Mike Disner enters his 19th season in the National Football League and his seventh with the Detroit Lions. In May 2022, he was named the organization's Chief Operating Officer after previously serving as Senior Vice President of Football and Business Administration. In his current role, Disner assumes responsibilities across both the football and business management teams, overseeing the organization's football operations and football administration, as well as leading the Lions' strategy and revenue teams. Disner's leadership has helped establish a supportive and efficient working relationship between the football and business operations that has led to more creative opportunities to enhance the Lions brand.
During the 2021 offseason, Disner worked alongside Principal Owner and Chair Sheila Hamp, President and CEO Rod Wood and Special Assistant to President/CEO and Chairperson Chris Spielman to reshape the culture and leadership of the Lions football operation. The group led a broad search that resulted in the hiring of Lions Executive Vice President and General Manager Brad Holmes and Head Coach Dan Campbell. The newly formed group continues to shepherd a new era of success for the Lions organization.
Disner's leadership has helped the Lions achieve historic success the last two seasons. In 2024, the Lions set records during the regular season, posting the most wins (15), touchdowns scored (70) and points scored (564) in a single season in franchise history. The Lions captured their second-consecutive NFC North division title with a 31-9 Week 18 win over rival Minnesota and secured the number-one seed in the NFC for the first time in team history. In 2023, the team finished the season with a 12-5 record and clinched a division title for the first time in 30 years. The Lions went on to appear in their second-ever NFC Championship Game, their first since the 1991 season.
Off the field, Disner's teams have helped the Lions' business goals reach new heights. In 2024, Michigan-based Meijer became the official naming rights partner of the Lions practice facility in Allen Park – now officially known as the Meijer Performance Center. In March of 2025, the Lions and Ford Motor Company extended the stadium naming rights agreement for Ford Field. Ford Field has been the home of the Lions since 2002, making it the second longest tenured naming rights partnership in the NFL.
Disner joined the Lions in 2019 with an extensive background in player contract negotiations and NFL salary cap regulations both at the club and League level. During his first two season with the club, he served as vice president of football administration and focused on matters pertaining to the club's salary cap management, player contract negotiations and compliance with the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement. Disner also oversaw the club's analytics efforts and financial strategic planning as it relates to player acquisition and roster construction.
Prior to joining Detroit, Disner spent six seasons (2013-18) with the Arizona Cardinals as director of football administration. During his time in Arizona, he served as the club's lead contract negotiator and a key member of the Cardinals leadership team overseeing the strategic planning and management of the team's salary cap. Disner's role also included serving as the organization's liaison to the NFL Management Council and overseeing the development of technical and analytical initiatives for both the player personnel department and coaching staff.
While in Arizona, Disner worked on key contract extensions with marquee players such as Carson Palmer, Patrick Peterson, Larry Fitzgerald, Chandler Jones and Tyrann Mathieu. Disner also contributed to the rise of the Cardinals under Head Coach Bruce Arians, where the organization won at least 10 games three straight years after the franchise had accomplished the feat just once in the previous 35 years.
During the 2014 offseason, Disner was selected to Forbes "30 Under 30" list, which honors 30 athletes or executives who are 30 years or younger and making a mark in the sports industry. He has been named to The Athletic's "NFL 40 Under 40" list three times (2020, 2021, 2025).
Prior to joining Arizona, Disner spent four years working at the National Football League Management Council, serving as labor operations manager (2012) and labor operations coordinator (2009-11). In these roles, Disner reviewed all aspects of player contracts while also managing the salary cap process. During this time his team developed new analytic tools to assist clubs in evaluating salary related decision making. Disner was also instrumental in negotiations that helped cultivate the Rookie Compensation Pool in the League's 2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement, a system that is still used today.
Disner began his NFL career with the New England Patriots in 2007 as a scouting assistant after working as an intern for the Patriots for two summers (2005 and 2006). He was part of New England's personnel staff that helped the team capture the AFC title and an appearance in Super Bowl XLII.
A West Bloomfield, Mich. native, Disner played baseball at Williams College (Mass.) where he earned a degree in Economics. He and his wife, Gail, have two sons, Teddy and Archie.
