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The Detroit Lions look like one of the NFL's best teams heading into the playoffs. Detroit finished the regular season with a 15-2 record, the best in franchise history. The Lions have turned into an NFC powerhouse thanks in large part to the transformative impact of head coach Dan Campbell.
Campbell was once viewed as a meathead who was in over his head as a head coach. Now his Lions are one of the best teams in the NFL and certainly the best Lions team in franchise history.
Zak Keefer of The Athletic looked back at Campbell's tenure with Detroit during a recent article. The article does a good job of showing how Campbell overcame the ‘meathead' perception that stuck with him from his introductory press conference.
“Just some meathead,” Lions QB Jared Goff said, sarcastically. “That’s the perception, right?”
Goff notes that Campbell used to play into his ‘meathead' persona.
“For a while, he was playing into it,” Goff says. “‘So what, people think I’m a meathead? They think I’m stupid? Good. I hope they do.’”
In reality, Goff said that Campbell is one of the smartest coaches he has been around.
“I’ve been around a lot of really, really smart coaches in this league,” Goff continued. “He’s right there with them.”
Lions left tackle Taylor Decker gave an example that shows how it was easy for player to buy what Campbell was selling.
“This is how smart he is,” Decker said. “In our meetings the day before a game, he tells us exactly how we’re gonna win. And a day later that’s usually what happens. You know how easy it is to buy into that? He’s the best leader I’ve ever been around. So f— what everybody else thinks. I wouldn’t wanna play for any other head coach.”
Dan Campbell, Lions prepare for huge Divisional Round matchup against Commanders
The Lions have set themselves up the best they could to make a run at the Super Bowl this season. Detroit is the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs and will have home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
First up for the Lions is a huge Divisional Round game against the Commanders. Washington feels like a reflection of what Detroit looked like back during the 2022 NFL season. The Commanders have exceeded expectations this season, winning 12 games and getting a Wild Card win against the Buccaneers.
Washington will be playing with house money in this game, already much farther along than they imagined. As a result, the Commanders will likely play very comfortably and let it all hang out.
Meanwhile, Detroit knows that they have to take care of business on Saturday. This matchup is lopsided on paper, with the Lions holding an advantage in nearly every area over the Commanders. However, that doesn't mean the Lions can sleepwalk through this game.
Saturday could be one of those games where Dan Campbell's aggressiveness and ability to motivate his players make the difference.
Lions vs. Commanders kicks off at 8PM ET on Saturday in Detroit.
