Dan Campbell: 'I Don’t See Bust, I See Super Bowl'

Dan Campbell wants team to focus on winning division before worrying about Super Bowl run.

Dan Campbell, 2023 OTAs / Junfu Han, USA TODAY NETWORK

No longer the hunters; now the hunted. 

After going 12-5, winning the NFC North division crown and reaching the NFC Championship Game a season ago, the Detroit Lions have a huge target on their backs as they get ready for the 2024 campaign. 

And expectations, to no surprise, are sky high for the reigning NFC North champions. For many fans and pundits alike, the expectation has become Super Bowl-or-bust for the ‘24 version of the Lions.

Detroit head coach Dan Campbell, however, doesn't quite view it like that.

“Yeah, I don’t see bust. I see Super Bowl. I don’t know what the bust is,” Campbell said of the “Super Bowl-or-bust” buzz surrounding the Lions. “Here’s what I know, we all – every team ought to have that. Every team ought to be like, ‘Man what are you playing for? You’re playing for a Super Bowl.’ So, we are no different than that. Now we work backwards from there, and so you’ve got to set yourself up no different than last year, certain things you’ve got to do to really make that valid, make that a reality. Ultimately, that’s what we want to do.”

According to Campbell, the Lions must focus their sights on winning the NFC North – Detroit went 4-2 against its divisional opponents in 2023 – before they can start worrying about making a Super Bowl run. Additionally, the fourth-year Detroit head coach believes the team, although on the right track, still has plenty of work ahead this summer.

“Now to do that (play for a Super Bowl), you better win the division. You’ve got to give yourself the best odds you can. You need to win the division, best seeding you can possibly do,” Campbell expressed. “Okay, well how do you do that? Well, you’ve got to start with where we are at now. You’ve got to go back to work, you’ve got to do all the little things, which to this point our guys have done. They’ve been here (this) offseason, they’re grinding, they’re working, we’re in good shape. We’re strong, we’re physical, we’re explosive, and we are just in the beginning of this.”

The Lions, which just finished their first session of Organized Team Activities Thursday, continue their offseason program May 29-31 with their second round of OTA practices. And then following a brief break, Campbell's squad will kick off mandatory minicamp June 4 from its Allen Park practice facility.

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Inside Allen Park #NFL pic.twitter.com/JHYTCH9HMn

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