LIONS HEAD COACH DAN CAMPBELL AND LIONS QB JARED GOFF TRAINING CAMP DAY 16 QUOTE SHEET

LIONS HEAD COACH DAN CAMPBELL TRAINING CAMP DAY 16 QUOTE SHEET
August 17, 2022
On how much of a test it will be to go against the Colts in their first joint practice today: “Yeah, this will be a very good test. This a tough, physical, fast, and aggressive team that we’re playing on both sides of the ball. So, this will be good for us to see if we can run the ball a little bit and same thing, can we stop the run? Because they’ve got a hell of a back and a hell of an O-line. But also, man, the games, the pat, the speed off the edge, the rush, and their rush plans, and then us as well. So, I just like all the work that we’re going to get out of this.”
On if there are any position groups that he will have his eye on in joint practices this week: “No, I don’t know if – I mean, you want every group to step up and certainly our ones did some good things the other day offensively, but we can still be even more crisp. And our tempo, everything that we know we need to be about, we’ve got to emphasize that, and we’ve got to be a little bit better if we really want to be good. And then, defensively man, just staying true to what you’re being taught – gap discipline, trust the guy next to you. And I think that’s what you’re looking for more than anything. It’s one thing if you just physically get beat, we can accept that if you’re doing everything you’re coached to do. But it’s just the little things we’ve got to clean up defensively. So, that’s what you’re looking for.”
On Lions G Halapoulivaati Vaitai’s status after leaving practice early Monday: “He should be good, all good.”
On if Lions G Halapoulivaati Vaitai leaving practice early Monday was a little bit of a scare: “No, he had a little spasm, but he’s good.”
On how they will divide reps between Lions QBs Tim Boyle and David Blough in practice this week: “Look, there again, man, they did some really good things and then they had a couple of – each of them really had one costly play which I mean at that position unfortunately, those are the ones that will kill you. But we see them progressing. They’re going to get better. Let’s see if they learn from it, which I think they will. Blough will take the twos for now, and then we let them just keep competing.”
On how he has seen Lions RB D’Andre Swift accept the challenge to take his game to the next level: “Look, I would say Swift since we walked in this door has been great as far as that’s concerned. He doesn’t – Swift’s got thick skin, and he wants to be good. He wants to be great. And so, listen, he can handle any and all of the above and if we didn’t think he could we wouldn’t do it. If we didn’t think he could be the player that we think he can be we wouldn’t be as hard on him. But he’s always been receptive. He’s always put in the work, and so he’s going to be just fine.”
On how valuable it is to have Lions Assistant Head Coach/Running Backs Duce Staley push Lions RB D’Andre Swift to elevate his game: “Listen, I think it’s critical. I think – I go back to some of the best – two of the best, really three of the best coaches I’ve ever had in my life were guys that number one, they never played. Even though Duce played, but they also man, position coaches, man. And so, man, they just know – they know who you are, what you’re about, what makes you tick. There’s a time to push, there’s a time to pull back, and Duce has played that position and he understands the discipline that you have to have with it. But also, man, the mentality because if you don’t have the mentality, especially at that position because you’re going to take some hits, there’s going to be some ups and downs, but just to push through it. So, Swift, man he’s going to be just fine.”
On if he reached out to Colts Head Coach Frank Reich about his experience being on ‘Hard Knocks’ last season: “I did not. I talked to Frank about this, this practice, which I can’t wait to do it. It’ll be great.”
On how big the next couple weeks of practice will be for evaluations with roster cut decisions looming: “It’s big, and look, I think that these two days that are coming up, today and tomorrow, is really about, man, getting the guys we think we’re going into Philly with and getting them honed in, man, getting them really good work, and see if we can get better in those units. And then the areas where we don’t quite have them shored up, man, who is going to start at this position? Let’s figure out who’s going to take that next leap, man. Who wants that spot, linebacker position? Somebody want to come take that spot? And so that’s really the next progression. The very young guys, we’ll see at the game, and then they got to show up at the game because they’re not going to get a lot of reps these next two days.”
On the approach to the joint practice structure and if it includes situations they want to hone in on: “Yes, and I would say a lot of this is modeled off of what (Colts Head Coach) Frank (Reich) had done before. But it’s all stuff that, when I wrote down what I wanted to do, it was like – he and I see eye-to-eye. It was perfect.”
On if the linebacker rotation battle could play out right until roster cut day: “Yeah, I think it could. Look, I think there again, we’re getting two really good days in pads against a damn good opponent. And so, I think we’re going to find out a lot by the end of tomorrow, I really do. But it’ll sort itself out.”
On Lions LB Malcolm Rodriguez outplaying expectations based on his Draft round: “Yeah, well I mean I think it’s a – look, why was he not drafted is not – because he’s not a huge guy. I mean there’s been some dang good linebackers that have had a lot of success in this League that weren’t the biggest guys in certain positions. But I would tell you the reason is because he is very aware and he sees things quick, he’s got high FPI for a young guy, no different than (Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown) Saint last year. He just, man he can see the game, he can feel the game. He’s aggressive. He plays hard, he’s a finisher, so – and he can run. He’s got speed.”
On if he would be comfortable starting Lions LB Malcolm Rodriguez Week 1: “Well, we’ll see. We’ll see. I mean that’s what this is about. Let’s see if we can be comfortable with him.”
On how the other linebackers have responded to the emergence of Lions LB Malcolm Rodriguez: “Great. Great. It’s a great room. It’s a great room. And that’s another reason, honestly, why he’s kind of taking the – he’s on the trajectory that he is because of that room. Man, there’s a good group now. Good veteran group, they’re all – man they work their rear off. They all want to know, they all learn, and between (Lions LB Jarrad Davis) JD and (Lions LB) Alex (Anzalone) – (Lions LB Derrick) Barnes is coming on, and it’s highly competitive. (Lions LB Anthony) Pittman, (Lions LB) Shaun Dion (Hamilton), I mean it’s a great room now.”
On how he will manage the offense and defense on separate fields during joint practices: “I’ll be responsible for our field, the offensive field, and then (Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn) AG will have the defensive, and then I’ll obviously – this afternoon is where I’m really going to – I’ll watch the film, so I’m not really be able to do much while I’m walking through the defensive side.”

LIONS QB JARED GOFF TRAINING CAMP DAY 16 QUOTE SHEET
August 17, 2022
On Lions LB Malcolm Rodriguez being featured on ‘Hard Knocks’ and how difficult it is to balance the attention: “Oh, I’m sure he doesn’t care. He does a good job, working hard, being a good player, doing his job as a rookie. He’s flashed. He’s flashed us on offense. We’ve seen him, he’s done a great job and I know they like him on defense.”
On what he gets out of a joint practice like they had with the Colts today: “A lot, yeah. I think it was – I don’t know if you call it nerves or what early on, but just getting settled in. I think you’ve got a new defense out there, you’ve got new players, new situation, settling in after a few plays and we’ll play pretty well there in the second half of practice. But I was proud of the guys. We came out practiced hard, felt like we did well and it’s a lot of the team reps, and had a good day.”
On if there were issues with footing on the field: “Yeah, I did slip once. I don’t know. I slipped once.”
On how different the Colts defense looked compared to what he is used to seeing in practice every day: “Completely different scheme, very different scheme than what we do with the Lions here. It was good to see. Again, there was kind of those first handful of plays there we had – kind of, ‘OK, we know what they were going to do.’ But really, settling into it and seeing what they’re going to do and feeling good about it. And I think we did a good job towards the end.”
On if he watched any tape of the Colts leading up to the joint practices: “Yeah no, we watched their preseason game and that’s about it. But we had an idea what they’re going to run. We know what (Colts Defensive Coordinator) Gus Bradley’s philosophy is and had a pretty good idea. But I think if we were playing them we would certainly gain a lot more than we did. We only had a handful of plays for their defense, but it was mostly just running old stuff.”
On how much more they can get out of two-day joint practices with the Colts compared to the rest of the preseason: “Yeah, I think it’s so important for so many reasons, but I think just going against somebody else is a good measuring stick at times. You get to see a different defense, you see different people up front, see different pass rush moves. For me, different safeties and zoners, and all of that is so important. It’s as close as you get to doing a game without actually playing in it.”
On the level of intensity in practice with the Colts: “Yeah, it was fun. I think a good organization like the Colts is fun to practice against because they do everything the right way and we like to go that way as well. So yeah, there was not really much chippy-ness or fights. Maybe tomorrow there might be after day two, you never know. But for the most part, I thought that it was fun to go against them and got a lot of good looks, and I know they were probably appreciative of the good looks that we gave them.”
On if he has relationships with Colts QBs Matt Ryan and Nick Foles: “Yeah, well I played Nick a handful of times and Matt and I actually train at the same place down in L.A. So, I see him quite a bit down there. He’s always been great to me. He’s an older guy that I’ve seen from a young kid, been a fan of and he’s always been great to me, and a guy that is a model for our League and for quarterbacks in our League.”
On if it is fun to share the field with Colts QB Matt Ryan in practice: “Yeah, I didn’t see a single rep they had, but it was good talking to him for five minutes. He’s a great dude and a guy I’ve grown to be a friend of.”
On how the joint practices compare to a game: “It’s as close as you can get without being in a game. It’s competitive, it’s fun, it’s chippy at times but it’s really – we want to compete, and if we’re not going to play in the preseason game, this the best thing – next best thing we’re going to get. And in some cases, it’s better, because there is no – or there is limited risk of injury, right? You can control it, and you can do what you want for the most part, the quarterback shouldn’t get hit. So, it’s a way you can control it and can be better than preseason games.”
On if the atmosphere at joint practices feel like a game atmosphere: “Yes. It’s fun, I mean with all the fans here. It was a good competition. I think tomorrow will be an even more fun day because we’ll be a little bit more settled in. We were settling in there early and kind of getting our feet wet with what they’re doing defensively, and I know certainly I was, but I think everyone just needed a few plays to settle in and once we did, we felt really good, and I thought we practiced well. But yeah, I think tomorrow will be fun. Tomorrow will be really fun. And usually that last day, when they know – we know, and they know that we’re not going to see each other again, it kind of turns up a little bit.”
On if the offense is ready for the regular season based on what he has seen in joint practice with the Colts: “Yeah, I mean we’ve got a couple weeks left to prepare, but yeah, we’re on our way. Something we’ll work on certainly, but we’re on our way. I think we’re doing a good job. I know standards that we have now for ourselves have rose tremendously from where we started in training camp. And so, we come out here every day, and what would have been a good day maybe last year or a month ago is now no longer – it’s a bad day in some ways. So, I think that’s the main thing we felt is our standard is different now, and guys are holding themselves and each other accountable.”
On whether it was a good or bad day for the red-zone offense: “Yeah, right in the middle, I don’t know. Like I said, I think it started slow, specifically in that 7-on-7 period and the one-on-ones. It was not our best, and then I thought we finished really well. I think once we got the team and were able to run the ball and play-action and drop back from there, it was actually a pretty good day for us, and I’m sure they’ll come back tomorrow with a little bit of fire, and we will too.”
On if the offense he helped Lions Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson shape is as they envisioned through training camp and joint practice: “Yeah, of course. I feel great about it. I think there’s still a lot of work to do, and we still have however many weeks we do have. But, if you tell me where we’re at right now six months ago, I’d be pretty happy about it, so we’re doing good things. With that being said, there’s still plenty of things to clean up, on myself certainly, plenty of things to clean up that I can do better, and I think that’s like what I spoke to earlier, the standard that we have now is just different. It’s the way it should be, and it’ll continue to rise.”
On if he is excited for the offense this season: “Yeah, and we haven’t played a game yet, so like I don’t know. Yeah, we haven’t played a game yet. It’s looked good in practice, right? It’s looked good at times. Today and tomorrow, we’ll see as well, but preseason that first drive was fine. We scored, but it wasn’t huge, explosive plays. So, we don’t know. Yeah, it’s still yet to be seen, but I think we’re trending in the right direction, and I feel good about it, and I think (Lions Offensive Coordinator) Ben (Johnson) has done such a great job getting guys ready to play. I think that’s the most important part for those guys, those coaches, and I know they know it too, but getting us ready to play and what Ben has done through the spring and through training camp has been tremendous, and it’s felt really good.”