led the Lions with eight catches for 115 yards and two touchdowns in playoff win over the Cowboys, and had a team-best seven receiving touchdowns in his first full season of 1991. “I would say, in my nine-year career and going to a number of playoff games and winning two Super Bowls with Denver, I can say that the top seasons, for me, in my career, I would rank that season as No. 1 and my last year in Carolina as No. 2. … Those two teams were the same, as far as the relationship with the players, a lot of veterans, a lot of mature players. Two coaches in Wayne Fontes and Dom Capers who treated us like veterans and said, ‘Look, this is your team, you guys run it. I’m just here to steer the ship, but you guys are running it.’ And guys took that, and we appreciated it.” Now: The 50-year-old Green owns his own consulting company, the Partnership Alliance Company, where he primarily works in financial services.

WR Mike Farr. Then: A 13-game starter in the regular season, Farr, the youngest son of former Lion Mel Farr, caught five passes for 62 yards in the playoff win over the Cowboys. “The disheartening part about it all was that I just felt that we had a great nucleus in ‘91. I thought that that’d be something we could build on, and the management structure didn’t feel that way. They wanted to come in and bring a tight end because the Washington Redskins ended up winning the Super Bowl that year, so the Lions decided to bring in a tight end. They said we scored too quick and didn’t give the defense enough rest. I said, ‘Wow.’ And then we went to not scoring at all the next year. The Cowboys just capitalized, they just got better at what they did and they’re in the Super Bowl and the rest is history at what they’ve done. I just felt that we had a good nucleus. If we just continued to work on our game and kept the people there, I think that we would have brought a Super Bowl to Detroit, I really do.” Now: Farr, 49, lives in Atlanta, where he’s followed his father’s footsteps in the car business and also owns a pawn shop, Pawn Club.

WR Aubrey Matthews. Then: Suffered a partially torn MCL in the opener against Washington but returned to start the playoff win over the Cowboys. “That particular year was an awesome year to be that close. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to the Super Bowl. But that was probably the signature year of my career, although I was hurt most of that year. But just being a part of that ’91 team was a huge experience, and just being that close to the big game made it all that better.” Now: Matthews, 54, owns his own real estate investment business near Jackson, Miss.

OT Lomas Brown. Then: Played 11 of his 18 NFL seasons for the Lions and was the team’s starting left tackle in 1991, when he was a second-team All-Pro selection. “It was really kind of a bittersweet year. It was, from the standpoint of us winning and how we got on a roll and just with Mike during the season and then Eric, like, three months later, it was just kind of just unbelievable. It was just such a high getting to the NFC championship game, even though it was a low losing it. But with the expectations coming into the next year and years to come, and then all that to be shattered, basically, if you think about it, in a matter of months. All that was just shattered, what took years to build.” Now: At 53, Brown runs youth camps through his Lomas Brown Jr. Foundation and recently published a book, “If These Walls Could Talk,” about his time with the Lions.

OL Eric Andolsek. Then: Andolsek was a fixture on the Lions' offensive line for most of his first four seasons and started every game at left guard in 1991. Death: He was killed June 23, 1992, when a truck ran off road and struck him while he was working in his front yard. “Working with that guy, he was a class act,” tackle Scott Conover said. “He was tough. He pretty much showed you the way. He was strong, and I just watched him, how he went about doing things, how he practiced and everything. I just tried to emulate that.”

C Kevin Glover. Then: A three-time Pro Bowler with the Lions, Glover started all 16 games in 1991. “It’s kind of hard to imagine after all of these years that we’re the last team that won in the playoffs. We felt like we were a good team, but the fact that we didn’t make it over the top and win a Super Bowl for the city and the organization is still a little disappointing. But just (had) some key parts missing every now and then, and we all have a great deal of respect for the programs like the Cowboys and San Fran and the 'Skins, and some of those teams that have won multiple championships.” Now: Glover, 53, is associate athletic director and executive of the M Club at his alma mater, Maryland.

OG Ken Dallafior. Then: Played four of his eight seasons with the Lions and started at right guard in both playoff games. “Throughout that year, there was adversity after adversity, the most tragic during the season was the Mike Utley injury. And it just seemed (that) everybody played off that, and while it wasn’t a term used back then, next man up. We won games with what looked like the MASH unit. We kept winning and then, all of a sudden, it became contagious. It was funny, all of the things in years past that had went against actually worked for us and we got on a roll and won games.” Now: The 57-year-old Dallafior still lives locally and is president of Health Plan Business for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan.

OL Scott Conover. Then: A fifth-round choice out of Purdue, Conover was a part-time starter as a rookie and played right tackle in the playoff win over the Cowboys. “(The season) was great, but we just didn’t get to that final, the pinnacle of what football’s about. And you still think about like, ‘Ah, if you could just go back in time and get another opportunity and do it again.’ Like the fans here, I’m hungry for them to get a win and finally make it to that level.” Now: The 48-year-old Conover lives locally with his wife and two children and helps with outreach for Lions alumni.

DL Marc Spindler. Then: A second-year defensive lineman, Spindler started at left end for the Lions and had 3.5 sacks in 1991. “You could never duplicate the flood of emotions for the entire year. But 25 years later, you look back on it, there’s no doubt, when you really take it all into effect, it’s really bittersweet for a lot of different reasons. I guess, from the selfish standpoint, you’re a young 20-year-old Marc Spindler, and you say, ‘God, I’m in the NFC championship game and look at the team that I have around me. This is a very promising bright future.’ And to never really get it to work again and get back there, that’s a disappointing aspect. But I think even more disappointing is understanding that we lost Mike Utley and then we end up losing Eric Andolsek later that year to a horrific death and we also lost Wayne’s brother, Lenny, and just seemed to not really be able to really recover 100% after that.” Now: A sports radio host after his playing days, the 46-year-old Spindler co-owns 17 Miracle-Ear stores in Chicago, to which he commutes from Detroit several days a week.

NT Lawrence Pete. Then: A part-time starter with the Lions in 1991, Pete played an increased role after Jerry Ball suffered a knee injury. He recovered a Troy Aikman fumble in the fourth quarter of the playoff win. Now: Pete, 50, is a sales associate with the real estate firm NP Dodge in Nebraska.

DL Dan Owens. Then: A second-year player, Owens started every game at defensive end and had five tackles and one sack against the Cowboys. “We had team parties, and everybody came. When Jerry Ball threw a Halloween party, every team member came. We had a Christmas party, every team member came. We had a New Year’s party, every team member came. And no year -- and I was down here in Atlanta for two years -- nothing was like that. Every week, the couples that were married would have a dinner together, and it was just a unique deal where everybody kind of got along and wanted to hang out. So it was very unique and very fun, and it was a one-time shot, because I know teams aren’t like that.” Now: The 49-year-old Owens won three Georgia state championships as a youth football coach and owns two Atlanta fitness facilities called the Forum Athletic Club, along with former Lions teammate Roman Fortin.

LB George Jamison. Then: Played nine of his 12 NFL seasons with the Lions and was one of the team’s most productive linebackers. Had six tackles as the team’s starting left outside linebacker against the Cowboys. Now: A New Jersey native, Jamison, 54, settled locally after his playing career. His daughter, Amber, plays basketball at Northwestern.

LB Chris Spielman. Then: A four-time Pro Bowler, Spielman made first-team All-Pro in 1991 as the leader and middle linebacker of the Lions' defense. He had six tackles and an interception against the Cowboys. “The most memorable (thing about that year) was how our team galvanized because, when Mike got hurt, that can potentially, a situation like that, divide or devastate a team. Because Mike handled that situation better than I think any other person could have handled it, that galvanized our team, and it took us on a nice little run.” Now: Spielman, 51, works as an NFL analyst for Fox and is part of the Lions’ preseason broadcast team.

LB Victor Jones. Then: Played six seasons with the Lions, including finishing with 13 tackles and one fumble recovery in 1991, his third year in Detroit. "(Former Washington coach Joe Gibbs) lives close to where I live, and I see him at Starbucks sometimes, and we talk about that NFC championship game we lost to them in 1991. We talk about how that defense dominated us in the first quarter. We won the Dallas game, and it was a big deal because we hadn't been in a playoff game of that magnitude in awhile. That was a huge game and win for the fans. It's crazy and hard to believe they haven't won a playoff game since. It's almost a bit depressing." Now: The 49-year-old Charlotte, N.C., resident has worked for State Farm Insurance the past three years, servicing North Carolina and South Carolina as a recruiter.

LB Tracy Hayworth. Then: Spent his entire six-year career with Detroit, including 1991 when he made 14 starts and had 43 tackles, two sacks and two fumble recoveries (one returned for a touchdown).

DB Ray Crockett. Then: Spent the first five seasons of his 14-year career with the Lions. His six interceptions tied for second in the NFL in 1991. "I don't know if Wayne Fontes was a prophet or just blowing smoke up our (butt), but he told us after we lost to Washington in the first game, 'Guys, you just got beat by the NFL's best team, and we're going to see these guys again in the playoffs.' I was like, 'Did he really just say that?' I remember thinking, down the road, we'd be good enough to see them again. It happened, of course, but we didn't like the end result. But he was correct: They were the best team in football." Now: The 49-year-old Dallas resident coaches high school football and just wrapped up a preseason internship with the Denver Broncos. He hopes to become a college or professional assistant coach.

CB Melvin Jenkins. Then: The Lions’ starting right cornerback, Jenkins had five tackles and returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown in the playoff win. “We had a tight-knit team. We did a lot of things together. We really hung out together. When they say, 'Hang out,' we hung out together and did a lot of things together. It was a chemistry, and I think that’s what brought us really close, families and everything.” Now: Retired in Arizona, where he volunteers for his 12-year-old son’s football team.

S William White. Then: White had 13 interceptions in six seasons with the Lions and was credited with a team-high seven tackles as the team’s starting safety in the playoff win over the Cowboys. Now: According to the Columbus Dispatch, the 50-year-old White became an engineer after his 11-year playing career. He lives in his native Ohio.

S Bennie Blades. Then: One of three Pro Bowlers on the 1991 Lions defense, Blades started all 16 games that season and played nine of his 10 NFL seasons in Detroit. “I think about that ’91 season, and the catalyst of that whole season was a guy getting injured. That really stopped the crying in us, basically telling us we’re, ourselves, one play away from not playing this game anymore, so what does it truly mean to you?” Now: The enforcer of the Lions' secondary, Blades, 50, said he now works for the Broward County school system in his native Florida.

KR Mel Gray. Then: Gray averaged 15.4 yards per punt return in 1991, when he made his second of four Pro Bowls with the team. “That was one of the most exciting seasons that I had in Detroit because we had so many hopes of getting to the Super Bowl. And we actually, we made a serious run for it. So many guys made so many big plays throughout the season. We had Willie Green, for one, that had a big year. Herman was starting to come on. Of course, Barry had a great year. It seemed like everybody clicked, everybody was doing their part, which was very rare, when everybody did their part throughout the season. And going down to the wire, we just didn’t have the depth to beat a team like the Redskins.” Now: At 63, Gray is back in school, finishing up his degree in history from Prairie View A&M, which he expects to complete in May.

P Jim Arnold. Then: Played 12 seasons, including eight with the Lions. He appeared in all 16 games in 1991 and punted 65 times. His season long was a 71-yarder. "With Barry Sanders in those years, when we had the ball, you didn't want to sit down or get away from the action. Barry would have one of those runs you'd watch and say, 'Did you see that?!' I was probably less busy then (in 1991) than in most years, but it was fun. In those years with Barry, you'd get ready to go in, and we'd get a first down and continue to move the ball, which was awesome. I never went, 'Oh, darn, I didn't get to go in,' but I was always ready to go when they needed me." Now: The 55-year-old Nashville resident is semi-retired, working for a local garden center and helping as a special teams coach for Father Ryan High School.

K Eddie Murray. Then: Played 12 seasons with the Lions and made 19 of 28 field goals during the 1991 season, his last year with the team. “That team was extremely special at that time. And even though we couldn’t finish off what we all had wanted, which was get an opportunity to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, (it was because) they were such a powerhouse team. We ran into a buzz saw at the beginning of the season the very first game against them and we ran into the same situation when we played them in the NFC championship game. The Redskins were a cut above everybody in the NFL, let alone just the NFC representation for the Super Bowl." Now: The 60-year-old Murray still lives locally, where he serves on the board for the nonprofit Hope Network, which helps individuals suffering from a variety of conditions achieve independence.

QB Rodney Peete. Then: Threw for 1,339 yards while starting eight games as the Lions quarterback in 1991. He missed the playoffs after tearing his Achilles tendon in a regular season win over the Cowboys but went on to have a 16-year NFL career. Now: After his playing career, Peete, 50, went on to have a successful broadcasting career and now stars in the OWN docuseries “For Peete’s Sake” along with his wife, actress Holly Robinson Peete. Their HollyRod Foundation supports individuals and families living with autism.

QB Andre Ware. Then: Former seventh overall selection in the 1990 NFL draft spent all four years of his career in Detroit. He was 4-for-9 passing for 15 yards and one interception in mop-up duty during the 1991 playoffs.

NT Jerry Ball. Then: One of the leaders of the Lions' defense, Ball had two sacks in 13 games, but he missed the playoffs because of a late-season knee injury. Had the Lions made the Super Bowl, Ball likely would have been back on the field. “Being a Texan, you’ve got to know that all the Cowboys fans and loyalists was riding me, so when we put foot in their ass during the regular season and then came back and put it again in the playoffs, you know it was a silent off-season in my world. You better believe I went and knocked on every door from all the ones that would send me all those little -- back then, you’d get the messages that would come across the desk -- ‘OK, y’all talking.’” Now: The 51-year-old Ball is chairman and CEO of his Houston-based energy and infrastructure consulting firm, Invictus Partners.

WR Brett Perriman. Then: Perriman led the Lions with 52 catches and 668 yards receiving in 1991, his first of six seasons with the Lions. Now: The 51-year-old is recovering from a stroke suffered this year. Laundria Perriman said her husband is “making improvements every day.” “He’s learning how to stand and walk, and that’s coming along well,” she said. “He remembers -- now that’s the thing. He does remember everybody that he played with and he gets excited when he talks about them or he talks to some of them. His game has changed, so to speak. He’s competing in a different kind of way now.”

WR Robert Clark. Then: 1991 saw him start 14 games, finishing with 47 receptions for 640 yards and six touchdowns. He played three of his six seasons in Detroit.

RG Mike Utley. Then: Played three seasons with the Lions, starting the first 11 games of the 1991 season before a neck injury paralyzed him. "It was the off-season that made the difference to that team. It wasn't one individual person. Coach Wayne Fontes challenged us to be better than what we were. The first 11 games, it wasn't perfect, but we knew what we had to do to finish off the season, and that's exactly what we did. The rest of the season, they did become perfect, and that's what was the difference." Now: With his wife, Dani, the 50-year-old runs the Mike Utley Foundation in Washington state, in hopes of finding a cure for paralysis.

DB Sheldon White. Then: A backup defensive back who played three seasons with the Lions, White had three tackles and a pass breakup in the playoff win over the Cowboys. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard a louder stadium in my frickin’ life than (the Silverdome for the playoff game). When this place is rocking, when Detroit’s rocking, I have never heard that sound. With the exception of maybe one other time, it was that Monday night game we had a few years ago (against the Bears). Those are the two loudest places that I’ve heard. That’s really what I kind of took from it, it was deafening in that stadium. Eighty thousand strong Michiganders just screaming like crazy. It was awesome.” Now: The Lions’ pro personnel director in 2000-15, White now serves as a consultant for the Michigan State football program.

DE Jeff Hunter. Then: Played 27 games over the course of three seasons with the Lions. During the 1991 season, he recorded 16 tackles and six sacks, including one against the Cowboys in the postseason. "The way we meshed and blended together to become the 1991 NFC Central champions was great, even though we had some heartaches. Wayne lost (brother Len Fontes) that year (after the season). We lost Eric Andolsek that year (after the season). Those tragedies brought us closer together. Experiencing all of us coming together and becoming a real, close tight-knit group that we were all fond of was the takeaway for me. During my coaching experience now, I coach the same thing: You have to be together as one. You can't have any individuals as a team." Now: The 50-year-old middle school football coach works in the Dougherty County School System in Albany, Ga.

RB Don Overton. Then: Appeared in 14 games and had 14 carries for 59 yards as well as four receptions for 38 yards. He played three seasons in the NFL.

TE Derek Tennell. Then: 1991 was the lone season of his six-year career in was in Detroit. That season he had four receptions for 43 yards and started two games.

LB Anthony Bell. Then: Played one season in Detroit, making 10 appearances during the 1991 season and recovering one fumble.

CB Kevin Scott. Then: Appeared in every game of his 1991 rookie season. Spent three seasons with Detroit, playing 44 games, making 10 starts and recording four interceptions.

OT Bubba Paris. Then: Spent his final season of his nine-year career with the Lions, appearing in only two games.

DE Darryl Milburn. Then: 1991 was his one season in the NFL, he played in two games for the Lions.

LB Dennis Gibson. Then: Averaged six tackles per game in 1991 and played seven seasons with the Lions. "We finally got it rolling when I was there. I was drafted and came in 1987. We struggled the first few years I was there. We drafted this guy named Barry Sanders, and we just got better really. It was a big deal. Detroit is a blue collar town. They supported us, winning and losing, and the fans were hungry to finally get that chance to be successful. We were really excited about it." Now: The 52-year-old Ankeny, Iowa native has owns his own restaurant and coaches within the junior football program within his town. He has three boys and one girl and enjoys walleye fishing in northern Minnesota.

DT Kelvin Pritchett. Then: The Lions’ second first-round pick in 1991, Pritchett played as a backup as a rookie and spent 10 of his 14 NFL seasons in Detroit. “We started off on a sour note (that year). We started off by losing to Washington -- I think they blew us out, (45-0). And then we went on a roll, won some games, lost some games, and wound up being 12-4 and winning the division and going into the playoffs. And many people didn’t give us a chance against the Cowboys, and we surprised a lot of people. And the city was 100% behind us.” Now: The 46-year-old Pritchett hosts a pregame Lions show every Sunday on WXYT-FM (97.1).

OG Shawn Bouwens. Then: Appeared in 16 games during 1991, his rookie season, and played four of his five-year career in Detroit.

LB Toby Caston. Then: Caston played five seasons as a backup linebacker for the Lions and two more with the Houston Oilers. He was killed in car accident a year after he retired, in 1994, when he lost control of his sports car and hit a concrete barrier.

LB Mike Cofer. Then: Drafted by the Lions in the third round in 1983 and was a Pro Bowl selection in 1988. Had 62.5 career sacks in 1983-92, all with the Lions. Played two games in 1991 before getting injured.

DB Bruce Alexander. Then: Played in 18 games over three seasons with the Lions, including nine in 1991 where he had one interception.

OL Roman Fortin. Then: Played only 1991, his rookie season, with the Lions, appearing in 16 games and making two starts.

LB Niko Noga. Then: Spent the final three seasons of his career in Detroit, including 1991 when he appeared in 16 games and recovered one fumble.

DB Terry Taylor. Then: In his 13-year career, 1991 was his final season of a three-season stint with the Lions. He had four interceptions in 11 games that year. Now: Taylor, 55, coached high school football after his playing days but he told Seahawks.com that he retired after suffering a knee injury.

QB Chuck Long. Then: 1991 was his last season in the NFL during his six-year career that spanned five years with the Lions.

TE Dave Little. Then: Finished his eight-year career with one season in Detroit, appearing in two games.