Dan Campbell Feels Lions Should Have Two More Wins
Dan Campbell and the Detroit Lions enjoyed their first victory in over a month Sunday. The team knocked off the rival Green Bay Packers, 15-9, in a defensive slugfest.
The second-year head coach appeared relieved in his postgame press conference. He echoed the feeling of relief Monday, as well, noting just how hard it can be to get a win in the NFL.
Momentum is key for NFL teams, as the confidence obtained by one win can lead to multiple more. Detroit had been scratching to get out of its losing streak, and now that it has, Campbell believes good things can be on the horizon for the team.
“I just know that I do feel like we’re going in the right direction,” Campbell said. “I know the wins are not there, though we just got one there. I like the improvement. I would like to be in a better place than we are, certainly. I feel like we should have at least two more wins here, and that’s on me. But, certainly to get a win for win’s sake, for winning, goes a long way. We’ve got a chance this week to win on the road for the first time since I’ve been here, win back-to-back games, win another division game. So, for us, we’ve got a lot to play for, certainly.”
Campbell was asked about close games that have ended up with the team on the losing end, such as the defeat at Minnesota. He said he doesn’t still dwell on specific losses, noting that he is forced to let them go to focus on Detroit’s next opponent.
“Those things transpire after the game, immediately, for the first two days,” Campbell noted. “Then, I just gotta let it go, because there’s nothing I can do about that anymore, other than learn from those, maybe, errors, that transpired or things that I didn’t feel like I did well or we didn’t do well as a team, to move forward from there. But, as far as looking back, that’ll do me no good.”
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Barnes excels against Packers
Linebacker Derrick Barnes has had a bit of a rollercoaster season in his second campaign in Motown. After starting the season opener against Philadelphia, he didn’t play a defensive snap for two weeks, before returning to the linebacker rotation in Week 4.
His performance has been inconsistent, despite elevated expectations from the coaching staff, namely his position coach Kelvin Sheppard. Yet, he had his best day in two years as a pro against Green Bay. He led the defense with 12 tackles, had the team’s only sack and deflected an Aaron Rodgers pass off his helmet, leading to an interception.
Campbell had high praise for the young linebacker Monday.
“By far, that was his best performance,” Campbell claimed. “He did, I thought he played well last night. You go back and watch the tape and it was even better than that. He played really well, and he’s continued to improve every week and he really stepped up. Really he and (Safety) Kerby (Joseph) had two of the best performances on defense last week.”
Swift update
Running back D’Andre Swift has dealt with injuries for much of his three seasons as a pro. Most recently, he’s been dealing with injuries to his ankle and shoulder that have hampered his season.
After missing three games, Swift has been active in each of Detroit’s last two games. However, he’s been a very limited contributor. He’s had just 15 touches combined in the last two games.
Campbell said the team is still monitoring his health, while getting the most possible out of him.
“We’re hopeful that what we gave him this week, we didn’t feel like it was too much,” Campbell said. “We feel like there certainly wasn’t a setback. We gave him enough plays to where we felt like he could handle it, and yet, we could use the things that he does well. And so, we’re hopeful that we can get him a little bit more this week.”
Notes
1.) Linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez suffered a right elbow injury, and will be evaluated throughout the week.
2.) Kerby Joseph is in the concussion protocol, and Campbell is “certainly hopeful" to have him for Sunday’s matchup with the Chicago Bears.
3.) Campbell returned to the media room after his press conference to give Lions fans a shoutout, saying they played a significant part in the win, especially when the defense was on the field.
4.) When asked, Campbell also confirmed he did put his feet up last night and drink a beer. He had to take note and put his feet down when he found out just how many rushing yards Bears quarterback Justin Fields recorded in Week 9.
