SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Should he? Or should not he?
Entering the “Monday Night Football” showdown towards the San Francisco 49ers, Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell weighed whether or not he ought to relaxation or play the starters.
After cautious consideration, he determined to go together with his high guys in a rematch of the 2023 NFC Championship Game because the Lions escaped Levi’s Stadium with a 40-34 win over the San Francisco 49ers whereas avoiding any main accidents.
“Yeah, it was on my thoughts, and I assumed rather a lot about it. I thought of it main as much as the sport, I thought of it final night time,” Campbell mentioned. “I advised the employees, however I ended up selecting the proper factor to do was to play these guys as a result of we owed it to the staff.
“It was simply a type of positions we had been in. It’s laborious to say who you are going to sit and it is not honest to ask guys to play that hadn’t been ready to play,” he mentioned. “So, yeah, that was robust, and I feel the largest factor is there have been issues we wished to do higher than we did final week and we did. We cleaned loads of issues up offensively.”
Campbell mentioned the Lions had been enjoying to win, though the sport did not have playoff implications. However, their pleasure was on the road after blowing a 17-point halftime result in the identical staff final postseason to fall one recreation shy of reaching the Super Bowl.
That loss nonetheless stings for individuals who suffered a defeat that day.
“I actually wished that get-back,” mentioned Lions security Kerby Joseph, who completed with two interceptions. “I really feel like we got here in right here final 12 months they usually beat us, so I nonetheless had that chip on my shoulder from final 12 months. Like they are saying within the media, this recreation did not actually imply a lot, however this recreation meant rather a lot. I really feel like we had been so shut, and we got here up quick so the sensation simply to return again out right here to San Fran and are available again and get a win. I do know we began off sluggish on protection, however we had been capable of end.”
Lions quarterback Jared Goff agreed.
And in his California homecoming, he threw for 303 passing yards whereas finishing 26-of-34 passes with 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.
Campbell made it clear that the starters had been enjoying so Goff entered with a mindset to compete, saying he “put [the thought of sitting out] to mattress fairly early on within the week.” He threw for 3 touchdowns for the seventh recreation this season, tying Matthew Stafford (2011) for essentially the most in a season in Lions historical past.
“I’m positive that is robust for him, however I feel that is the one means we all know,” Goff mentioned of Campbell enjoying the starters. “It’s simply go and discover a option to win and the staff we had been enjoying in San Francisco. This is what ended our season final 12 months and there have been loads of guys on this staff that had been there final 12 months that wished to get one again on them, despite the fact that, in loads of methods, it was meaningless for them and meaningless for us however they had been prideful on the market, too. They had been attempting to beat us as effectively and it was a enjoyable recreation.”
Detroit now prepares to face the Minnesota Vikings at dwelling on Sunday night time with the NFC North Division title and the NFC’s No. 1 seed on the road.
For Campbell, it is a once-in-a-lifetime alternative. Detroit is one in all 5 groups since seeding started in 1975 that has by no means been a No. 1 seed, together with the Cardinals, Texans, Buccaneers, and Jets.
“This is what you are in it for, man. Ultimately, that is it,” Campbell mentioned. “I imply, you could not write a greater situation. You could not provide you with this. The undeniable fact that each groups are sitting at 14-2 and it is for the division and the 1 seed. It simply would not get any higher than that. It’s like that is fairytale stuff. And so, it speaks for itself. Our guys are excited.”
