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PALM BEACH, Fla. – There was no time to brood, not with half a coaching staff to hire and free agency to collaborate on.
But even if there was, Dan Campbell had a different view of the Detroit Lions’ divisional round playoff loss to the Washington Commanders.
“You got to be careful if you come out of it and you say, ‘Man, what's wrong? What's wrong with us?’” Campbell said Tuesday at the NFL’s annual spring meeting. “I mean, we did it right. We had 15 wins in a season. We played bad at the wrong time. And so, careful tweaking things. What you got is good enough. We just got to, we got to play better in that moment.”
The Lions played one of their worst games of the season against the Commanders. Jared Goff threw three interceptions. The injury-riddled defense had no answer for Jayden Daniels. And collectively they got out-Campbell’d by Washington coach Dan Quinn.
For the second straight year, the Lions entered the offseason broken-hearted but convinced their blueprint eventually will yield the desired results.
And coupled with major future financial commitments to several of their own players, both currently on the books and still to be worked out, that shaped their quiet approach to the offseason.
The Lions signed one free agent – cornerback D.J. Reed – to a multi-year deal this spring and otherwise focused on retaining the depth players that helped them tie for the best record in the NFL last season.
Both Campbell and Lions general manager Brad Holmes championed the Lions’ method, with Campbell saying Tuesday “it’s been a good offseason” and “we like where we’re headed.”
MORE FROM CAMPBELL: Dan Campbell: Detroit Lions landed 'competitive, productive players' in free agency
“A lot of this is about signing our own guys back, which is the reason we drafted them or we signed them before as free agents,” Campbell said. “We've done that, we've added to that. Obviously, D.J. Reed and (Roy) Lopez and (Grant) Stuard from elsewhere to come in. They fit us what we're about and we're fired up, man, getting ready for the draft as always. Find the guys we love that are right for us and move along.”
There’s good reason to think the Lions will be back in the mix as Super Bowl contenders this fall.
They have blue-chip talent (Penei Sewell, Aidan Hutchinson, Jahmyr Gibbs) at key positions, one of the deepest, most talented offenses in football, plus a beloved head coach in Campbell and proven roster builder in Holmes who have the unwavering support of the organization.
But they also have new coordinators on both sides of the ball, several key players returning from injury (including Hutchinson) and history to overcome.
Of the seven previous teams to win 15 games in the regular season, more have missed the playoffs the following year (two) than reached the Super Bowl (one). The last team to win 15 games in the regular season, the 2015 Carolina Panthers, went 6-10 the next year when their quarterback regressed, they lost their top cornerback to free agency, key veterans missed time with injuries and they couldn’t recover from a rotten start.
The Lions have what looks to be one of the most treacherous schedules in the NFL next season, and Campbell acknowledged Tuesday “we could be a better team than we were last year and have more losses.”
The Lions play nine road games this fall (after going 8-0 on the road in the NFL’s unbalanced schedule last year), all against playoff contenders. Seven of those games are in true outdoor venues and they visit some of the league’s best quarterbacks, including Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Matthew Stafford and Daniels.
“You're always looking for these nuggets of motivation and that's it,” Campbell said. “This is a challenge. We're competitive, I'm competitive and so yeah, I love the thought of it, man. These are going to be outdoor grass. I hope it rains, it's mud, it's everything, right? The whole deal. And it is, we're in a meat grinder. This is going to be a meat grinder.”
Meat grinder or not, the Lions’ goals won’t change for 2025.
Campbell said they want to win the NFC North and get the one seed in the NFC playoffs. A first-round bye means one less postseason game, one less chance to play bad at the wrong time on the way to the Super Bowl.
“We've been fortunate to stay together here long enough to build this thing with the true foundation of players,” Campbell said. “That's what it's about is it's this group. All of us now, we've seen the ups and downs, we've been through it. And so this is the next challenge. And so, if you say, ‘Well, you lost this guy, this guy, this guy, this guy.’ Well, that to me is a slap in the face of the guys in that locker room. And so we're looking forward to this. This will be the next challenge for us. And it won't be easy, but we don't, we're all good with that.”
Before the Lions and Chiefs went 15-2 last season, only seven teams had won 15 or more games in the regular season in NFL history. Here's how those teams fared the following year.
*Won the Super Bowl
#Missed the playoffs
Carolina Panthers, 2015 15-1 … 2016 5-10#
Green Bay Packers, 2011 15-1 … 2012 11-5
New England Patriots, 2007 16-0 … 2008 11-5#
Pittsburgh Steelers, 2004 15-1 … 2005 11-5*
Minnesota Vikings, 1998 15-1 … 1999 10-6
Chicago Bears, 1985 15-1* … 1986 14-2
San Francisco 49ers, 1984 15-1* … 1985 10-6
Dave Birkett is the author of the book, "Detroit Lions: An Illustrated Timeline." Order your copy here. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why Detroit Lions are staying the course after playoff heartbreak
Continue reading...
But even if there was, Dan Campbell had a different view of the Detroit Lions’ divisional round playoff loss to the Washington Commanders.
“You got to be careful if you come out of it and you say, ‘Man, what's wrong? What's wrong with us?’” Campbell said Tuesday at the NFL’s annual spring meeting. “I mean, we did it right. We had 15 wins in a season. We played bad at the wrong time. And so, careful tweaking things. What you got is good enough. We just got to, we got to play better in that moment.”
The Lions played one of their worst games of the season against the Commanders. Jared Goff threw three interceptions. The injury-riddled defense had no answer for Jayden Daniels. And collectively they got out-Campbell’d by Washington coach Dan Quinn.
You must be registered for see images
For the second straight year, the Lions entered the offseason broken-hearted but convinced their blueprint eventually will yield the desired results.
And coupled with major future financial commitments to several of their own players, both currently on the books and still to be worked out, that shaped their quiet approach to the offseason.
The Lions signed one free agent – cornerback D.J. Reed – to a multi-year deal this spring and otherwise focused on retaining the depth players that helped them tie for the best record in the NFL last season.
Both Campbell and Lions general manager Brad Holmes championed the Lions’ method, with Campbell saying Tuesday “it’s been a good offseason” and “we like where we’re headed.”
MORE FROM CAMPBELL: Dan Campbell: Detroit Lions landed 'competitive, productive players' in free agency
“A lot of this is about signing our own guys back, which is the reason we drafted them or we signed them before as free agents,” Campbell said. “We've done that, we've added to that. Obviously, D.J. Reed and (Roy) Lopez and (Grant) Stuard from elsewhere to come in. They fit us what we're about and we're fired up, man, getting ready for the draft as always. Find the guys we love that are right for us and move along.”
There’s good reason to think the Lions will be back in the mix as Super Bowl contenders this fall.
They have blue-chip talent (Penei Sewell, Aidan Hutchinson, Jahmyr Gibbs) at key positions, one of the deepest, most talented offenses in football, plus a beloved head coach in Campbell and proven roster builder in Holmes who have the unwavering support of the organization.
You must be registered for see images attach
But they also have new coordinators on both sides of the ball, several key players returning from injury (including Hutchinson) and history to overcome.
Of the seven previous teams to win 15 games in the regular season, more have missed the playoffs the following year (two) than reached the Super Bowl (one). The last team to win 15 games in the regular season, the 2015 Carolina Panthers, went 6-10 the next year when their quarterback regressed, they lost their top cornerback to free agency, key veterans missed time with injuries and they couldn’t recover from a rotten start.
The Lions have what looks to be one of the most treacherous schedules in the NFL next season, and Campbell acknowledged Tuesday “we could be a better team than we were last year and have more losses.”
You must be registered for see images attach
The Lions play nine road games this fall (after going 8-0 on the road in the NFL’s unbalanced schedule last year), all against playoff contenders. Seven of those games are in true outdoor venues and they visit some of the league’s best quarterbacks, including Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Matthew Stafford and Daniels.
“You're always looking for these nuggets of motivation and that's it,” Campbell said. “This is a challenge. We're competitive, I'm competitive and so yeah, I love the thought of it, man. These are going to be outdoor grass. I hope it rains, it's mud, it's everything, right? The whole deal. And it is, we're in a meat grinder. This is going to be a meat grinder.”
Meat grinder or not, the Lions’ goals won’t change for 2025.
Campbell said they want to win the NFC North and get the one seed in the NFC playoffs. A first-round bye means one less postseason game, one less chance to play bad at the wrong time on the way to the Super Bowl.
“We've been fortunate to stay together here long enough to build this thing with the true foundation of players,” Campbell said. “That's what it's about is it's this group. All of us now, we've seen the ups and downs, we've been through it. And so this is the next challenge. And so, if you say, ‘Well, you lost this guy, this guy, this guy, this guy.’ Well, that to me is a slap in the face of the guys in that locker room. And so we're looking forward to this. This will be the next challenge for us. And it won't be easy, but we don't, we're all good with that.”
History of 15-win teams in the NFL
Before the Lions and Chiefs went 15-2 last season, only seven teams had won 15 or more games in the regular season in NFL history. Here's how those teams fared the following year.
*Won the Super Bowl
#Missed the playoffs
Carolina Panthers, 2015 15-1 … 2016 5-10#
Green Bay Packers, 2011 15-1 … 2012 11-5
New England Patriots, 2007 16-0 … 2008 11-5#
Pittsburgh Steelers, 2004 15-1 … 2005 11-5*
Minnesota Vikings, 1998 15-1 … 1999 10-6
Chicago Bears, 1985 15-1* … 1986 14-2
San Francisco 49ers, 1984 15-1* … 1985 10-6
Dave Birkett is the author of the book, "Detroit Lions: An Illustrated Timeline." Order your copy here. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why Detroit Lions are staying the course after playoff heartbreak
Continue reading...
