| LIONS HEAD COACH DAN CAMPBELL TRAINING CAMP QUOTE SHEET July 27, 2022 Opening Statement: “I would just start with this as it pertains to us getting ready for camp, our football operations did a great job of getting everything ready upstairs, out on the field. (Lions Head Groundskeeper) Eric Bryan, the fields look great. So, there’s a lot of work that goes into that. (Lions Senior Director, Football Operations) Gina (Newell) did a great job getting everything in order as well. So, credit to them. Let me – real quick because I know this is coming, there are two guys that I want to hit injury-wise because I know you’re going to ask anyway. So, (Lions DL Josh) Paschal had a sports hernia, essentially, version of sports hernia. So, that’s what he’s working with. He’s doing well, but it will be a little bit. He’s doing good, so he’s progressing, but that’s why he’s not out there. Then (Lions DL) Romeo (Okwara)’s doing well. But as you guys know with Achilles, everybody heals a little differently and at different rates. He’s progressing, but it’s just – he’s on that trajectory, it’s just not as steep. But he’s doing well. Other than that, I know somebody’s going to ask about ‘Hard Knocks,’ that’s the next one that’s coming up. Haven’t had a ton of exposure, two days but they’ve been fine, they’ve been great. They’re professionals, obviously, they’ve got a job to do, and we’ve got a job to do.” On what goals they want to accomplish to mark training camp as successful: “Yeah, I kind of alluded this in spring, I think it would be that we get better in critical situations in practice. That’s where it’s got to start is practice and feel like we’ve got composure, that we can function at a higher rate, figure out the guys we can depend on in those situations and come out of camp and feel really good about it, and know that when we need it in the critical, that offensively and defensively we can – we’ve got the ammo and the right mindset to make the plays that we need to make. I think that’s big for us, I really do.” On how he helps the team handle varied expectations: “Yeah, I don’t – we don’t really talk about that. I mean, I don’t talk about that. I think more than anything, it’s just about our mindset and our demeanor. I think that’s where it’s got to start. So, to me that’s what we preach about, we – I think – I told the team last night our identity and who we are, and our foundation is all about grit. That’s physical, mental toughness and that means taking it one day at a time. That means going a little longer and pushing a little harder, thinking a little deeper, a little sharper, those terms. So, I think when we think that way and we just worry about what’s in front of us, everything else will – it will play itself out. So, I’m not worried about that.” On how much Lions QB Jared Goff has progressed: “Yeah, well look I would say he’s more comfortable at this time than he was last year. A lot of that has to do with what we’ve done offensively, I would say (Lions Offensive Coordinator) Ben Johnson has done a really good job and his staff. Not only what we’re doing or where we’re going, bringing in (Lions Senior Offensive Assistant) John Morton has been really good for us, who was at Vegas. But also, we’re doing a number of things that he did well at LA. So, I think those will help him.” On not placing Lions CB Jeff Okudah on the Active/PUP list: “He’s good to go.” On how he is going to handle Lions CB Jeff Okudah early in the season coming off an injury: “Yeah listen, he’s – I’ll tell you what, he’s committed. He’s in a good place right now, we’re going to get him some reps out there today and I think it’s just – man if he looks good today, he’s getting even more tomorrow and if he looks good, then day three – for the most part, we’re not putting really any restrictions on him. He’s been good. As a matter of fact, we brought him in early, just because of the injury. He was with the rookies on the report date, you get the injured vets, you get the rookies, quarterbacks come in three days early. And I don’t require those guys to be in football meetings or anything of that nature and he wanted to be around, man. He wanted – and that’s a good sign, he wants as much knowledge as he can get, as much help, and he’s committed. He’s ready to go, I mean he looks good.” On if he thinks there is a sense of urgency with Lions CB Jeff Okudah coming off an injury: “Yeah, I do. Look he knows, he’s – nobody wants it more than he does. So, I mean he’s put in the work, he looks healthy, and I think at this point all you can do now is go to work and show what you’ve got and see if you can continue to progress. Because look, ultimately, that’s the thing here is he just hadn’t got a ton of football in him because of the injury. So, now that he’s healthy, to be able to continue to develop, he was on a good trajectory before he – the injury happened last year. So, we would anticipate that he’ll pick back up where he left off and then some.” On where he is confident that the team has improved from spring: “Yeah, I mean it’s hard to say because there again we’re not in pads. So, I mean, of course the skill positions get – you’re going to say that naturally because we don’t have pads on. So, I would say the receiver position, certainly, I feel pretty good about the development in that room with those guys. That would probably be the first thing I’d think of.” On how excited he is to see the second-year players make a big jump: “Yeah, I mean we’re counting on it, we’ve got to have it. I mean if they don’t make a jump, we’re in trouble. That’s the bottom line because those guys are kind of our core and our foundation. I mean (Lions WR Amon-Ra) St. Brown’s got to be better, (Lions T Penei) Sewell’s got to be better, (Lions DL) Levi (Onwuzurike)’s got to be better, (Lions DL Alim McNeill) Mac’s got to be better, (Lions LB Derrick) Barnes’s got to be better because if they’re not, we’re not going to go anywhere. So, we’re looking forward to it and we’re going to push them to be there and get there.” On what the internal expectations for the team are: “I think for me and for those players, I want them to know that I truly believe we have the right coaching staff. And I do believe we’ve got enough pieces in here to compete. I really do. And to me, when you’re a coach, if – you just want to know you’ve got – that you do have the pieces to able to compete, and I do feel that way. And now, it’s up us collectively to find a way to turn some of those losses from last year into wins. You find a way to turn, to flip five or six of those games, and all of sudden you’re right there. That to me is what this is about. I think we have enough to compete, and now it’s on us to find a way to close out those games, and that’s why you asked that question. That’s why is, in the criticals, ‘Can we find a way? Can we find a way to get a little bit better? Can we find way get a little bit better, to pull off some of those wins?’ That to me is what I think of, I really do. And so, I can’t put wins and losses on that. I just know that I feel good about, ‘Alright, we’ve got the pieces here to mix it up with just about anybody.’ Now it’s on us to find a way to win.” On how the coaching staff keeps Lions WR Jameson Williams engaged in training camp despite injury: “Yeah, look it’s not – there again, it’s day one. We’ll find out, but it’s not easy. It’s not easy when you’re a player like him and what he’s been and the type of athlete that he’s been. He’s never really had to deal with this and so this is new to him. It’s not easy to look out there and all of those guys are running around, and he knows, ‘Man I could–‘. He knows what he can do, and what’s he’s capable of. He’s just not there yet, and that can be frustrating. But we’ve got a plan for him. He’s working and he’s progressing. I think it’s big. The football is where he really – obviously, he’s all in. He loves it. He eats it up, and he knows what’s going on. He’s attentive in walkthroughs and meetings. I think it’s always got to start there. That’s the goal, and that’s the reach. That’s where you’re going for, but to get there you’re starting down here. We’ve got a plan, and they’ll be some days that will be rough, that’s part of rehab too. It’s not always easy, but he’ll get there.” On the emotions he is feeling going into his second training camp with the Lions: “I’ll probably be a lot more emotional when I get out there than I am right now. But yeah, look it’s exciting. All of that, even the spring – I’m glad those guys showed up. We’re all happy as coaches to have them here, but it’s not the same. You’re under restrictions, and not that we’re in pads out there today, so we can’t just bury each other. But it’s still – now that the restrictions are off for the most part, now we can get to the football. Everybody is committed. We’re all in. It’s one goal, and it’s about getting better and getting ready for a season now. It’s not necessarily about, ‘Hey, let’s get this work in and get little better now we got summer vacation.’ This is – speaking of that, I would say this because I wanted to make a point of this. I was real proud of guys. When they come back, and they weigh in and they test, conditioning test, that pretty much tells you what their commitment was, how serious they were over the summer. Man, our guys were outstanding. I mean, it was outstanding. Everybody made weigh-in. We had all but one guy who didn’t pass the conditioning test, and that’s the guy who just started running a week ago who didn’t make it. That’s a credit to our guys. They look good. They’re in shape, and they look ready to go.” On his comfort level going into his second season: “I do feel more comfortable. Certainly, once when you’ve been in it a year, I think it’s no different than the players. I made the comment about from year one to year two, I think it’s the same for a coach once you’ve sat in this seat. Now, I was fortunate in Miami to sit in just for 12 games, but that was that portion of the season. Once you’ve been through it, now you kind of know what to look for. You know what’s around the corner. And so, from that regard, I do feel more comfortable. The other thing though, I feel really good about my staff. I really do. I feel like everything is being covered. Those guys are ready to go. I’ve just got a lot of confidence in those guys. I’ll always say, ‘It doesn’t matter, the staff makes all the difference.’ I feel like I’ve got a great staff. That helps me.” On how his excitement level impacts the coaching staff and their preparation level: “I don’t know. I just try to be me. I’ve got a lot of energy. I’m excited. I’m enthusiastic. I’m just me. I think that’s what comes out of me, so I think that helps those guys. They kind of – they believe me, I guess. They feel it. They react off of that. I think it helps. I don’t know any other way than just to say that’s just kind of how I am. Those guys, I just said it, play off of me.” LIONS QB JARED GOFF TRAINING CAMP QUOTE SHEET On how it feels to be back playing on the field: “Yeah, it’s fun. It’s exciting. Always exciting to be back. But yeah, I think we’ve got a little more hop in our step this year than last year definitely, with some of the guys we’ve added, and just the anticipation on what we think we can do.” On how good it feels to have a second year with the offense: “Well, it’s a little different – it’s the first year in this offense right, but it’s the second year with these guys. So, it’s been productive, and I think having conversations with (Lions Offensive Coordinator) Ben (Johnson) in the offseason, having conservations with guys in the offseason, how excited they are, how excited I am to kind of get going with them and show what we can do.” On the biggest difference on offense from last year to this year with more comfortability: “That’s the biggest difference. I think learning the offense is quite similar. There’s things about it that you like, but being in my house for the second year, little things like that you don’t think about. Coming out here, having a place to go and knowing my around way around the facility, knowing everyone’s name, that’s the stuff that makes you feel a little bit more comfortable on a daily basis. But when it comes to football, definitely still – it’s the first year in the offense, so there are still some pieces that we are working on, and we feel good about it. It’s come a long way since the spring and doing well.” On what the main point of emphasis is for him heading into the season: “It’s always kind of a broad scope. I want to continue to be accurate and be able to move in the pocket and get faster, stronger, bigger, and I feel like I did that. I feel like I am in great shape. It’s always everything, and I know that cliché answer, but it really is. I wish I could give you something, but it really is just always working on every little piece of your game.” On his goals moving forward: “No, I think I’m always getting better. At this point in my career, it’s winning, that’s the only thing that drives me. Winning with this group of guys, there would be nothing more special. I think that’s what we see as such a great opportunity with what happened last year, and I know the guys that have been on this team longer that, what’s happened over here over the last handful of years, and the opportunity in front of us with what we think we can do is special. Maybe once in a career to turn it around this quickly.” On how he views Lions TE T.J. Hockenson as a matchup weapon: “He’s a special player, and how many times can we get him the ball in different places, right? I think that’s what we want to do. Obviously, (Lions Offensive Coordinator) Ben (Johnson) may have – he may never say it, but he may have a slight bias to try to get those tight ends the ball. T.J.’s obviously a great player, and a guy we want to get the ball to. Any creative ways we can do that, I’m sure he’ll be able to come up with.” On how much play-action will be incorporated into the offense this season: “Yeah, quite a bit, I think. I just talked about this just a minute ago. Our run game, if it can be where we want it to be, then our play-action can be just as easy because of that. It starts with the run game, it starts with those guys up front. If we can run the ball, we can really do anything that we want. So, the play-action will come once we are able to prove we can run the ball.” On why the play-action pass is so dangerous: “So hard to defend. If you’ve got a team that is going to run the ball efficiently on first and second down, you’re going to have come up in the box a little bit more. Obviously, you can throw it over the top and make plays in the pass game. It starts there and starts with those guys up front, and ultimately, myself making those throws and catches.” On proposing to his long-term girlfriend this offseason: “Yeah, I think – for a lot of people it was, ‘What are you waiting for?’ So, it was a long time coming for me. I’m glad that I was able to get that done. It was a lot of fun for us. I think it’s always good to kind of move in the right direction there. I know she’s happy and I’m happy.” On if players have adjusted to Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell’s coaching style: “Great. Yeah, Dan’s awesome. We’ve loved his energy, and what he brings everyday. I think nationally everyone is going to get glimpse of it now with ‘Hard Knocks,’ and a real glimpse of it. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, it’s real. He’s not putting on a show. It’s who he is, and I think that’s what we respect about him.” On how he has developed chemistry with Lions WR DJ Chark: “Great, yeah, great. I think through OTAs we were able to develop some pretty good chemistry, and we’re kind of doing it again now. We’re kind of continuing to develop it, and he’s a guy we like to push the ball down the field with, get him open over the top.” On if having ‘Hard Knocks’ in the facility has been an adjustment: “No, they’re fine. I have the luxury of doing it before, so yeah, it’s not. It’s fine. We deal with it.” On the players’ overall expectations for the team this year: “Our expectations are high as anybody in the building. How do we win our division, and then compete for a championship in the playoffs? That’s always the expectation, and that’s our daily thought every day we come out here is, ‘How do we build towards that?’ I know it’s something that hasn’t been done around here in quite a long time, but I think we’re at the point where there’s such new blood and new energy that you can kind of move past that in some ways and start fresh in your mind of, ‘We can do this thing, and there isn’t a reason we can’t.’ We have the talent. We feel like we do. It’s going to come down to, ‘How detailed are we? How hard did we work today and tomorrow through training camp? How much are we studying?’ And all that stuff. As far talent goes and where we feel like we’re at with our coaching staff, and I know (Lions Executive Vice President and General Manager) Brad (Holmes) feels like where we’re at with the roster, why not?” On how Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown can get better in his second year: “Yeah, he’s looked great. He’s kind of taking the jump that we expected. He’s a hell of a player, and a hell of a professional. I love throwing him the ball and he does a good job getting himself open.” On how Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown has grown from last season to this season: “I think – between the years, he’s got a little bit of experience now under his belt and that’s kind of always that biggest jump is that first and second year. Once you see it a few times, you hope you don’t make the same mistake twice, and he really hasn’t. He’s really picked it up fast, and we’re giving him some leeway on decisions with his routes. He’s done a great job handling that and understanding coverage and asking the right questions. A guy that we expect to be a big part of our offense.” On Lions WR Trinity Benson’s development this offseason: “I love Trinity. He’s done a great job. I told him in the spring I thought he had a great spring. Similar to (Lions WR Amon-Ra) St. Brown, just seeing him kind of mentally take that next step of understanding coverage, understanding where he’s supposed to be. And it really comes with understanding the offense. Like, ‘Where are you supposed to be on this play? Who are we trying to affect? What am I trying to do with the ball versus what defense?’ When receivers can understand that, it changes the game. He’s getting there as well.” On if Lions WR Trinity Benson practiced with him in California in the offseason: “No. I had a couple guys in town. We did it like that, it wasn’t just him.” On if he will watch Max Homa compete in the Rocket Mortgage Classic: “I love Max, a Cal Bear, a guy that I’m always rooting for and a friend of mine. I’ll be watching casually this weekend when I can. I know our off day is Sunday, so I may get to watch him finish it off there hopefully on Sunday.” |
