Detroit acquired veteran offensive tackle Charlie Bradshaw…
Detroit acquired veteran offensive tackle Charlie Bradshaw from New Orleans for running back Bruce McLenna. Bradshaw became a two-year starter for the Lions and gave Detroit a clear on-field return. McLenna was recovering from knee surgery when the Saints acquired him and never appeared in a New Orleans regular-season game, creating a wide gap in realized value between the two sides.
Detroit Lions Received
- player Charlie Bradshaw
New Orleans Saints Received
- player Bruce McLenna
Trade Analysis
Why the Trade Happened
Detroit sent running back Bruce McLenna to expansion New Orleans in March 1967 for veteran offensive tackle Charlie Bradshaw. McLenna was recovering from knee surgery when the Saints acquired him. The package is stated only to the level that published football histories can support, so an unidentified choice stays unidentified instead of being attached to an uncertain player. That keeps the exchange coherent while still allowing the football value on each side to be judged from the assets that are known.
What Detroit Lions Received
Detroit received an established tackle and immediately put him to work. Bradshaw started all 14 games for the Lions in 1967 and 13 more in 1968, giving Detroit two seasons of dependable line play. The grade weighs both the price paid and the practical value that followed. A named draft choice is credited only when the selection can be connected to the exchange, while a general future choice remains general. That approach makes the historical comparison useful without overstating details that surviving accounts do not settle.
What New Orleans Saints Received
New Orleans received McLenna but released him before the 1967 regular season. He never played a regular-season game for the Saints, so the expansion club received no meaningful on-field return from its side of the exchange. The other side is judged by the same standard: immediate games, starting value, later career impact, and the quality of any draft assets received. Where one part of the package produced little or no NFL value, that matters even if the original transaction looked balanced on paper.
Final Verdict
Detroit earns an A- and New Orleans a D. Bradshaw became a two-year starter for the Lions while McLenna never appeared in a Saints regular-season game. The outcome creates a decisive value gap. The verdict reflects the strongest supportable version of the transaction and the career value that followed. It does not depend on assigning an uncertain pick to a player simply to make the package look more complete. The result is a full historical evaluation of the trade that can stand on the known facts.