NFL: The 30 most incredible duos in league history
By Brad Weiss
19. Dick LeBeau and Dick “Night Train” Lane, Detroit Lions
Beginning in 1960, the cornerback tandem of Dick LeBeau and Dick “Night Train” Lane would become the premier duo at the position in the NFL. Over the next six seasons, the combination of LeBeau and Lane in the Detroit Lions’ defensive backfield was outright dominant, as the two earned numerous honors.
Lane came to the Lions via trade. Over the next six seasons, the franchise put together four winning campaigns. In his first four seasons with the Lions, Lane was an interception machine. He nabbed 30 of them, including six in 1961, his highest total as a member of the Lions.
LeBeau played 14 seasons in Detroit, setting the franchise record with 62 interceptions. During a 12-year period, LeBeau had at least three interceptions per season. A football lifer, LeBeau won two Super Bowls as an assistant coach. Like Lane, he is currently enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Outside of Lane and LeBeau, the Lions also had stars in the defensive backfield in the form Yale Lary and Lem Barney. The Lions may have never won a championship with LeBeau and Lane anchoring their secondary, but in the history of the NFL, there have been few duos at the cornerback position that have had the kind of dominating presence like those two men.