LIONS HEAD COACH DAN CAMPBELL QUOTE SHEET
December 18, 2024
Opening Statement: “So obviously getting ready, prepped for Chicago, talented team, even that game the other night, they’re in it. They played good defense, got plenty of skill, the quarterback’s really played well for a while now. So, we have to be ready to go, but all that being said, I still think it goes back to us and we have to play clean football. We have to play at a high level and play with a lot of details and just get back to the basics of what we do and that’s really what this week’s going to be about for us, is honing in on what we do and just playing fast.”
On how much he leans on the old Chicago film with their head coaching change or if he can decipher any tendencies in this short span: “Yeah, it’s hard to – it’s really hard to say that you’re gaining a lot of tendencies on just two games. So, we’re really using it all, you do kind of look at that, (Bears Defensive Coordinator) Eric Washington’s calling the defense now, I know him, got a lot of respect for him, (Bears Interim Head Coach) Thomas Brown’s done a good job running the team, calling the offense. So, they’ve got things that they like but they’re also – they have a lot of variety in what they do and it’s hard to say with just two games. So, we’re going to prepare for really everything they’ve done, we have to be prepared for that. Inevitably, every week we get things that – unscouted looks, that’s where we’re at now, we get a lot of those, so we need to make sure that we’re looking for everything. We’ll have our guys prepared and ready to go.”
On an injury update on Lions RB David Montgomery: “Yeah, David’s getting another opinion, so he’s had a couple and really just see what this third one says. So, that’s why we have not put him on Injured/Reserve, we’re in a waiting mode here.”
On if they will rely on the doctor’s opinion for Lions RB David Montgomery’s injury: “Yeah, you have to, you have to and it is one of these injuries that’s unique because you need to know is it stable, is it fixed or will it scar and then be certainly stable for now and for later. And then you have to rely on him, like, ‘Hey man, I’m good. I can do this.’ So, it’s a combination certainly of the doctors, but him as well, where he thinks he can go with it, can he protect himself and play at a high level. So, we’re in a holding pattern, which as of right now, that’s a positive.”
On weighing which players can and cannot come back from Reserve/Injured: “Well, I think really just with – I think it’s going to work out OK here because unfortunately, a number of our guys are done-done. So, it makes it pretty clear cut from that standpoint. So, I don’t think that we’re going to run into an issue here with who’s able to come back and that.”
On if it is likely that Lions DL John Cominsky will come back this season: “You know, it’s just – I think it’s unlikely. I think it’s unlikely. He’s tried, he’s been rehabbing, he’s doing it, it’s just trying to get over the last little hump here, it’s been tough. So, he’s doing everything he can and those guys are doing a heck of a job rehabbing and trying to get him back, but I think it’s unlikely.”
On how he shifts the narrative that the sky is falling: “Well, what’s interesting is there’s two things that unfold, really. One, it’s the loss. When you haven’t lost since September, so there’s the loss element and then there’s the injury element and so everything gets compacted. So, you really need to address both and that’s what we did, one is, hey, we mention it. We got popped in the mouth and we have to get up off the ground and we have to go back to work and reposition ourselves to be able to play the next game and learn from what just happened. And the other is to not lose confidence in the fact that we still have really good players here on defense and that we have good coaches and that we can play any way that we need to play from that standpoint, but as well as offense and special teams and still win games. So, that’s what’s important and really you just have to stay focused on what’s in front of you. It really is, ‘Just worry about today and worry about today’s practice and what your job description is and how you’re going to play the very best that you can play.’ It’s my job to alleviate stress in some areas and just kind of balance the buoy if you will. And we’ll do that.”
On if people are overlooking the excellent offensive players still on the roster: “First of all, you just can’t convince me – I don’t believe it, we’ve got plenty here and I’ll tell you what. When we come out of a game and everything that we said that we have to do, including our identity, we do that for 60 minutes and we lose the game, then I’ll stand up here and tell you, ‘You know what, we just don’t have enough.’ But until that happens, you’re not going to hear me say anything about what we have or don’t have or can we do this, can we do – we have plenty here in the whole roster, we have plenty on defense. I believe in (Lions S) Kerby (Joseph), I believe in (Lions DB Brian) Branch, I believe in (Lions DL DJ) Reader, I believe in (Lions DL) Za’Darius (Smith), I believe in (Lions DL) Levi (Onwuzurike), I believe in (Lions CB) Amik (Robertson), (Lions CB Terrion) Arnold, guys like (Lions DL Pat) O’Connor, I mean I can – (Lions LB) Ben Niemann, (Lions LB) Jack Campbell, so we’re good and we’ll figure out how we need to play. We’ve already begun to do that and really, everything that we do from this point on is to, ‘How do we get to where we’re playing the very best football with where we’re at now, with what we have, by the time we hit the playoffs?’ That’s really where the focus has got to be. First focus, we have to be prepared to go out and play a good football team in the Chicago Bears, and then next is what I just mentioned.”
On how much he learns from his mistakes in games: “Well, I think you look at everything and you – most of the time what you’re going to – if you haven’t figured this out about me yet, a lot of times these decisions are, alright, this game is over and I’m sitting at home and whatever decision that was, am I going to regret that decision, deeply regret that decision, and a lot of times that’s where it goes. Yeah, it’s in the moment, but it’s also – and if it doesn’t work out but I know I’m not going to regret it, man I’m good. Like the one the other day, what I said was hindsight on the onside. I don’t regret kicking it. I do the fact that it went all the way down to the five, I didn’t know that was going to happen, so since that happened, hey I wish I wouldn’t have done that. But that’s really what it is. I don’t want to ever be in a position where I stand in front of the team and I can’t even look them in the eye because I did something that I knew in my heart I didn’t believe in, and we lost. It’s one thing that you do something that you believe in and it just doesn’t work out, I can live with myself and I can look at those guys in the eye.”
On how important it is to get the message right to the team: “Yeah, we talked about it this morning. We just had the first meeting, really significant meeting since the Buffalo game. So, like I said, I just hit it head on and tell them what the facts are. This is where we’re at, this is how we’re viewed right now, and look, nobody writes our story. We’re the only ones who write our own story, so we have the pen and there’s a lot of football left and I think we’re looking forward to this to be honest with you. So, you picked yourself up, you dust yourself off and you go back to the basics. Go back to work, that’s the only way to get better and clean up issues that cost you because the bottom line is that we lost a game. That really is the most important thing, we lost a game and here’s why we lost a game at the end of the day. So, why don’t we go clean those things up and take it into Chicago and see what that looks like.”
On Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown’s performance against the Bills while playing through illness and if there was a question of limiting him: “No, actually I had no idea, nobody even told me, which is just like Saint, he’s not going to say anything until it’s done. The kid is – that’s just what he is, that’s the way he’s wired. So, it says a lot and you turn on the tape and you don’t notice anything different because he’s one of those that can feel like crap and it’s not going to affect the way that he approaches the game and the amount of effort that he gives. There’s a clip I showed to the team this morning where we’re down 17 and we’re trying, offensively, get down there and pull it within 10, which we do, but we hit (Lions TE Sam) LaPorta and he breaks a couple of tackles, goes, and you see (Lions RB) David (Montgomery) and Saint finish on the pile, just trying to push the pile, get a block, try to help him out, and that’s the stuff that Saint does over and over. Everybody sees the production, the receiving, the route running, the run after catch, but I don’t know if everybody always sees the amount of dirty work that guy does for us and it’s rare, it’s rare to have a receiver that does everything and does it at a high level. If things don’t feel good on your body or you’re sick and it doesn’t – he just goes because he doesn’t want to let the guys down.”
On the key to not having back-to-back losses in a while: “Well, you can’t make – it’s kind of what I just said. You have to identify the issues and you have to attack the next preparation for the opponent, there’s got to be a level of urgency that is extremely high and you have to want to get that taste out of your mouth so bad, the taste of losing, that you’ll do anything it takes to prep yourself and you’re going to play at the highest level that you played all season. So, it’s a mindset, it’s a preparation, there’s a work ethic to it, and it’s really that simple. It’s really that simple. It’s not anything else – I know this, you overreact on one, that’s not good either. We lost a game and it’s as simple as we didn’t fit this right, we didn’t finish on this play, we mis-IDed this block, we missed this tackle. Well, why? Because of the angle. Why this? ‘Well because I thought I was supposed to be cut down on this.’ So, let’s just clean those things up and go back to work. That’s why our guys are so good, we have a good group of guys, they don’t like losing and they don’t lose confidence, they get more aggravated like I do. So, we want to fix it, we don’t want to lose anymore and that’s the plan. We’re going to be prepared, we’re going to go to Chicago and we’re going to go out there to compete to win.”
On Bears QB Caleb Williams not throwing an interception in a while and how key it is to get a takeaway: “Yeah, it’s something that we talked about. We have really a couple game drought of takeaways right now and that’s got to be a part of our identity. So, we have to get back to what we do and the way that we play because that’s how you give yourself the best opportunity to get takeaways. So, to be able to put some pressure on him and try to force him into making some decisions that are ill-advised, that’s big and that’s big for any opponent that you go against. And yes, he is playing – I think he’s playing really good football, and he just continues to get better. He’s taken a few hits, but he just continues to stand in there and push the ball down the field. He’s mobile, as we know, he can break contain, he keeps his eyes downfield. So, he’s a young quarterback in this League that is really continuing to improve and he’s got plenty of weapons. He’s got plenty of weapons with (Bears WR DJ Moore) 2 and (Bears WR Keenan Allen) 13 and the tight end and the rookie that they’ve got out there. They’ve got plenty, plenty of fire power, (Bears RB D’Andre) Swift in the backfield. So, we have to find a way to try and disrupt him, and it goes without saying, we cannot let these guys run the ball down our throat. We have to shut down the run game.”
On if anyone will be held out from practice today: “Yeah, there will be quite a few guys that I’m just going to hold out today, cautionary. So, some of the O-lineman, going to hold (Lions DB Brian Branch) BB out for a little bit.”
On if they are starting Lions S Ifeatu Melifonwu’s 21-day Reserve/Injured clock: “Yes.”
LIONS QB JARED GOFF QUOTE SHEET
December 18, 2024
On what he has learned about Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell in the face of adversity: “Yeah, I mean, clearly as good as they get in adversity and it wears off on us and we’ve had that deal now where we haven’t lost two in a row and we hope to keep that going, but yeah, it starts with today at practice and the messaging he sends to the team is always spot on and always what we need to hear and he does a good job of keeping us ready to go.”
On what kind of difference it makes to have a coach like Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell who will take accountability and step in front of people and be transparent: “Yeah, it’s funny because it’s relative, right? Because adversity two years ago is different than adversity right now. So, watching him stand in the storm at 1-6 and 3-13 or whatever we were that first year, that’s what, for me, carries – makes his words mean so much more now when we’re 12-2, facing our first loss in the last 12 weeks. So, if that’s our adversity right now, we’ll be just fine, we’ll handle it, we’ll move on. But I think when he stands in front of the room, people listen and the way that we handle aversity as a team has been pretty good.”
On if Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell gave the team the theme that they can still write their own story and if that resonated with them: “Of course, yeah. We still control our destiny and have everything out in front of us. We’re in good shape, we’re 12-2, another division game and hopefully can stay undefeated in the division and keep it rolling.”
On if the negative noise from outside does not affect them and if that is in part because of Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell: “Yeah, it doesn’t affect us at all. I think every single week it’s a rollercoaster in this League and I think oftentimes there are overreactions every week and you just – you go with it, even when things are good there are overreactions, it goes both ways. So yeah, that’s the nature of our business and the nature of fandom in our League and we have great fans who are very supportive that also get excited, super excited or super down about things, and that’s OK, we plan to keep supporting them and keep trying to win.”
On what he believes the key has been to continuing the team’s streak of not suffering consecutive losses: “Yeah, it’s a lot of things. It’s just mentality and not overreacting. Like I said – I think I said it on Tuesday – if we reacted like everyone outside of us, we’d have no chance. ‘We’re done,’ that’s what everyone’s saying, but no, we’re in great shape. We’re 12-2 and everything in front of us, and to answer your question, yeah, I think it’s just a testament to the guys we have and to our coaches and the way we respond and the way that we approach every day and every week and we’re really intentional about getting back on the right track when we do slip off it briefly.”
On if he embraces playing in cold weather outdoors: “Yeah, this weekend doesn’t look like it’ll be too bad, just a little cold. Yeah, we’ll be just fine, we’ll be good. We’ll have all our warm gear ready and I’m sure they will as well and it’ll be nice, outdoor, maybe a little muddy, who knows? It’ll be fun, it’ll be – Soldier Field’s the greatest and I think about it all the time, the two away games that we get to play outdoors every single year at Soldier Field and at Lambeau, those are two special places and have great pageantry and I always enjoy it.”
On Lions RB Craig Reynolds, Lions RB Sione Vaki and Lions RB Jermar Jefferson potentially stepping in for Lions RB David Montgomery: “Absolutely, those guys have – not Sione, but the other two guys have been here for years and know our system and know everything and can handle it and Sione will be just fine when he steps in there as well, but those two guys in particular are veterans and we trust them and can’t wait to see what they do.”
On if Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown told him he was ill the night before the game against Buffalo: “No, he didn’t tell anybody, and I told him after the game like, ‘Man, why didn’t you say anything?’ And he’s like, ‘I was fine.’ And I could tell, though, throughout the game, he wasn’t quite himself, just verbally. Usually, he’s a lot more talkative and whatnot. I’m like, ‘You alright?’ And he’s like, ‘Yeah, I’m good.’ And so, he was good obviously, he had a great, big day, but no, I had no idea.”
On Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown’s illness being the first time he had ever vomited: “Is that what he said? Well, good, I’m glad he got it out of the way.”
On if he has seen a lot of changes from Chicago since they have had a coaching change: “Yeah, slightly. I mean, it’s only been two weeks, so you never know how much they’re going to continue to change or not change. Yeah, there are slight changes, but we’ll have slight changes, too, for them. I’m sure they’ll have a good plan for us.”
On if an emphasis is being placed on starting the game faster after starting slow against Buffalo: “Yeah, I think, like you said, starting fast is always important, and certainly in a game like that when you know the other team’s got the capability of scoring the amount of points that they do, you have to. You can’t win that game – it’s hard to win that game, coming from behind, it’s not impossible, but it’s hard. I think we put ourselves behind the eight ball a little bit, so yeah, starting fast and making sure we can get a lead is always great, obviously. But yeah, you just want to keep that game close and stay in it until the very end, and unfortunately, we weren’t able to finish it off.”
