Following the Detroit Lions’ loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, head coach Dan Campbell came under fire. His aggressive style, which has helped the Lions get to that point, backfired for essentially the first time all season.
Campbell turned down the opportunity to kick field goals twice, opting to go for it on fourth down to keep drives alive. Those decisions and subsequent failures to convert led to the 49ers taking momentum in the second half and eventually pulling off a historic comeback.
While people will question the decision-making from Campbell, it is on his players to execute. Some drops in big spots led to San Francisco taking over possession that would have otherwise kept a drive alive.
NFL News & Rumors: Penei Sewell, Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions Updates
Ultimately, the decision to not kick field goals and potentially put points on the board does fall upon the head coach. Campbell has received plenty of criticism as a result, but his players haven’t wavered in their support.
One player to voice their opinion of Campbell was All-Pro right tackle, Penei Sewell. He refused to pin the loss on his head coach when speaking to reporters while participating in Pro Bowl activities last week in Orlando, Florida.
“I don’t agree with any criticism towards Coach. I’ve got his back until the end,” Sewell told ESPN from Orlando, Florida, during an Accelerator Active Energy event with popular YouTuber Donald De La Haye Jr., aka “Deestroying.”
“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.”
It is easy to second-guess the decisions Campbell made after the fact. Had the Lions executed and converted, everyone would be praising him and Detroit would likely be in the Super Bowl right now.
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While it was refreshing to see a head coach stick to his guns, going with what he knows and what helped his team improve in 2023, the criticism is fair. Watching the momentum slip away, any sort of points would have been beneficial.
Making what was a two-score game into a three-score deficit would have certainly changed the trajectory of the game. However, playing hypothetical games like that is of no use, either.
Who is to say Michael Badgley would have made those attempts? He could have missed just as easily as the Lions’ offense didn’t convert. If that had occurred, people would have questioned why Campbell changed his approach and didn’t stick with what got his team to the NFCCG in the first place.
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