ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- The entire Detroit Lions front office showed up in matching gear in the draft day war room.
As they selected their Day 3 picks, they decided to break out Detroit's brand new all-black uniform with head coach Dan Campbell's No. 89 on it.
In rounds 4-7, the Lions selected OT Giovanni Manu (British Columbia), RB Sione Vaki (Utah), DT Mekhi Wingo (LSU), and G Christian Mahogany (Boston College) all while sporting Campbell's jersey.
Lions GM Brad Holmes said it was team president and CEO Rod Wood's idea.
"I thought it looked awesome on television. I mean just the texts that I was getting and just me seeing it, I was like 'wow, that's even cooler than I thought it was gonna be,'" Holmes said. "But, it was Rod's idea with the new blacks and just the whole story, I'm sure you guys heard about Dan when he wanted the black jerseys back so it all kind of came full circle."
Campbell pushed for the return of the black uniforms during his first draft in 2021 as Detroit's head coach, but Wood challenged him to win the division first.
Now, fresh off winning their first division championship in three decades, the Lions announced that they are bringing back black jerseys as an alternate this upcoming season.
Detroit last wore the black jerseys twice a season from 2005-07, when Campbell was a member of the team.
The 6-foot-5 former Lions tight end caught the final touchdown of his NFL career in a black Detroit uniform from quarterback Jon Kitna on a 23-yard reception on Christmas Eve 2006 at Ford Field.
"It's a new attitude. It's a new style and it's our style," Campbell said during the uniform unveil at Ford Field on April 18th. "So, with that, the jerseys come out with it."
