Lions Fans Perceive 'Very Strange Disconnect' Between OC and Players

The reaction to the recent media session of Detroit Lions offensive coordinator John Morton has been quite strong.

Many supporters and pundits quickly noticed the vast, stark contrast with how Morton addressed what went wrong with the game against the Minnesota and how a couple of offensive linemen perceived the play out on the field.

"We can draw up all these plays we want, it doesn’t matter. Winning our one-on-one matchups, that was big. That set us back, second and long, third and long, we had a lot of third and longs. But when we did things right, we did really well," said Morton. "That was the biggest thing. It’s just clogging the middle up, protection. You can’t do a lot of stuff without that. We all had our hand in the game plan, and we’ll do things differently next time."

While some felt Morton did not take enough accountability, head coach Dan Campbell has indicated the approach on offense is a collaborative effort.

The comments Morton made that caught the most heat involved stating publicly the offense struggled due to one or two players breaking down.

"It’s just a matter of some guys getting beat," Morton said. "That’s all it is, man. I’m just telling you. When you look at it over and over and over, it’s one or two guys that are just breaking down. We’ve got young guys, they’re still learning, and really they shouldn’t be because, man, we’re halfway through the season. Everybody’s a vet. And we’ve addressed it."

Both offensive lineman Taylor Decker and Graham Glasgow echoed a slightly different sentiment in the locker room after practice on Thursday afternoon.

Decker indicated, "It wasn’t as much of guys just one-on-one, man-to-man getting their ass beat. It was more just being on the same page. We dealt with some of that earlier in the season, game one, so I think everybody can do better and everybody can help themselves and help the team out in those ways."

Veteran Graham Glasgow indicated the issue was scheme-related.

"I think last week was more about scheme stuff that they did than straight-up actual O-line play," Glasgow said. "They schemed us up pretty good."

Pundits and fans have been quite concerned regarding the rhetoric coming out Allen Park recently.

One beat writer shared, "Some very strange disconnects from Lions media sessions Thursday. A little unnerving, honestly."

Another pundit expressed, "Watched the John Morton press conference and I’m not a fan of how most of it went. I don’t care how long you’ve been coaching, you cannot sit there and say the “scheme was pretty good” and that the “problem was the blocking." He’s supposed to take the blame & handle the problems he sees on film in-house. Sure feels like he’s contradicting his own players."

Here is a sample of the reaction to Morton's media session this week.

Some very strange disconnects from Lions media sessions on Thursday.

A little unnerving, honestly. https://t.co/wbt42yBMqv
— Jeremy Reisman (@DetroitOnLion) November 7, 2025

Watched the John Morton press conference and I’m not a fan of how most of it went.

I don’t care how long you’ve been coaching, you cannot sit there and say the “scheme was pretty good” and that the “problem was the blocking.”

He’s supposed to take the blame & handle the…
— Russell Brown (@RussNFLDraft) November 7, 2025

the biggest problem WAS the OL run blocking and pass protecting...there were no run lanes open,and Goff was sacked 5 times....no magic play call is gonna fix that
— Breaking Brad (@gr8_timze) November 7, 2025

To be honest , I think the pressure's getting to him. Every time something bad happens all the assholes start screaming fire him. That being said he's made some very questionable play calls. He needs to go back and look at some of that ben johnson film.
— Rick SanchezC137 (@RickSanchezc731) November 7, 2025

He needs to go, takes zero accountability and clearly struggles with adjusting and calling plays. He’s in over his head
— last__shinobi (@LionsFan097) November 7, 2025

I’ve been saying this since day one… it’s a pretty big red flag when you have 30 years of experience but have never been in one job for more than 4 years.
— Just Steve (@Just_Steve86) November 7, 2025

I watched it too, and I didn’t get the same vibe as a lot of the media.

Was surprised by the narrative coming out of Lions twitter.

Most importantly, how did the players take it? We’ll find out in 2 days.
— James Haggard (@thejameshaggard) November 7, 2025

The most annoying thing is he has these long developing routes in a team who is known to have a DC who would blitz every play if he could. Horrible game by Morton
— Frankie (@SpartyOn821) November 7, 2025

Morton isn’t executing the plays. I can’t stand when DC constantly takes the blame. The guys need to execute. That’s it.
— 🔥D-Town🔥 (@FrostedOne5) November 7, 2025

It makes no sense. Thats the exact opposite of a Dan Campbell guy.

Coaches have called players out before just like Shepp just did with TA’s run help.. but he also praised him, takes accountability for having his guys ready.

The Morton hire NEVER made sense.
— CDsSportsTakes (@CDsSportsTakes) November 7, 2025

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