Sheila Hamp, Owner of the Detroit Lions, Declared QB Jared Goff’s Retirement.
The team has come a long way since Detroit supporters heckled owner Sheila Hamp during Calvin Johnson’s Ford Field Hall of Fame ring presentation. “Let’s go Lions” and “Jared Goff” have taken the place of “sell the team” chants, even outside of football and at away games.
The team would never have been able to change as much as they did without a humble, brave, and enthusiastic owner. Hamp has proven to be the best person for the position in Detroit.
But where does the Lions’ matriarch stand on the list of the 32 NFL owners?
The Athletic and analyst Mike Sando ranked Hamp twenty-third in their annual owner evaluations in December.
In light of the situation, Hamp appears to be reasonably ranked. Commentator Mike Sando noted that Hamp’s mother, Martha Ford, was well-intentioned but detached, giving her coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn. The team overhaul, masterfully executed by head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes, took some time to really take off.
Now that the Lions have won two playoff games in the same postseason—a first since the Super Bowl era—and earned their first NFC North crown, 23rd feels a little low. Hamp deserves recognition for giving the team the resources it needs to keep getting better while enduring through a plan that would have been easy to give up on.