Ndamukong Suh is officially retired, but he’s not done talking about his time with the Detroit Lions, and let’s just say he has some feelings.
The former No. 2 overall pick, who dominated on the defensive line for the Lions from 2010 to 2014, recently opened up about his contract situation in Detroit. And in true Suh fashion, he didn’t mince words.
TLDR:
Ndamukong Suh recently said the Lions should’ve paid him more than Matthew Stafford.
He believed he was part of the team’s “big three” along with Stafford and Calvin Johnson.
Detroit prioritized Stafford, so Suh left for Miami, where he became the NFL’s highest-paid defender.
Suh has since retired, but his Detroit departure still stings, for him and for some Lions fans.
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Ndamukong Suh Says He Got the “Short End of the Stick”
In a candid moment following his retirement announcement, Suh reflected on what could have been in Detroit — and how money (or the lack of it) changed everything. Suh believes the Lions undervalued him when it came time to talk extension and that he should have been paid more than quarterback Matthew Stafford.
“Detroit really gave me the short end of the stick,” Suh said as quoted by Lions OnSI. “I should have been paid more than Matthew Stafford, because I was the next first round pick for them coming out in the draft.”
He added that at the time, he believed the Lions’ future rested on their “big three”, Calvin Johnson, Matthew Stafford, and himself. But while Johnson and Stafford cashed in with massive contracts, Suh said he felt like an afterthought.
“I felt like I was going to be a cornerstone for them, but they didn’t value me enough to say ‘Hey, you’re not going to be paid more than our quarterback.’ What I said was, ‘I am going to prove you guys wrong, I, at the end of the day, deserve to be one of the cornerstones.’”
A Record Deal — Just Not in Detroit
Let’s rewind the numbers for a second:
In 2015, Stafford inked a 5-year, $135 million extension ($27M/year).
In 2012, Johnson signed his 8-year, $132 million deal ($16.5M/year).
And in 2015, Suh left town for Miami, signing a 6-year, $114.375 million deal ($19M/year), which made him the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history at the time.
So Suh got paid, just not by the team that drafted him. And while Stafford and Johnson became long-term Lions legends, Suh took his talents to the Dolphins and carved out a respected 13-year career that included 5 Pro Bowls and 3 First Team All-Pro honors.
Suh’s tone wasn’t bitter, but it was honest. He felt he earned more, and Detroit’s decision not to invest in him like they did in their offensive stars left a lasting impact.
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The Bottom Line
Ndamukong Suh might be done with football, but the legacy he built in Detroit, and the “what if” of his exit, will be debated for years. In his eyes, he was more than just a piece of the Lions puzzle. He was a cornerstone who never got his due.
Whether you agree or not, one thing is clear: Suh never stopped believing in his own worth.