Dan Campbell Proving He Is Part of Lions' Problem
Dan Campbell has 22 games under his belt now as Lions head coach, and has only won four of them.
And, as the weeks have gone by and the losses have piled up, he has continued to prove that his decision-making clearly isn't where it should be as an NFL head coach.
It's not even close to where it should be, either.
Sunday was just the most recent example of it, as he was outcoached by Bill Belichick in the Lions' 29-0 loss to the New England Patriots.
Prior to the Week 5 tilt, Detroit's offense had been buzzing, and was averaging a league-best 35 points a game, on the heels of Jared Goff playing his best football as a member of the Lions.
Goff, however, didn't have his "A" game on Sunday. He played his worst game of the season, throwing for zero touchdowns for the first time this year. He also recorded a season-low 62.7 passer rating.
Collectively, Detroit delivered its worst performance of the campaign. Campbell called it "rock bottom" for the Lions.
Goff didn't totally disagree, when asked after the game about Campbell's choice of words to describe the loss.
"Maybe so," Goff said. "Yeah, typically, that's kind of -- before you can get better, things have to get worse sometimes. And today, it certainly did. And, you know, our -- I think our defense actually played, you know, better and gave, was giving us a chance for some plays there on offense. And, we didn't finish drives. We didn't convert on third/fourth down. We didn't finish with the ball in the end zone. You know, we didn't score any points. So, it's as bad as it can get offensively, for sure. And, you know, I think our defense may have improved a little bit, though."
As much as it was a lackluster performance from the veteran signal-caller, Campbell, with his subpar decision-making, didn't help his quarterback's case.
As the result of several highly questionable decisions, the second-year Detroit head coach, time and time again, failed to put his team in position to succeed. This was especially the case on fourth down.
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The always aggressive Campbell went for it on fourth down six times Sunday, and in each instance, his offense failed to convert. The Lions subsequently became the first team in NFL history to go for it on fourth down that many times and fail to convert on a single try.
It was a day full of boneheaded decisions made by the Lions head man. Arguably his most head-scratching one, though, came toward the end of the first half.
Detroit was down, 6-0, at the time, and was in search of a score before halftime. And, the Lions had driven all the way to the New England 25-yard line. The possession stalled, however, after Craig Reynolds was stopped for a seven-yard loss on third-and-2.
It was symbolic of Detroit's struggles on third down throughout the game. Campbell's squad, in fact, converted on just four of its 12 third-down conversion attempts.
And, as a whole, the Lions weren't nearly as efficient as an offensive unit as they had been through the first four weeks of the season.
"Now, I did think we got some manageable downs. We just weren't able to convert them," Campbell said during his postgame presser. "It was one of those days. You know, our offense has been pretty steady, has played pretty well. But, this is the day (where) we didn't do well, and you know, we never really got into a true rhythm. We couldn't convert, (and) we couldn't stay on the field."
The loss of yards for Reynolds on third down led to a fourth-and-9 situation for Campbell & Co., from the Patriots' 32-yard line. It left Campbell with what should've been an easy decision to make: kick the field goal, even though it would've been from approximately 50 yards out.
Sure, Detroit had just signed kicker Michael Badgley and elevated him to the active roster prior to the Week 5 contest. However, it's not like he came with no prior NFL kicking experience. It's, in fact, far from the truth.
Before being added by the Lions, he had already attempted and made four field goals this season. They all came during his time with the Chicago Bears, and specifically, in the team's Week 4 loss to the N.Y. Giants.
Prior to the 2022 season, he also had spent three years with the L.A. Chargers, making 80 percent of his kicks (52-of-65 tries).
And, he spent the 2021 campaign with two teams (the Indianapolis Colts and the Tennessee Titans). He attempted 22 combined kicks during the aforementioned season, executing on 18 of the tries.
Fair to say, Badgley had a decent amount of experience on his side.
Yet, Campbell opted for his offense to stay on the field, to attempt to get nine yards on fourth down.
The decision backfired hugely. Not only did Goff and Detroit's offense fail to convert, but the poorly-designed play also resulted in a turnover.
Patriots EDGE Matthew Judon recorded a strip-sack of Goff, and New England safety Kyle Dugger proceeded to scoop up the loose football and score from 59 yards out.
Campbell basically gifted the Patriots the above touchdown, with his inexcusable decision to go for it on fourth down.
Now, he'll be scrutinized for the decision -- and rightfully so -- throughout the looming bye week.
"Yeah, I had a yard-marker that I knew we had to get inside of to feel good about it, you know, to swing it away. Otherwise, take your chances with the offense," Campbell said, in regard to his decision not to kick the field goal on fourth-and-9.
No matter how Campbell tries to spin it, though, the play-call was a clear-cut mistake. And, I find it hard to believe that many other NFL head coaches would've made the same decision.
Sure, the Lions now have the bye week at their disposal to get past the loss and hopefully get some players back and healthy, such as running back D'Andre Swift. It could lead to a more fruitful second half of the year for Detroit. That's the positive way of looking at the team's present depressing situation.
However, Detroit fans aren't the fair-weather types. They're not going to let Campbell off the hook that easily and let him forget anytime soon about his erroneous decision-making Sunday.
The second-year Lions coach played a significant role yet again in a loss, and it's no longer cute.
The fanbase wants to start seeing this team produce wins, and that hasn't happened very often yet under Campbell's watch. And, fans are starting to turn on the once beloved coach because of it.
Just scroll through the Twitter mentions of Campbell, and you'll find that out real quick.
The decision-making from the Lions' sideline boss needs to turn around ASAP. Because if it doesn't, he might just find himself on the hot seat before season's end.
