Lions News

[Mainevent]

Yeah, that was some Joey Crawford shit. Of course we'll never know if they bother to address anything with that ref.

[whatever_gong82]

Before Lions’ run to winning season, ‘Hard Knocks’ hinted at what was to come


By Colton Pouncy

Jan 17, 2023



It feels like just yesterday. Each Tuesday evening, for five weeks starting in early August, we tuned in for HBO’s “Hard Knocks” and learned something new about the Detroit Lions and their process. It was a revealing and entertaining season. And now that the Lions’ season is over, it’s worth revisiting.


The Lions volunteered to be on “Hard Knocks.” They had a head coach with a magnetic personality. A coaching staff full of former players, a young team growing together and captivating storylines worth exploring. What they didn’t have was proof of concept. The 2022 season was all about growth for this team, but last summer, there wasn’t much evidence this thing could work beyond a solid finish to a 3-13-1 campaign. Not to mention that “Hard Knocks” has a way of making every team look like a Super Bowl contender before the season.

As it turned out, though, “Hard Knocks” foreshadowed much of what we saw unfold this season. Young players earning meaningful snaps, strong individual performances, learning lessons, prophetic speeches and so much more.

Now that the season is over, let’s revisit some storylines and how things eventually played out on the way to a 9-8 season record.

Dan Campbell’s messaging

One of the opening scenes of “Hard Knocks” was a speech Campbell delivered to the team at the start of training camp. It was essentially Campbell laying out his vision for what he wanted the Lions to be. There are few things you can control in this sport. The Lions’ roster had holes and wasn’t where it needed to be. But as Campbell told the team, that didn’t have to stop it from pushing a little harder, thinking a little deeper and having a mentality of playing anywhere, anytime.

“That’s what we gotta be,” Campbell said. “That’s who we have to be. Because we’ll tread water as long as it f—ing takes to bury you.”


Campbell has been a part of winning organizations. Now that he’s leading his own, he has an idea of what that looks like, and almost tried to will his team there in training camp — perhaps before it was ready to take the leap. One scene in “Hard Knocks” captured Campbell speaking to his players after a long day of practice in full pads. He told them he was pushing them for a reason, so that they’d be ready for the season ahead. He pleaded with them to trust him. He told them he had a plan.



That message was consistent throughout the season. Even at 1-6, he didn’t feel his team was as far away as others did. More on that later.

Lessons learned in the preseason

The preseason foreshadowed much of how the Lions’ season would go. In the opener, we saw the starting offense together early in the game, with the offensive line dominating up front, the run game looking sharp and Jared Goff getting the ball to his playmakers. We also saw an inability to close games.

The Lions needed to beat the Atlanta Falcons in the preseason, up 23-20 in the fourth quarter. They didn’t get it, as the Falcons took the lead on a touchdown from Desmond Ridder to Jared Bernhardt with 1:30 to go. The offense got one last chance but didn’t make anything of it. Final score: Falcons 27, Lions 23.

“Look, that’s frustrating,” Campbell said. “It’s frustrating because you want to win that game. We should’ve won that game, but we didn’t earn it. You guys know that. We didn’t earn it. … You’re gonna see, this is this league, man. When things don’t go right, it’s probably your own fault. It’s probably our own fault, right? … That’s the little stuff in this league that will bite you in the ass. It is and it always will be.”

The Lions did see. Numerous times. They lost by three to the Eagles in Week 1. They lost by four to the Vikings in Week 3, giving up a lead in the final minute. They lost by three to the Seahawks and didn’t force a single Seattle punt. They had a chance to take a fourth-quarter lead in Dallas, but Jamaal Williams fumbled at the 1-yard line. They lost by four to the Dolphins after securing a 14-point lead, and lost by three to the Bills, allowing a field goal in the final 20 seconds. The Lions had to learn how to close games, and how to win.

They got a taste of it in the second preseason game, against the Colts. In need of a stop, the Lions watched Sam Ehlinger’s pass fall incomplete on fourth down, and Detroit won 27-26. It snapped an eight-game losing streak in the preseason and capped off a strong week of work in Indianapolis that included two joint practices with the Colts. A small step, but an important one.


Even while resting starters, Campbell knew that’s how it should look. He wanted his team to know, too.

“We needed to taste that,” Campbell said. “That’s where we’re going. That’s what we’ve got to get used to. The best thing we did this game — the f—ing best thing we did — we complemented each other.

“That’s how you win. That’s how winners are f—ing made. That’s how winning teams are made. We got better this week. We got better. Those two days and today, we got better, men. … We’re going up. We’re going places. Stay true to who we are and what we’re about and if you guys do that, good things are gonna happen to us.”

Once the Lions got a taste of winning in the regular season, you saw what happened.

Jared Goff’s resurgence

So much of this season was about learning whether Goff could be the quarterback for the foreseeable future, or if the Lions would need to move on after the season. There were encouraging signs in training camp. Goff lit up Detroit’s defense for certain stretches, showing good chemistry with his wide receivers and command of the offense. The cameras caught his highlights, shredding the defense and often connecting downfield with DJ Chark and others. He looked composed and comfortable in an offense tailored to his strengths. We just needed to see it in action on Sundays.

Campbell saw it every day in practice, though. He likely had an idea of where this thing could go if it all came together.

“You’re on fire right now,” Campbell said to Goff in the fourth episode.

Goff wasn’t heavily featured on “Hard Knocks,” probably because he was on the series twice while with the Rams. The focus was clearly elsewhere, but Goff was still given significant air time in the fourth episode. Here, we got a chance to see how his coaches felt about his development, and how comfortable Goff was in Detroit.


“I’m excited about Jared. Real excited about Jared,” quarterbacks coach Mark Brunell said during a staff meeting. “He’s doing some good things and it’s so important to him. He likes what we’re doing and he likes who we’re doing it with, which is great for a quarterback. He’s making some incredible throws, man. I think we’re getting a glimpse of what he’s going to be for us this year.”

Goff finished the 2022 season with 4,438 passing yards, 29 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. Strong numbers across the board, particularly in the second half when the games became more meaningful. There are quarterbacks with more arm talent and natural ability than Goff, but it’s hard to argue with the productivity. As GM Brad Holmes said, it’s easier to get worse at quarterback than it is to get better.

The Lions have a pretty steady one in place right now. As such, they can take their time determining Goff’s long-term future in Detroit. Holmes didn’t rule out the possibility of drafting and developing a young quarterback, after all. But if this is the standard we can continue to expect from him, it’ll be plenty enough to get the Lions to the playoffs.

Jamaal Williams’ speech

Williams’ first year in Detroit also coincided with Campbell’s. After spending his first four years with the Packers, he wasn’t used to losing at that rate in the NFL. He never wanted to experience the feeling of going 3-13-1 again. He believed this team was capable of more, but not if it put forth a lackluster effort in the days designated to get better. Williams is the heart and soul of this Lions team. So, shortly after Campbell wrapped up his speech about needing guys to trust him, he appointed Williams to break the team out for the day.

But first, the running back had a speech of his own.

Williams never hides his emotions, and his teammates and coaches love him for it. It doesn’t always come out, but when it does, he has the full attention of the locker room. This year, Williams put forth his best season as a pro — 1,066 yards and 17 touchdowns. He broke Barry Sanders’ franchise record for rushing touchdowns in a season. A free agent this offseason, Williams has already stated he wants to stay in Detroit. As this season proved, it’s been a good pairing.

The team that can. And will

In the final scene of “Hard Knocks,” we see the camera crew sitting down with players and coaches, asking them to fill in the blanks.




“The 2022 Detroit Lions will…”

“The 2022 Detroit Lions will put the NFL on notice,” linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard said.

“The 2022 Detroit Lions will compete every game,” defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “Because that’s who we are. We’re a gritty team, and we’re built that way.”

Then, it was Campbell’s turn.

“The 2022 Detroit Lions will be the team that can. And will.”


For a while, it didn’t look the 2022 Detroit Lions could. Or would, for that matter. They were staring at the No. 1 pick on Halloween. They fired their defensive backs coach. They traded T.J. Hockenson to a division rival. At that point, they very easily could’ve punted on 2022 and limped into the offseason. Instead, they turned their season around, winning eight of their final 10 games.

They fell just shy of a playoff berth, but became the third team in NFL history to start 1-6 and finish the year with a winning record. It took some time, but this team looked like everything Campbell wanted it to look like by the end of the season.

In the final minutes of the team’s last home game, the Lions played a video montage of Campbell’s speech from “Hard Knocks,” accompanied by highlights from the regular season. The crowd erupted. Perhaps they know this franchise is heading in the right direction.

Campbell certainly does. He knew then.

Colton Pouncy is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Detroit Lions. He previously covered Michigan State football and basketball for the company, and covered sports for The Tennessean in Nashville prior to joining The Athletic. Follow Colton on Twitter @colton_pouncy

[-Deborah-]

Aidan Hutchinson is a finalist for Pepsi Rookie of the Year! Attaboy, Aidan!

Cast your vote:

https://www.nfl.com/voting/rookies/rookie-of-the-year

FB_IMG_1673997361929.jpg

[edindetroit]

Aidan Hutchinson is a finalist for Pepsi Rookie of the Year! Attaboy, Aidan!

Cast your vote:

https://www.nfl.com/voting/rookies/rookie-of-the-year

FB_IMG_1673997361929.jpg

Vote early, vote often.

[Cody_Russell]

Holy shit. I didn’t see this coming.

[Mainevent]

Woohoo!

[TheLondonLion]

That’s fucking amazing. Shows you how important culture is. He’s far from alone, there is something special happening in Detroit and all the players say it.

[edindetroit]

Jared Goff named 15th-most valuable player of 2022 NFL season

What a turnaround 2022 was for Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff. He entered the season with many wondering if this would be his last in the NFL as a starter. After a couple rough seasons with the Rams and a slow start to his first season in Detroit, 2022 was undoubtedly going to be a pivotal year in his career.

Goff responded with one of the best seasons of his career. His 99.3 passer rating trailed only his two Pro Bowl seasons, as did his 7.6 yards per pass attempt. And his 61.1 QBR was just barely behind his best mark, which he accomplished in 2018—the year he took the Rams to the Super Bowl.

On Tuesday, ESPN dropped a list of the 100 most valuable players in the 2022 NFL season based on a wide variety of analytics and opinions from author Seth Walder. Goff not only made the list, but he cracked the top 20. Walder ranked Goff as the 15th most-valuable player this season.

“Goff finished the season fifth in QBR and led an offense that ranked third in EPA per dropback, only behind the Chiefs and Bills,” Walder wrote. “And he did it without a lot of help from teammates. His offensive line was average in pass protection, and while Amon-Ra St. Brown was very good, the Lions’ receiving group wasn’t particularly impressive as a whole.”

Obviously, the top of Walder’s list was dominated by quarterbacks, but Goff was still just the eighth listed quarterback, behind Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts, Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence, and Tua Tagovailoa. For what it’s worth, no other NFC North quarterback made the list.

Two other Lions did make the top 100: wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (43) and rookie defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (80).

“On one hand, Hutchinson’s play-to-play level impact took a while to get going, as his pass rush win rate was just 12% at edge, below average for the position,” Walder wrote. “But the production? You can’t argue against it. Not just the 9.5 sacks, but the three interceptions as well. As a result, he generated minus-21.1 EPA as a nearest defender, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, an absurd number for a defensive lineman.”

https://www.prideofdetroit.com/platf...022-nfl-season

[chemiclord]

There's a handful of "depth" players (or players who should be depth players), like Anzalone and Buggs and Cominsky, who have apparently informed Holmes they are willing to accept less money to remain in Detroit.

I would never have imagined I'd ever type such a sentence.

[ghandi]

That is great news about Johnson! He is excited about what is going on here...You dont hear that often and I imagine it isnt easy to turn down many millions, but maybe he felt he wasn't quite ready to be a Head coach?

[TheLondonLion]

There's a handful of "depth" players (or players who should be depth players), like Anzalone and Buggs and Cominsky, who have apparently informed Holmes they are willing to accept less money to remain in Detroit.

I would never have imagined I'd ever type such a sentence.

It could be for real this time. Something is happening.

[edindetroit]

[Nick Pappageorgio]

Fuel for Hutch ROY campaign: Hutch was double teamed more than any other player in the league this season.

https://lionswire.usatoday.com/2023/...ext-gen-stats/

[Cody_Russell]

Expanding on my thoughts when it comes to being surprised. I didn’t expect we would hear this news so early in the coaching search cycle. Especially after hearing Texans, Colts, and Panthers fans all having Ben Johnson in their top 3 HC wishlist. Plus it was sounding like it was more likely Ben Johnson would be gone based on what people were saying.

Credit to the culture that Sheila Ford Hamp started building 24 months ago. Stemming from the hiring of Chris Spielman and so on. Not used to all of the praise when it comes to Lions culture. There was some of it when Jim Caldwell was here. This current state of the Lions is the next level. High expectations in 2023. Excited about the offseason to come in the next few months.

Ben Johnson! Love to see it.

[froot loops]

I think it's good news, but I did like the idea of having one of the coordinators going to become a head coach. That is something we've never seen.