Kalif Raymond '16, a Holy Cross football alumnus and current NFL player for the Detroit Lions, has earned All-Pro second team honors from the Associated Press as a punt returner, as announced on Friday, Jan. 10. It marks the second time in the last three seasons that Raymond has earned this honor. 

Raymond's 13.8-yard average per punt return ranked as the third-best in the NFL this year, and he returned one punt 47 yards for a touchdown against Tennessee — earning him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors for Week 15. His 413 punt return yards ranked atop the league in 2024. He also tallied 17 receptions and two touchdowns as a receiver. 

Over his last four seasons with Detroit, Raymond has averaged 12.4 yards per punt return with a pair of touchdown returns. 

Raymond was inducted into the Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame in November. During his tenure with the Crusaders, Raymond caught 155 passes for 1,683 yards and 14 scores, while recording 4,059 all-purpose yards with 18 total touchdowns. He was a first team All-Patriot League honors in 2015 as both a wide receiver and a return specialist, after previously being named to the first team as a return specialist in 2012.

The Lions finished the 2024 regular season with a 15-2 record and enter the playoffs as the top-seeded team in the NFC.

Raymond was one of five Crusaders to appear in an NFL game this season — along with Carolina Panthers receiver Jalen Coker, Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman C.J. Hanson, Indianapolis Colts linebacker Liam Anderson and outside linebacker Benton Whitley, who played in two games with the New York Giants and is currently rostered with the Arizona Cardinals. 

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