LIONS HEAD COACH DAN CAMPBELL QUOTE SHEET
October 30, 2024
On at what point a player runs out of chances with him as it relates to Lions WR Jameson Williams: “Yeah, I don’t have anything further than last week. I’ve known about all of this. So, I know we put out a statement. The kid has been truthful with us and we’re good.”
On if there is something that is not connecting as far as the growth that he said Lions WR Jameson Williams has shown: “No. I mean, look, I know that the – it certainly doesn’t look good, I get that. But at the same token, it just kind of all came on here at the same time and it’s really decision-making for him. And that’s where he knows that he can be better. Don’t put yourself in those situations. He’s going to learn from this, grow from it. We’ve talked about it, and I still think there’s been a ton of growth out of this player.”
On if Lions WR Jameson Williams understands how quickly his football career could end: “I think he does. I think he’s become more and more aware of that over time, and I think he does. Look, for me, I judge people over what’s in their heart and I know what this kid’s made of and he’s worth hanging with. So, he’s going to learn from this, he’s going to grow, he’ll be better for all of this.”
On if the situation involving Lions WR Jameson Williams is a distraction for the team: “No, you’d rather not be dealing with it and you don’t want the players to have to deal with it, but I think at the same token, I really do feel like for us and the players, it’s a little bit of a non-issue. He’s not here, I mean he’s in the building and he’s doing what he can but we also know that we didn’t have him last week, we’re prepared to not have him this week and that’s just kind of how we roll. Really no different than, unfortunately, a guy who’s injured, he’s not going to play, he’s going to be out. We’re about the guys who are going to play and getting them ready to go, and we don’t bat an eye. How are those guys going to help us win the next game? And so, I do feel like that’s where we’re at as a team. So, no, I’d rather not answer them, but at the same token, I don’t feel like this is a big distraction.”
On if the details Lions WR Jameson Williams told him matched what was reported: “Yeah, they lined up. They all lined up.”
On his advice for Lions WR Jameson Williams to make sure that he is on his Ps and Qs in life: “Yeah, you just continue to coach him up on it, teach him and let him know. It’s a different environment and you have to understand that you’re looked at different and you’re viewed different. Anybody else out there, if something happens, nobody even knows about it. It doesn’t – whereas they’re looking and any little thing can turn into a huge thing here. So, you just have to do your best to stay out of those situations where something like this doesn’t come up.”
On how the team will keep up the production that they have had offensively: “Details. The details to what we do are important on all three phases and that’s where we’ve been pretty good. But offensively, certainly that’s where it begins. The effort that we’re having, the production downfield, the guys that are blocking downfield for their teammates, all of those things play into it. So, if those things start to slip, that’s where you can get in trouble. Let me say this, this is a very good opponent. (Packers Head Coach) Matt (LaFleur)’s done a hell of a job, continues to do a hell of a job. I think (Packers Defensive Coordinator) Jeff Hafley’s a hell of a coach. I’ve known him for a little while now, but I think this defense is humming. (Packers DL) Kenny Clark, I think is an outstanding player. We know about (Packers DL Rashan) Gary, I mean I can go across the board. (Packers S Xavier) McKinney, (Packers LB) Quay Walker, (Packers CB Jaire) Alexander, they’ve got players and they’re playing hard defensively. So, this is a damn good defense and we’ve kind of hit this patch of some really good defenses and this is going to be no different. Over there offensively, they can control the clock. (Packers RB Josh) Jacobs is – he’s a factor. This is a real dude. And then they’ve got, really six receivers over there and with (Packers QB Jordan) Love pulling the trigger – and a gritty offensive line. They come off the ball, tight ends playing well. So, this is going to be – it’s a hell of a match up. To me, this is two big time programs going at it at their place and I’m looking forward to it. I know our guys are looking forward to it. But details, man. We have to be on the little things.”
On where Packers QB Malik Willis has grown from where he was at the Senior Bowl with them: “Scrambling. He’s a dangerous scrambler. That is where it begins for him. His ability to generate explosives, getting out of the pocket and taking off, that’s where he’s extremely dangerous. And to your point, there at the end of the game, Jacksonville, they run the little sneaky out the backside to (Packers WR Jayden Reed) 11, who I think is arguably their best receiver. This guy’s a playmaking dude. But he finds him for a huge – I mean that won the game. That one play right there did it and the rest of it was just to end it out before the field goal. But it all starts with his legs. Very, very dangerous runner, very good athlete, and so we’ll be ready for whatever comes our way defensively.”
On how Green Bay’s gameplan is different with Packers QB Malik Willis or Packers QB Jordan Love playing: “It’s a little different but they’re going to lean on what they do well. They’re not going to go away from that. That’s kind of your bread and butter, that’s your identity and I think that we’re going to get – there will be some wrinkles to it, but I think we have a pretty good idea of what we’re going to get no matter who’s in there. And they’re both very good athletes. They both can run, they both can create issues in the pocket. Certainly, Love as a passer is – he does a great job of eyes downfield, giving his receivers a chance to make a play on the ball. He’s just really grown and elevated since last year. I know there’s been a few picks in there, but he’s – there’s these other parts of his game playing the quarterback position that have really elevated. So, he’s a top-notch dude.”
On the way they have emphasized turnovers on both sides of the ball: “Yeah, we’ve done a good job of emphasizing and working it. We’re constantly coaching it up. Those are things we look at the next day in practice, we talk about, and you have to make an emphasis, and you have to have an urgency about yourself doing it and showing it. It’s why (Lions CB) Amik (Robertson) got those two out last week and that takes effort. It takes detail, it takes effort, it takes a conscious effort to do it. And same thing with ball security. We’ve been really good. We coach the hell out of it, we talk about it. Anybody’s carrying it, even if it’s a great run, it’s a great play, we show it. (Lions Assistant Head Coach/Running Backs) Scottie (Montgomery) gets up there and shows the offense. ‘Man, that’s a great run, look at this.’ Ball is just flopping and somebody’s going to run behind with one finger and knock it out. So, we’re just constantly coaching it up, talking about it, and it’s paying big dividends right now. I think we’re plus 10 in the turnover ratio, it’s huge. It’s one of the reasons we’re winning. It’s one of the reasons why everybody in our division is winning because we’re all a really good turnover ratio right now. All four teams.”
On how big the concern is that they are beginning to give up more rushing yards at the edges: “Yeah, it’s something that we take note of. And we know that we’re going to put in a good day’s work there in the middle with our guys and we have to be able to attack the perimeter, set edges, and let our backers flow and make plays. So, right now we just keep hitting it up and we’ll be padding up tomorrow, we’ll be bringing it, and that’s the best way – you want to get better at it, you want to work on it? You have to work on it full speed just like a game situation and get some live reps at it. So, we’re going to keep doing that because we know teams are going to keep attacking us that way.”
On how Green Bay’s defense attacks offenses: “They’re really good, they’re disruptive. They’ve changed their style from what they were last year and it’s more attack style. These guys are up the field and they cause a lot of disruption, they have. That’s one element to it, the other is they have players that can do that. Like I said, (Packers DL) Kenny (Clark), he’s a force in the middle and (Packers DL Rashan) Gary, humming off the edge. They’ve got really a two-deep rotation of D-line that are pretty damn good. And so that’s one element of it, and then when you have a guy like (Packers S Xavier) McKinney who’s instinctive, really good ball skills, can see it, feel it, he’s got six picks right now. So, you get in the quarterback’s face and cause him to make a throw he shouldn’t and it’s just a little bit off, that guy’s going to make you pay. We already talked about what they have on the back end, (Packers CB) Jaire (Alexander)’s pretty good, he can lock down guys. And then they’re getting some of these punch outs too. They are. They’re making an active effort to go after the football, and they are an opportunistic defense. This thing’s going to come down to one critical error. It’s going to go down to the fourth quarter, the very end, whoever makes one error is going to lose this game.”
On if anyone is not practicing today: “(Lions DL Josh) Paschal won’t practice, I’m trying to think of who else. I’m going to hold some guys out today, just for recovery.”
On if Lions LB Malcolm Rodriguez will practice: “Rodrigo will not practice today.”
On if Lions DL Josh Paschal will play this weekend: “TBD. Yeah, TBD.”
LIONS QB JARED GOFF QUOTE SHEET
October 30, 2024
On how much more of an emphasis it will be to take care of the ball against Green Bay’s defense as they lead the NFL in takeaways: “Yeah, they’re good at it. They’re very ball-aware, they’re coached well, they know where the ball is at, they’re going after it and they’re trying to make plays and it’s our job not to let them do that. We’ve done a pretty good job of that up to this point, but this will be a big challenge for us and we’re going to do our job.”
On how he is feeling because he did not practice today: “Good. Yeah, good, I should be out there tomorrow.”
On if his ankle is injured: “No, just rolled it. I mean, you guys saw, just rolled it, get an extra day and it should be fine.”
On how he would rank the NFC North’s teams: “I don’t know, it’s hard to rank them. I mean, all three of those teams look pretty dang good this year, so I’d say they’re pretty even and we’ve got our hands full with all three of them.”
On the difficulty of playing at Lambeau Field: “Yeah, it’s a fun environment, it’s loud, it’s going to be loud for us, we’re the defending champs going back in there. Yeah, it’ll be good. It’s fun, it’s grass, it’s outside, it’s whatever the weather may be. It’ll be good.”
On how his preparation changes playing outside for the first time this season: “Prep doesn’t change at all. It’s the same.”
On what goes into his shoe selection this weekend: “Yeah. We’ll make sure we’ve got the right spikes on. Typically, it’s either molded cleats or seven studs and typically on these grass fields you want to wear those seven studs so you’re not slipping around. You see a lot of guys on tape slipping and you don’t want that to be you.”
On what he sees about Green Bay’s defense that they have changed: “There’re some similarities and there’s a lot of differences. It’s a different coordinator obviously and his background shows up in their tape and you get a pretty good idea of what they want to do. Yeah, it’s a really, really well-coached defense, it’s sound, it’s a good tackling defense, they know where their problems are, and they do a good job.”
On if he agrees with former Head Coach Bill Belichick’s comment that Detroit’s offense is unstoppable: “Yeah, I think he was just trying to pump us up a little bit. I don’t think by any means – no, no one’s unstoppable. We’re as fallible as anybody. I think what he was referring to was how many weapons we have. We do, we know that. You take away one guy, it’s going to be another guy that we’re going to try to beat you with, so I think that was kind of what he was referring to and yeah, we do play that way.”
On how key it is for him to have a high completion percentage: “Yeah, that is important. You do want to complete the ball and keep that completion percentage high and keep the ball in our guys’ hands and I think the biggest thing that’s shown up a lot is throwing the ball to our running backs and them getting explosive gains off of it, which is so rare in this League, but if the guys are covered downfield and whatever play we have up isn’t open and we get it down to those guys with some space, it’s as good as anything. So, we’re not afraid to do that and we’ve got two good backs who can make things happen with it.”
On his role in making sure the pass protection is as good as they want it to be after he took four sacks against Tennessee: “Yeah, just my depth in the pocket. I’ve got to be better and just make sure I’m stepping up in the pocket and having good depth, and then getting rid of the ball on time, and then those guys know what they need to do, but they’ve been doing a pretty good job all year and I certainly have my part in it in keeping myself upright and getting the ball out of my hands.”
On what he has said to Lions WR Jameson Williams as a team leader: “I’ve said nothing to him. He’s fine. We’re good.”
On if Lions WR Jameson Williams needs to say anything to the team about his situation in the news: “Nope, we’re good.”
On if there is any concern about Lions WR Jameson Williams’s off-field situations detracting from the team: “Nope, Jameson’s – when he’s back from his suspension, he’ll be ready to go.”
