Tag: dan campbell

Lions Dan Campbell says turnover ratio is concern, but overall he is not worried about team

ALLEN PARK — After rewatching the Thanksgiving loss to the Packers, Lions coach Dan Campbell said the big issue is the turnover ratio.

The Lions had three turnovers against the Packers and four in a win over the Bears the previous Sunday. In those two games Detroit had just one takeaway – a forced fumble by Cam Sutton that was recovered by Alex Anzalone against the Packers.

“That’s the major issue. We can talk about these other things, but until we clean that up the other parts of this are a little bit irrelevant and honestly they’re not the big issues,’’ Campbell said on Monday. “So we need to take care of the football.”

It is not lost on Campbell that six of the seven turnovers fall on Goff. He was intercepted three times by the Bears and lost three fumbles to the Packers.

“We’ve talked, he knows. Like I told him this morning, once you start to break the line of scrimmage you have to tuck it away. It’s as simple as that, it’s an emphasis we work on at practice,’’ Campbell said.

The turnovers are uncharacteristic for Goff who had thrown just five interceptions in the first nine games. Those were his first lost fumbles this season. He fumbled twice in the loss at the Ravens, but both were recovered.

“All these little things that come up, we’re not going to just yell harder, we’re going to give substance, you teach them, you show them,’’ Campbell said. “Here’s where you can be a little bit better – everything from pass pro to the rush, to the way we cover, to the way we jam to the way we protect the football or don’t protect …’’

The turnaround in turnovers will not be easy this Sunday against the Saints who excel at creating turnovers.

They’re very good, it’s a tough place to play too. This is going to be an unbelievable environment. It’s hard to win there but it’s exactly what you want,’’ said Campbell who played for the Saints (2009) and was an assistant coach there for five seasons.

If anyone thinks Campbell is in the dumps after dropping the game on Thanksgiving, they are just wrong.

The Lions are 8-3 and still atop the NFC North.

“I’m not getting worried, I love this, I’m serious. I love this. It’s doom and gloom outside our building, we’ve got six to go, we’ve got an unbelievable opportunity and I love it, I really do,’’ Campbell said.

 “This is what we find out what we’re made of and really everybody in this league for that matter. You talk about the month of December, there are some teams that will begin to rise and some teams will fall out of this. I love our team and I love where we’re at, and I know the guys we have in the locker room, I know these coaches. It should be good.’’

INJURY UPDATE: LB Alex Anzalone was injured Thursday and could be out for a bit, per Campbell. Safety Kerby Joseph was hurt but should be good to go. The coach was uncertain if left guard Jonah Jackson (wrist) will be ready to return after missing five of the last six games.

NEXT UP: Lions (8-3) at New Orleans Saints (5-6), 1 p.m., Sunday. The Saints are coming off a 24-15 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

Detroit Lions fumble away chance to beat the Packers; five reasons for the 29-22 loss

DETROIT — While the Lions were favorites going into Thursday’s game against the Green Bay Packers, they didn’t play well on offense, defense or special teams.

The 29-22 loss to the Packers was a complete team effort. The Lions dropped to 8-3 and remain atop the NFC North. The Packers moved up to 5-6.

Know this, coach Dan Campbell is not in a panic mode. It’s not like he was happy afterward, but he knows this is the same team that has won eight games.

“They were ready, man. They played really well, and we did not. We didn’t play good enough and we did not complement each other, turned the ball over too much and we weren’t able to overcome those issues,’’ Campbell said.
It was the seventh straight Thanksgiving loss for the Lions. 

Five of the main reasons the Lions lost (in no particular order):

1. Turnovers were a huge problem. Goff lost three fumbles and the defense did not create a takeaway. “Everything’s got to start with the turnovers. We can’t turn the ball over and we’ve got to find a way to get takeaways. Let’s start there and then we’ll figure the rest out,’’ Campbell said. They turned it over four times on Sunday but still managed to beat the Bears. But they are playing with fire if they don’t get it fixed.

2. Packers quarterback Jordan Love had plenty of time in the pocket due to a lack of pressure from the defensive line. It’s not the first game where this has been apparent. “Same guys we’ve had here, and we’ve been able to generate pressure. So this unit’s going to be just fine. We’re going to get going and we pressured a little bit more today, played a little tight, but these are our guys, man. And these guys can do it and they’ve done it,’’ Campbell said. 

3. When quarterback Jared Goff is on his game the offense looks like a well-oiled machine. That didn’t happen on Thursday, in part due to his three lost fumbles. He had three interceptions on Sunday so it appears to be a trend. But he said there is no rhyme or reason to it. “I tend to look at them individually and see what I could’ve done better and sometimes there is an answer, sometimes there isn’t,’’ Goff said. “But overall, yeah, it’s my job to take care of the football and I’ve got to do a good job of that.” He finished 29 of 44 for 332 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The slow first half with just 100 passing yards was a factor in the loss. 

4. Goff was sacked three times and hit a dozen more but he did not blame the offensive line which was playing without starting left guard Jonah Jackson who is injured. “I’m behind what I believe is the best group in the League and those guys rushed well today, they did. They rushed well and did a good job,’’n Goff said. “I don’t point at our O-line for the reason of that at all. Probably could’ve got rid of the ball quicker on some of those as well. But yeah, it’s just some days, those guys rush pretty well and they did.”

5. Coaches didn’t have the Lions ready. They had a short week to prepare but it was the same for the Packers – except they also had to travel. No excuses. Campbell, defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson have to do better. Campbell said as much.  “I didn’t have my guys ready to go. That’s the bottom line,’’ Campbell said.

UP NEXT: Lions at New Orleans Saints, 1 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 3.

Five things to watch as Lions welcome Packers on Thanksgiving; plus, prediction

For Dan Campbell, it’s a privilege to coach in the Thanksgiving game. And, in fact, since he was a tight end for the Lions and Dallas Cowboys, he played in more than a few of them. 

He’ll coach his third Turkey Day game at Ford Field when the Lions (8-2) host the Green Bay Packers (4-6) at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday. 

“It’s over the break, it’s Thanksgiving,  all the families are getting together, it’s the first game that’s on. I still think it’s something special, I do, I believe that,’’ said Campbell who grew up in Texas as a big fan of Tom Landry. 

“It’s Detroit, Dallas it’s always been known for that. I know they have the late game now — I do, I think it’s special and it’s a privilege to be able to play on Thanksgiving and everybody’s watching – all your family, all your friends,’’ Campbell said. “And this is the type of game you come out of and somebody you went to school with in second grade is texting you and you forgot until he texts you. Family members, everything. It’s cool like that, it’s special.’’

By the way, he said it’s true about his second-grade buddy.

Not only is it special because of the holiday and national audience, but it’s a key divisional game for the NFC North-leading Lions. They beat the Packers in Week 4 and are 2-0 in the division.

So Campbell would like to break the string of six straight Thanksgiving losses for a few reasons. 

“We’re trying to turn over a new leaf here, trying to do something different and do some things that haven’t been done for a while,’’ Campbell said.

Five things to watch:

1. Jared Goff’s three interceptions against the Bears wil become a distant memory if he drives the offense against the Packers for the win. Goff excelled when it mattered on Sunday. It’s like he’s built for the two-minute drive. “I think it’s having a guy that understands those (two-minute ) plays, understands what they’re doing in the coverage, where’s your guy at? Where’s your best matchup? And doing that all by just keeping your composure and that’s what he did,’’ Campbell said. “I mean, he didn’t get frazzled by it. I thought he sat in the pocket and he made good decisions with the football and he was just comfortable, he was comfortable.” In the earlier win at Green Bay he was 19 of 28 for 210 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT 

2. Between David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, the Lions’ run game has not let the offense down. The complementary duo is a major reason the Lions’ have the second best total offense in the NFL. Gibbs continues to grow. Montgomery scored three rushing touchdowns in the first matchup with the Packers and has eight on the season.

3. The defense struggled early in the win over the Bears, but came back strong. Still missed tackles were an issue for most of the game. It’s not the first time that has been an issue. Again, when it mattered most – in the last four minutes – the defense was solid.

4.  Stopping the run was key to the first win at Green Bay. They were held to just 27 rushing yards. The Packers will be without running backs Aaron Jones (knee) and Emmanuel Wilson (shoulder). Both were injured in Sunday’s 23-20 win over the Chargers. 

5. The Lions must find a way to create more turnovers and at the same time don’t turn the ball over. Goff’s three interceptions were an abnormality – he had thrown just five in the first nine games – but they also lost a fumble on a return. This is a key statistic as the season progresses.

PREDICTION: Lions 34, Packers 17. The Lions are 7.5-point favorites. Just can’t see them losing at home to the Packers.