Ron Kramer

Lore & Background

Kramer played three seasons for the Lions at tight end, appearing in 39 games with 13 starts. He caught 55 passes for 638 yards and a touchdown in his first two seasons, but was slowed by injuries in 1967, catching only four passes for 40 yards. He described his years with the Lions as 'awful' and called head coach Harry Gilmer 'the dumbest guy I ever met.'

In Their Own Story

The November air off the Detroit River had turned to a fine, biting mist that clung to the steel girders of Briggs Stadium. In the tunnel, the smell of liniment and wet wool hung thick. Kramer laced his cleats with the slow, deliberate rhythm of a man who had done this a hundred times before, his eyes fixed on the concrete floor. The crowd noise above was a low, rolling thunder, the kind that vibrates in your sternum. He could hear the snap count already, the cadence of the center calling protection. He stood, rolled his shoulders beneath the padded yoke, and walked out into the cold. The first snap came. He took the handoff, felt the pile wall rise in front of him like a freight train, and drove forward. One yard. Two. The whistle blew. He peeled off his helmet, spat, and grinned at the linebacker still tangled in the turf. That was the whole game, really. One yard at a time, until the other side simply stopped trying.

Reader's Guide

Kramer was a tight end for the Lions, not a running back. He joined the Lions as a free agent in 1965 after playing out his contract with the Packers, and the Lions compensated Green Bay with a first-round draft pick. He was released unconditionally in July 1968 and retired from football to become vice president of Paragon Steel Corp.

Did You Know?

• Kramer was a consensus first-team All-American at Michigan in 1955 and a unanimous All-American in 1956.
• He won nine varsity letters at Michigan in football, basketball, and track.
• Kramer was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the 1957 NBA draft but chose to play football.
• He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1978.