If Dan Campbell had been on the HMS Titanic, maybe that ship would have never sunk to the depths of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Detroit Lions head coach has a knack for swiftly maneuvering from disaster. Biting kneecaps is natural practice for biting icebergs, isn’t it?
In a little over two seasons at the helm of the formerly hapless Lions, Campbell has inched the team from three wins to a winning record last season, and to a likely division title this season. If Campbell captain’s this team to its first division crown since the Bill Clinton administration, he would have pulled off a miracle worthy of sainthood.
Campbell’s performance for the Lions earns him the title as sportsman of the year for this city, thirsty for a winner.
As of this writing, the Lions have won 17 of their last 23 games going back to last season. Those wins include three straight against the Packers, one of them eliminating Green Bay from the playoffs, as well as a road victory over the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs.
The Detroit Lions are no longer a joke. The NFL is taking notice of a team that’s undergone a startling redevelopment. Many of the stars on this team are names you wouldn’t have known even 18 months ago: Sam LaPorta; David Montgomery; Alim McNeill; Alex Anzalone. Those parts, assembled by executive vice-president and general manager Brad Holmes, have been mixed together by Campbell and his staff. The result is a possible first-round bye and home game in the playoffs.
Yes, a home game in the playoffs. The last time Detroit hosted an NFL Playoff tilt was on January 8, 1994. Back then, people bought music on things called CDs, and “tik tok” was just a sound a clock made.
Campbell has made the Lions relevant. Even when the team experiences hiccups, as in its recent loss to the Bears and Thanksgiving defeat at the hands of the “effin Packers,” the fan base has stuck with these team. They are no longer “SOL” – the Same Old Lions.
With his broad shoulders, gravelly voice, and no-bullshit press conferences, Campbell is an atypical head coach. This is no Sean McVey, the representation of the new, young, analytics coach. Nor is he Bill Belichick or Pete Carroll, crusty, tight-lipped ancients from another era.
No, Dan Campbell is a result of the same DNA goop that produced Mike Ditka and Chuck Noll, the venerable head man of the Pittsburgh Steelers dynasty of the 1970s. Noll was tough and big and didn’t have time for foolish things. Campbell said recently after a lackluster performance by his team: “Maybe I have to get grumpier around here.”
The Lions may not win a playoff game in January. The defense is showing their deficiencies. The quarterback, Jared Goff, has fallen off his pedestal as a possible MVP candidate and is throwing too many passes to the other team. Campbell called his team “undisciplined” after the recent loss in the Windy City.
But, the overall narrative is one of transformation. The franchise isn’t listless and snake-bitten any more. The team isn’t finding unusual ways to lose that send their fans into fits. When this team loses, it’s for the reasons any NFL team loses. But when they win, which is much more often these days, it’s due to a growing list of talented players.
The players will win or lose the games, and determine whether the Lions finally halt their long losing streak in the playoffs. But, none of that would be possible without Dan Campbell. The kneecap biter, the big, hulking man with the headphones who loves his players, loves this city, and hates to lose.
Finally, the Lions hate to lose enough…to win.
