Dan Campbell

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell told Nick Manes of Crain's Detroit Business that his family was selling its home for an asking price of $4.5 million due to security concerns.

The family "loved" the home, per that report, but fans discovered its address.

"The neighborhood, everything," he said of what the family enjoyed about the house. "There's plenty of space, it's on two acres, the home is beautiful. It's just that people figured out where we lived when we lost."

Campbell, 48, has turned the Lions around since taking over as head coach in 2021, going from a 3-13-1 record in his first season to 9-8 in 2022 and a 12-5 record and playoff berth last season. The Lions were one game away from the Super Bowl and led the San Francisco 49ers by a 24-7 margin at halftime, but they were outscored 27-7 in the second half and ultimately lost a tight contest.

Expectations were high coming into the 2024 season, though the team has gotten off to a 1-1 start.

As for Campbell's listed home, it has its own history in the world of sports, as it was once owned by Detroit Red Wings Hall of Fame center Igor Larionov. And the pending buyers are reportedly "huge" Lions fans.

Dan Campbell shouldered the blame for poor clock management on Sunday.

The Detroit Lions head coach took responsibility after the team squandered a scoring opportunity just before halftime in a 20-16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"I asked for improvement from last week was the story, and we did improve. And their coach cost them -- their head coach cost them this one," Campbell said, via ESPN's Eric Woodyard. "So, critical error to end the half, and 100 percent on me. We improved. There's areas we've got to continue to improve on, but it's not OK."

Coach Campbell on today's loss pic.twitter.com/ABX74hDBpj

— Detroit Lions (@Lions) September 15, 2024

With the Lions trailing 13-6 and just under two minutes remaining in the second quarter, they were able to drive down to the Buccaneers' nine-yard line.

As quarterback Jared Goff and the offense ran up to spike the ball with three seconds left, Detroit's field goal unit prematurely entered the game. The Lions were penalized for too many men on the field, resulting in a 10-second runoff that subsequently ended the half.

"Look, it was nothing that's going to make any sense to anybody," Campbell said, per Woodyard. "There's no way to justify this. It's a massive error on my part, no one else's. It was just between hurry-up field goal and clocking, and it was 100 percent my fault."

Detroit still had several opportunities to emerge with a win after the blunder, trailing by just four points entering the fourth quarter. The Lions had the ball on Tampa Bay's 44-yard line with 33 seconds remaining in regulation, but an eventual fourth-down pass from Goff fell incomplete.

Campbell's team couldn't consistently finish drives despite being able to move the chains, racking up 463 total yards on Sunday. The Lions will look to avoid errors in the red zone during their next contest, a Week 3 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals.

You know the Detroit Lions have arrived when their head coach is starring in a commercial for a major restaurant chain.

Dan Campbell was front and center in a new ad for Applebee's that was released Tuesday. Playing the role of a server, Campbell emphasizes the need for secrecy as his customers place their orders.

ESPN's Adam Schefter provided a preview of another spot featuring Campbell on Thursday:

Dan Campbell’s Applebees commercial is truly championship caliber: pic.twitter.com/QCIObm2aAp

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 5, 2024

This further cements what's been a steep ascent for the 48-year-old.

When Campbell talked about biting off the kneecaps of opponents in his introductory press conference, plenty of fans may have started the clock on his eventual ouster. Would you feel comfortable entrusting your team to a coach who looked into the possibility of having a live lion on the sideline?

But Campbell has spent the last three years silencing his skeptics. He not only inspired a totally new culture within the Lions organization but also helped to build one of the NFL's most electric offenses.

For the first time in a long long time, Detroit enters a season with genuine Super Bowl aspirations after having reached the NFC title game in 2023. Campbell's appearance in the Applebee's commercial is a sign of how people outside of the Motor City are taking notice.

Dan Campbell is not going to miss game planning against Aaron Donald.

The Detroit Lions head coach spoke with Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com prior to the team's season opener against the Los Angeles Rams. He noted how the absence of Donald as something that will make his job a little easier.

"You needed to know where he was at all times, really on all downs," Campbell said, per Twentyman. "It was constantly – you were shifting and motioning just for him, and you're damn near doing it every play."

That doesn't mean he is taking the Rams defense lightly, as he acknowledged the strong young talent in Jared Verse, Braden Fiske and Kobie Turner and how they will give his team some trouble.

"It's nice not to have to necessarily worry about (Donald), but the guys they have over there are young and hungry, high motor," Campbell said, per Twentyman."Man, they've got an influx of youth that's pretty damn talented."

Donald retired following the 2023 season, with his final game being a 24-23 Wild Card round loss to Campbell's Lions. He was a 10-time Pro Bowler, three-time Defensive Player of the Year winner and helped lead Los Angeles to a Super Bowl LVI trophy in 2021.

His presence on the line will is irreplaceable, but the young talent on the roster will try to at least keep the unit formidable. Verse was the team's first-round pick in 2024 after a collegiate year in which he registered 48 tackles and nine sacks for Florida State.

Fiske was a second-round pick and also Verse's teammate with the Seminoles. He recorded 43 tackles and six sacks in 2024. Turner was a 2023 draftee and recorded nine sacks in his rookie season with the Rams.

The Lions will hope the offensive line can hold off the rush and give quarterback Jared Goff some time to operate. Detroit is coming off an NFC Conference Championship appearance and looking to reach the Super Bowl for the first time.

The Rams-Lions game will take place Sept. 8 at 8:20 p.m.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell isn't concerned about Jahmyr Gibbs' hamstring injury.

Appearing on 97.1 The Ticket on Wednesday (h/t ESPN's Eric Woodyard), Campbell said "I think we'll be good" when asked about Gibbs' status.

Gibbs left Monday's practice session early with an apparent leg injury, but it was unclear when it occurred.

ESPN's Adam Schefter later reported it was a hamstring issue that caused Gibbs to leave practice.

Good news on #Lions Pro Bowl RB Jahmyr Gibbs. Sources say the hamstring injury he suffered is not considered significant, but the team will be very cautious with rest and rehab to make sure he’s 100% healthy. My understanding is he should be ready for Week 1 vs the Rams. pic.twitter.com/BCKl657PsJ

— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) August 14, 2024

Gibbs dealt with a hamstring injury during his rookie season in 2023. He was a late addition to the Lions' injury report going into Week 5 and wound up missing two games before returning on Oct. 27 against the Baltimore Ravens.

After returning from the injury, Gibbs took off to become one of the most important players for Detroit's offense. The 22-year-old averaged 16.5 touches, 92 yards from scrimmage and scored 11 touchdowns over the final 11 regular-season games.

Gibbs was able to carry that performance into the playoffs. He recorded 144 rushing yards, 94 receiving yards and scored three touchdowns in three games to help the Lions reach the NFC Championship Game for the first time since the 1991 season.

The Lions still have David Montgomery to be their primary running back if Gibbs' injury lingers into the start of the regular season. Montgomery led the team with 1,015 rushing yards and scored a career-high 13 touchdowns last season.

Zonovan Knight, Craig Reynolds and Jermar Jefferson could see increased roles if Gibbs sits out the final two preseason games. Detroit's next preseason contest is against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.

As long as Gibbs is ready for the start of the regular season, the Lions will be fine if he has to miss time. The Lions will begin defense of their NFC North title against the Los Angeles Rams on Sept. 8.

The Detroit Lions have been impressed with wide receiver Jameson Williams during the offseason.

"He is a man on a mission," Lions head coach Campbell told reporters on Thursday (via ESPN's Eric Woodyard). "And I'm just gonna leave it at that."

Williams is in line for a larger role in Detroit's offense during his upcoming third NFL season, as former wide receiver Josh Reynolds departed in free agency. While All-Pro wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown is unquestionably Jared Goff's No. 1 option in the pass game, Williams could blossom as a secondary receiver in 2024.

After he was selected with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2022 draft, the 24-year-old didn't make his debut until Week 13 of his rookie season due to an ACL injury that he suffered in college.

Williams gradually earned the trust of his coaching staff as well as his teammates in his second year. He appeared in 53 percent of the Lions' offensive snaps in 2023 compared to just 19 percent in 2022 (via Pro Football Reference). That number should continue to rise in 2024.

Jameson Williams comes down with it. WOW.

📺: #DETvsSF on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/VACJGYCV1k

— NFL (@NFL) January 29, 2024

The former Alabama standout has his sights set on improving even further in his third year.

"It's a lot that I'm striving for," Williams said, per Woodyard. "The sky is not the limit. I want to go way above the sky. I want to be the best to ever play my position and things like that,"

With confidence in himself as well as the trust of the coaching staff, Williams could be a breakout candidate to monitor as the Lions attempt to build upon an impressive 2023 campaign that ended with a trip to the NFC Championship game.

Justin Fields had a surprisingly tepid trade market before being sent to the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier this month, but at least one opposing coach is happy to no longer have him on his schedule twice per year.

"I'm not going to lie, it's nice to have Fields out of that division," Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell told reporters Tuesday.

The Steelers traded a conditional 2025 sixth-round pick to the Bears in exchange for Fields earlier this month. The haul was considered significantly below what most expected Chicago to land for the 2021 first-round pick, who is expected to back up veteran Russell Wilson next season.

While Fields never put up garish passing stats against Campbell's Lions, he gave the defense headaches with his legs. He rushed for 441 yards in four games against Detroit over the last two seasons, though Chicago went 1-3 in those contests.

Campbell isn't just praising Fields now that he's gone, either. The Lions coach lauded Fields' year-over-year development last December.

"Listen, he's dangerous," Campbell told reporters. "He's one of these rare, dangerous players and I'll tell you what he's done a really good job of — from last year to this year — is if it's a pass and he starts to move, he's still moving with eyes down the field much more than I felt like he had previously and that's extremely dangerous because even in Minnesota, he had two or three receivers wide open after he had kind of run, found a way through, broke contain and all of a sudden he gets an explosive pass off of it.

"But he is dangerous, and everything starts with him, for us defensively, and containing these guys."

Given the compliments regarding Fields' physical skill set in recent days—Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said he "oozes talent"—it remains a little befuddling that Pittsburgh landed him for such a small price. Fields just turned 25, clearly has a ton of positive physical traits and was available for a Day 3 selection.

A lot of teams may come to regret their lack of interest in the coming years.

The Detroit Lions advanced to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since the 1991 campaign and rewarded two of the primary people who helped make it happen.

On Thursday, the Lions announced head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes agreed to multi-year contract extensions that will keep them both in Detroit through the 2027 season.

From the #Lions owner on Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes: https://t.co/n7BsOqjt3B pic.twitter.com/s2wyqbi1JE

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 14, 2024

"We are thrilled to have Brad and Dan under contract for the next four seasons," team owner Sheila Hamp said. "They have been the driving force behind the rebuild of our football team and the success that we have enjoyed. The continuity they provide for our football program will continue to be the key to our future success on the field."

Campbell, who also played tight end for the Lions for three seasons from 2006-08, has orchestrated quite the turnaround in Detroit.

He took over as the head coach ahead of the 2021 season and turned heads with an introductory press conference that included references to biting kneecaps. While it was easy to make jokes at the time, especially given the franchise's history, he now has the Lions in a place where they are one of the best teams in the league.

That wasn't always the case, as they went 3-13-1 in his first season. However, the foundation was put in place for a jump to 9-8 in 2022 and 12-5 this past season.

Dan Campbell made this speech on #HardKnocks in 2022.

You can see exactly how he prepared the @Lions for greatness. (via @NFLFilms) pic.twitter.com/DjKGKZzNy1

— NFL (@NFL) January 23, 2024

Not only did the Lions advance far into the playoffs, they won a division crown for the first time since the 1993 season. And they were on the verge of reaching their first ever Super Bowl with a 24-7 halftime lead over the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game before they let it slip away with a poor second-half performance.

Still, there is reason for optimism after such a run, especially given the roster Holmes has constructed.

The general manager took over ahead of the 2021 season as well and has been an important figure in the turnaround thanks to draft picks such as Aidan Hutchinson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs, Penei Sewell and Brian Branch.

Prior to joining Detroit, Holmes worked for the Los Angeles Rams for 18 years in various roles, including director of college scouting.

That background has paid off, as the Lions have consistently drafted well during his tenure and will look to continue doing so in April.

Detroit Lions right tackle Penei Sewell has come to Dan Campbell's defense amid criticism for his decisions during the NFC Championship Game loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Speaking to ESPN's Eric Woodyard, Sewell said disagrees with any criticism aimed at Campbell.

"I don't agree with any criticism towards Coach. I've got his back until the end," he explained. "If he tells me to jump off a cliff with him, I'm right next to him," Sewell said of Campbell. "I'm so serious. So, whatever he says, whatever he calls, we've just got to execute. So, that's on us really. That's my guy."

The Lions had a 24-7 halftime lead against the 49ers, but San Francisco scored 27 unanswered points to start the second half.

That run was aided when the Lions failed to convert on two fourth-down attempts deep in San Francisco territory. Detroit was able to get a touchdown on its final offensive possession to cut the deficit to 34-31, but George Kittle recovered the onside kick attempt to preserve the 49ers' victory.

The response from some fans and analysts is that Campbell's aggressiveness cost the Lions, even though this has been his approach since he became their head coach. It was a strategy that got them to the NFC Championship Game.

The Lions went 2-for-2 on fourth-down attempts in the first two playoff games, with both conversions resulting in touchdowns. They beat the Los Angeles Rams by one point and Tampa Bay Buccaneers by eight points.

If anything, the problem with the Lions' fourth-down attempts against the 49ers boiled down to poor execution. Josh Reynolds dropped a pass from Jared Goff that was thrown a little behind him, but it's a play that should have been made.

The 49ers' defensive line pressured Goff on the second attempt that forced a bad throw. There was also a drive in between there when Reynolds dropped a wide-open catch on 3rd-and-9 that would have gone for a big gain.

Any of the complaints about Campbell's decision-making also ignored how bad Lions kicker Michael Badgley has been on attempts from at least 40 yards in his career.

Michael Badgley is 76.5% for his career between 40-49 yards and 46.7% from 50+ but let’s ignore that for the discourse

— Brad Spielberger (@SpielbergerBrad) January 29, 2024

This isn't to say Campbell was perfect in the game. One of his two worst decisions was kicking a field goal at the end of the first half. The Lions got down to the 49ers' three-yard line with a 21-7 lead and were moving the ball with ease, but he elected to take three points near the end of the second quarter instead of going for it on 4th-and-goal.

The other bad decision was handing the ball off to Montgomery at the 49ers' one-yard line with just over one minute remaining and trailing by 10 points. San Francisco stopped the play, forcing Campbell to use his first timeout.

Even though the Lions got a touchdown on the next play, they weren't able to get the ball back after the onside kick because they couldn't stop the clock.

Overall, though, the reason Detroit made it to the NFC Championship Game for the first time in 32 years is because Campbell understands how to handle fourth-down decisions as well as any coach in the NFL.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell said he "gambled and lost" with his decision to run the ball on third down late in the fourth quarter of the NFC Championship Game.

On 3rd-and-goal from the San Francisco 49ers' 1-yard line, Campbell put the ball into the hands of running back David Montgomery. Montgomery lost two yards but more costly was the fact Detroit had to burn a timeout.

"Yeah, look, the easy thing to do is to throw it," Campbell told reporters. "Probably should've been the right thing, but for me, I wanted to run it. I thought we would just pop it. We had just (ran a) two-minute (drill) all the way down the field, throwing the football, and they were in a four-down front. I believed we'd walk right in. We just missed a block, so then yeah, I've got to use a timeout."

He added that he'd "throw it four times" with the benefit of hindsight.

"But I believed in that moment it was going to be a walk-and-run, and it didn't work out," he said. "So, I gambled and lost."

While Jared Goff hit Jameson Williams for a three-yard touchdown pass to make it a 34-31 game, Detroit didn't have enough timeouts to get the ball back. After recovering the onside kick, the 49ers ran off the final 56 seconds to seal their win.

Campbell faced plenty of criticism both during and after the game. In addition to the running play on that crucial third down, he turned down what would've been two manageable field-goal attempts and went for it on fourth down in the second half. Leaving those points on the board proved important given the final score.

In the case of his fourth-down calls, though, Campbell didn't second-guess himself after the fact.