LIONS HEAD COACH DAN CAMPBELL QUOTE SHEET
January 24, 2024
Opening Statement: “Got a tremendous amount of respect for (49ers Head) Coach (Kyle) Shanahan, what he’s done out there, man. I think he’s an outstanding coach. And then, certainly, as an offensive coordinator, he’s tops. (49ers Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Steve) Wilks, ton of respect. Always, every time we’ve faced them and his defenses, they’re a pain in the rear, so – and nothing has changed here. These guys are – they’re aggressive. It’s a bully mentality and they have an identity, an attitude, sound schemes. They’re going to test your boundaries. They’re going to find weaknesses and then just try to pepper you on those. So, this is a heck of a matchup for us. Outstanding playmakers, both sides of the ball. (49ers President of Football Operations/General Manager) John Lynch has done a hell of a job, he and Kyle both building that roster. So, this’ll be an outstanding test for us, but it’s one we’re ready for, we’re ready for. So, we’re built to handle this and this will be an outstanding game. On the road, our guys are going to be ready to roll.”
On how much Lions QB Jared Goff’s experience in the NFC Championship and Super Bowl adds to the faith his teammates have in him: “Yeah, I think – that helps, especially at that position. I think it does help at the quarterback position to understand what you’re in. The stakes go up and to be able to have been here before, I think, is big. He’s played plenty of football. He’s been in plenty of big games, different atmospheres. He’s played at this place before. So yeah, look, that only helps. That helps.”
On if the defense will primarily focus on stopping the 49ers’ run or pass game: “You stop the run. You’ve got to stop the run because if you don’t, they’ll rush for 250 on you and then they won’t even worry about passing. Everything has to start there. And yes, they are. That’s – look, (49ers Head Coach Kyle) Shanahan does an unbelievable job of – he’s going to work one side and make you overreact and then he counters off of it and then he play-passes off of it and works the middle of the field. So, look, you’ve got your hands full in both regards. And (49ers QB Brock) Purdy does a hell of a job. They throw a lot of daggers middle of the field, and he does a hell of a job with touch, timing, rhythm, but we have to stop this run game. It just has to start there. As much as you can, you have to try to make this team one-dimensional and that’s not easy to do.”
On if he will do anything to help Lions QB Jared Goff manage the pressure of playing in the NFC Championship in his hometown: “He’s going to be great. I really – I feel great about Goff. He’s the least of my concerns. He’s going to be just fine. For him, he’s done this before. He understands it. We’re back on the road, and it’ll be a loud environment. But I mean, we’ve – man, we’ve been in some big games on the road over the last year and a half and he’s performed well. And look, we threw a ton on him last week. And I know it was at home, but we put a lot on his plate. As advanced as that defense was, all the different things they do, that required that he take on a heavy load to get us in the right play, find the matchups, read coverage and he was outstanding with that. And so, he’s going to be fine. He’s going to be ready to go, so I’m not worried about that.”
On if the team has to turn off their cellphones to silence the outside noise to prepare for the NFC Championship: “Man, it’s hard. Now, all that being said, that’s kind of the world we live in now. That’s – most of these guys have grown up and that’s what they know, this is all they know. And so, you keep that in mind, but it is a strain when you start – I think in some regards, this may actually be easier on our guys because all – these two home games, which has been phenomenal, you’ve got a lot of – I know a lot of our players had family and friends that came in and there’s a lot of tension being pulled when they go home at the evenings and the games, getting ready and I thought we handled that really well. Whereas now, we go on – yeah, there’ll be some guys that are from Cali. But all-in-all, I think it can actually be a little bit less stressful on our guys from the outside. But I think it’s no different than anything else. We talk about it every week, just – you’ve got to put all that behind you. You can’t let that be the main thing. Your focus has got to be on this gameplan, this opponent because the most important thing is that your teammate knows that you’re going to handle your business. And it’s not about the outside things. It’s not about the – I mean, here we are, this is the biggest issue right now. I mean, most of the time I come in here and there’s what? I don’t know, 20 of you. And now there’s a whole packed room, people I don’t even recognize. And that’s what our players are dealing with. It’s all the extra attention outside of the norm. That’s the issue. It’s not the opponent. It has its own issues that we’ll deal with, but it’s all the outside attention and where they’re getting pulled from every area. You’ve got friends, you’ve got family reaching out, ‘Oh, unbelievable, you guys are here again. What are you going –?’ And, ‘You’re such a phenomenal player, you’re a phenomenal coach, you’re a phenomenal GM,’ and pretty soon if you forget that it’s us and it’s about the team, I think that’s always the challenge this time of year when you get in these type of games and settings.”
On what the team has done this season that makes him confident they will perform well in the NFC Championship game: “Yeah, I think it – look, everything starts with ability, right? You have to have ability in this League. We have ability, but deeper than that, you – man, you have to be able to handle the ebbs and flows of a game in a season and playoffs. And that’s what has been built for three years now. And so that’s what gives me faith. Look, there’s going to be things that are going to happen in this game that it’s going to look like it’s out of control and it’s not going to go well for us. And as long as we just play the next play, it’ll turn, and that’s what we’ve done all year. And that’s the most important thing to keep in mind, but you’ve got to be made a certain way and the team has to be made a certain way to be able to handle that. Otherwise, you just crumble. So, that’s what gives me faith. We have a team that’s built that way.”
On if playing on an 0-16 Lions team in 2008 gives him a greater appreciation for what they are accomplishing now: “Yeah, it’s – listen, it’s – I really don’t want to go into depth about all that. Just, certainly, it wasn’t – and look, I got hurt early. I wasn’t around for the whole year, but you just – it’s one of those where you can’t get out of your own way. You just continue to find ways to lose, unfortunately. And it always comes down to just the little things and everybody doing the little things and it comes down to the right people everywhere, across the board. And so, look, you’re always going to learn lessons over time, no matter where you’ve been, the good and the bad. And some of the best lessons you learn are when things don’t go right. And so, I’ve been fortunate to see it all. I’ve seen it all. Been at the lowest and I’ve been at the highest and you learn along the way. And that helps, right? It helps, so I’m glad we’re not there anymore.”
On what he likes most about what the defense is doing and how he would describe the moxie of the unit: “Yeah, we’re disruptive. We’re disruptive, we’re aggressive and we hit. And that, to me, has got to be what we’re about. Those are the principles. Look, we may get hit on a couple of things and I know, for me, I’m willing to give up something to get something. And sometimes you’ve got to – things may happen, but that’s OK because it’ll pay dividends by the time you hit the fourth quarter and I think that’s what we’re doing. I think it is a salty group. They play hard, they’re pretty sound and we’re competitive. I think (Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn) AG’s done a hell of a job of mixing things up. We’ve got enough coverage versus pressure there. We’re starting to figure out some of our better pressure players, guys that can do that on the perimeter. And I think you see our confidence going up. It’s really gone up over the last six weeks. We started hot and then we just kind of hit – you hit a rough patch and then we came through it and we’re on the uptick right now. We got two takeaways the other day, which is huge and that’s got to continue for us. But I go to back to – the way we’re playing there, the way we play on offense and special teams, it’s the right recipe.”
On if there was a moment this season when he thought that they could make it to the NFC Championship: “Man, I don’t necessarily think like that. To me, it’s one week at a time. It’s – I kind of mentioned this before, it’s about finding a way to get the best, the most wins you can, get yourself in position to where when you get in the playoffs, you have the best possible advantage to advance and then you get to that one and it’s about – all about that one. And then you get to the next one, then you get to the next one. I’m kind of that way in general, so man, if you’re asking me what I thought was possible, I would’ve told you in training camp that I knew we would be a good team. Now, who knows what that’s going to be? It’s about getting in, and we got in and now we’re just one week at a time.”
On what he appreciates the most about what Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown does well: “His consistency, his consistency. The things that he does every day in practice and every game show up all the time. That, to me – and that’s what a pro is and it’s why he’s a pro. I mean, it’s – you can write down everything that he’s going to do, and he’ll do it. Man, you already – I can bank on everything – his whole routine that he goes through on every day of the week to prepare and then what it’s going to look like in pregame, what it’s going to look like in the game, what it’s going to look like postgame, what he’s going to do on his day off. It’s the same thing and it’s – there’s nothing easy about what he does. But, for him, it’s routine and it’s why he’s a great player. It’s consistency. You know exactly what you’re going to get every time, so it’s easy when you have a guy like him on your team. It’s easy to gameplan with him, what you can do because you know what you’re going to get.”
On how the nuances in Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs’s run game have improved throughout the season: “Yeah, he’s improved in everything. I mean, I think you can see that. His protection has improved and that’s not something that – you say, ‘Well, we got him in here to protect.’ No. But he’s got to be able to do it and he’s grown leaps and bounds in that regard. I think you see he’s getting better in the pass game out of the backfield. That was somewhere we felt like there was a ton of room to grow. And it’s getting better, and better, and better. And he’s still got so much room to go there. But his running ability, his vision, he’s just, to me, he really is a complete back that’s continued to develop. But really, since the, I felt like the – we played the Ravens early in the year and that’s when you felt like, ‘Alright, here come – the light’s coming on.’ And he’s just, every week, gotten better, and better, and better. So, he’s playing at a high level right now.”
On if Lions TE Zach Ertz will be in today: “Yeah, he’s here.”
On what Lions TE Zach Ertz will bring to the offense: “Well, right now we just – look, he just got here. I know he’s in shape. I talked to him the other day. He understands we’re just going to gauge this and see where we’re at. So, he’ll be out here. But he’s – look, he’s played. Played at a high level. He – there’s things that he does well and it’s just a matter of, is this the week to use him.”
LIONS QB JARED GOFF QUOTE SHEET
January 24, 2024
On how his Super Bowl experience is helping him handle the pressure of the playoffs: “Yeah, it’s helpful playing in playoffs and winning playoff games and then being able to draw on those experiences. Certainly, road playoff games I think are extremely hard to win and I’ve been fortunate to have success in them in the past. And yeah, you can draw on that a little bit.”
On how he expects the pressure and external distractions to be different this week playing in a playoff game in his hometown: “Yeah, it’s part of it. This week will be a little bit more attention than last week. And of course, there’s four teams left, and these are the times you dream of as a kid and you grow up, hoping to be in these final games. And we’re one win away from our ultimate goal of getting to the Super Bowl and winning that game as well. But yeah, we’re where our feet are today and being very present. And know this will be a challenge for us this week and doing our best.”
On the challenge of facing San Francisco’s defense with the athletic linebackers they have: “Yeah, both those guys are really dang good. And I’ve been fortunate, or unfortunate, to be on the other side of the ball from them quite sometimes. And they’re really good. They’re both very smart. They’re both very fast. They both play sideline to sideline. They’re both involved in the run game and the pass game. And yeah, lot of respect for both those guys.”
On if there is something he has to be more aware of when facing such athletic linebackers: “I don’t know. I think they’re both very fast. I think that’s something that’s unique about them both, but nothing more than another good group of linebackers.”
On if their success on the road is something that they can lean on heading into this game: “Yeah, I mean we’ve had success on the road a variety of times throughout the year, and even like you said, going into last year. And yeah, it’ll be another hostile environment. It’ll be another great team. It’ll be another complete team that we’re going to go in there and do our best to knock them off. And yeah, it’ll be a fun game.”
On the adjustments of playing outside for the first time in seven weeks: “Yeah, it’ll be – it looks like it’s going to be fine weather. So, yeah, it’ll be fun.”
On if he grew up a 49ers fan and if he will take a minute to soak it in when he is there: “Yes, I grew up a Niner fan and I was able to get all those ‘playing in front of the Bay Area team’ done when I had my time with the Rams. So, yeah, it’ll be fun to be able to play a big game there, but I’ve played there quite a few times and we’ll have some friends and family there. It’ll be cool.”
On how his weekly routine helps to deflect the extra outside noise: “Yeah, we’re just going to do the same thing we’ve done all year, man. It’s Wednesday today, we’ll install our first and second down plan and move from there. And it’ll be fun. It’ll be a good week. It’ll be a fun game. I know they’re a great team and so are we. So, it’ll be a good matchup.”
On what has been unique and special about working with Lions Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson at this point in the season: “I think how much input he allows me to have and whether he takes it or he doesn’t, he allows me to say it and uses some of it. It’s fun for me, it really is. It allows me to really be a part of the plan in some ways. And he’s a great listener and listens to not only me, but all the players of what they want, what they see. And that’s not only through the week, but on gameday the same way.”
On how he gained a sense that the roster was ready for big moments like this despite its youthfulness: “I think back to last year when we played Green Bay at Green Bay. That’s the closest to a playoff game we had been to that point. And the way those guys walked in there and handled that and knowing we got bounced 20 minutes prior to the game starting, and still going in there and handling business, you do that, you’re not worried about any young guys not being able to handle that stuff. They speak for themselves, and our guys will be ready.”
On if he liked the added pressure of wearing number 16 in the Bay Area given its significance with Joe Montana: “No, I didn’t even – the whole story of it, I chose – well, my dad really chose it for me in some ways because I was too young to even really watch Joe Montana. So, I just – it was my number growing up and yeah, I wore it because my dad said, ‘Hey, that’s Joe Montana’s number. You should pick it.’ And I’m like, ‘Alright,’ and chose it and just continued to wear it. But no, I’m obviously a huge fan of his and yeah, it’ll be fun. I don’t have any – I’ve played there a ton of times wearing that number and didn’t seem to matter.”
On if he started wearing the number 16 in his Pop Warner days: “Yeah, I was about seven years old.”
On the value of the offensive line: “Yeah, it starts with them, man. It really does. And when they’ve been – these last handful of games, however many it’s been where they’ve stuck together and have been healthy and it’s really gelled and been really good. And even, I though (Lions G) Jonah (Jackson) goes down last week, the way that (Lions G Kayode Awosika) Yode filled in there and played, it really gives me a ton of confidence. And our versatility to be able to ask them to do however many drop backs we had last game, 30-something probably drop backs. And at the same time, being able to ask them to do pretty intricate stuff in the run game, it’s a very unique group. It really is and we owe a lot of credit to them for the success we’ve had on offense.”
On if the NFC Championship is an opportunity for them to showcase the star players they have on the roster: “Yes, I do. I think we’ve got a ton of great players who maybe haven’t had the national stage up to this point that a lot of the other guys have. And obviously, they have a ton of good players as well and a ton of Pro Bowlers and All-Pro players over there. We feel like we’ve got a lot of good players too though like you mentioned and excited to play on another national stage and be able to showcase that.”
On if being even keeled is a natural state for him or if he has to fight himself to not get too emotional: “Yeah, it does come quite naturally, but I do think there’s a part of me that’s intentional about being consistent whether things are good or bad, and making sure guys know that I’m not worried about it, so you guys – it’s all handled. It’s all under control. And that’s not easy. I think at times you are worried about things, you are trying to make sure things are the right way and being able to give off that everything is handled is important I think and something that I’ve always tried to do.”
On if this is how he envisioned playing quarterback at his peak would look like: “Yeah, it’s been fun. It’s been a great year up to this point. We’ve got hopefully two more to win. But yeah, we’ve done a great job and the O-line’s kept me upright and made some throws and our receivers have played great, and our running backs have played great. So, yeah, I think the quarterback is often a product of what’s around him and obviously, I’ve got a lot a confidence in myself, but I’ve got a lot of great players around me who have helped me out this year and made things easier.”
On how much he enjoys figuring out the puzzle to diagnose a defense with Lions C Frank Ragnow: “Yeah, I enjoy it a ton and I know he does too. And I think when you see all the fun stuff we’re able to do on offense, and without him, we’re not able to do it. He gets us – he points us out the MIKE and gets us in the right place. He’s as important to our offense as anybody. But yes, it is a lot of fun working throughout the week with him on how he sees things, how I see things, certainly pass-protection, how we’re going to do things. And yeah, it makes it fun.” |
