On This Date: Sheila Hamp Ends 'SOL'

Sheila Hamp preached patience to Lions fans two years ago.

Detroit Lions principal owner and chair Sheila Ford Hamp / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions are in the enviable position of being one of the Super Bowl favorites after their first six games of the 2024 NFL season.

Heading into a home game against the Tennessee Titans, the Lions current possess a 5-1 record.

Two years ago, fans and pundits were singing a completely different tune. After starting the season off slowly, many started to question if the new regime was actually going to produce winning results.

Back in 2022, the team started the season with a 1-5 record. A season prior, Dan Campbell was only to record three victories in his first season at the helm. Many were able to look past the 3-13-1 record, as the team was clearly in a retooling mode.

Principal owner Sheila Hamp understood the angst that was surrounding the team, and addressed the media following a practice.

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“I know this is difficult, a rebuild is hard, but we really believe in our process. We really believe in, we’re gonna turn this thing around the right way, through the draft. It requires patience, it’s frustrating. Am I frustrated? Absolutely. Are the fans frustrated? Absolutely. Are you guys frustrated? But, I really think we are making progress, you’ve seen it," Hamp said. “This was a huge teardown and then turnaround.

"And, really, we’re only a third of the way through the season, we’ve got 11 more games to go," Hamp continued. "So, I just don’t want to push the panic button and give up the ship, because I think we’ve got the right people in place to pull this off and I truly believe that.”

The team went on to enjoy eight wins in their next ten games, finishing the 2022 season with a 9-8 record.

Two years goes by quick!
—Why do you believe Dan Campbell is still the right coach
“We really believe we have come up with the right people”
Via: @BradGalli pic.twitter.com/cwAKfekaXT

— DetroitSportsPodcast (@DetroitPodcast) October 26, 2024