Lions' Dan Campbell Understands Criticism of Job Performance
After faltering on national television against the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell has been under a heavy amount of scrutiny for his team's sloppy and undisciplined play.
In front of a nationally televised audience, Detroit's roster was undisciplined, and took several penalties, especially holding calls on offense that derailed drives.
© Kirthmon F. Dozier / USA TODAY NETWORK
What has drawn the most ire from supporters and those questioning what is happening with the coaching staff in Detroit has been the sequence at the end of the game, with the Bears in the red zone.
On third-and-9 from the 16-yard line, Campbell called a timeout.
Then, Detroit's coaching staff called another timeout, forcing the officials to throw a flag, costing the team five yards.
The consecutive timeouts did not even aid Detroit's defense to set up properly, as Bears quarterback Andy Dalton completed a short pass to Damiere Byrd.
With time winding down, Chicago kicked a game-winning field goal, sending supporters home disappointed yet again.
"I'm not aware just because I don't read that. I don't read good or bad, because I think it'll sway you one way or another if you're not careful, and neither one of them is good," Campbell told reporters on Monday. "I think just to stay, just in where you feel, what you see, what your team tells you, what your coaches -- just kind of living in this world."
Campbell added, "That being said, I get plenty of -- it's almost like I get the text and I get the calls saying, 'Man, hang in there.' And so, the more that I get, the more I know there's chatter. I know there's chatter out there. Otherwise, I wouldn't be getting all these calls out of the blue or these texts. Look, as far as it being warranted -- when you don't win a game, I should be getting criticized. I don't blame anybody for that. That's the reality of it right now. I would love to be able to say there's something I can tell everybody that's going to make everybody feel better. But, as you guys know, it's about winning, and we haven't done that yet."
Despite losing 10 games this season and only having secured a tie against the Steelers, Campbell has remained true to himself and has not veered off of his plan.
In the locker room and out on the practice field, Campbell continues to be the same upbeat coach who has garnered the respect of his team.
"He's a very upbeat person. That's the one thing that it is good to have as a coach, is someone that's steady throughout, whether we're winning or losing," Hockenson said. .... "It's been great to have Coach Campbell in this situation, just just being a steady leader throughout the whole thing. I mean, he's always been the same guy."
