Dan Campbell didn't want his players to suppress it. He wanted their feelings out in the open. One of their leaders was carted off the field on a backboard after lying face-down and motionless on the turf for several minutes last Sunday in a harrowing scene at Ford Field. Jack Campbell remains in the hospital, where he's fighting to regain full mobility.
In the Lions' first team meeting of the week Wednesday morning, Dan Campbell shared the uplifting news that Jack has full movement in his lower-body and is starting to get it back in his upper body. He said that one of the keys to victory Sunday against the Dolphins is to "Prepare and Play Like 46."
And then Campbell opened the floor to the players.
"The best thing we have here is the best leader I've ever been around in Dan Campbell," defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said Thursday. "And it's a trickle-down effect from him. When he starts the team meeting, football's (to the side) right now. 'Let's talk about (Jack): Does anybody want to stand up and talk?'
"And allowing that platform, allowing the vulnerability of people -- everybody sees this game as a macho game. Real strength, real leadership is being vulnerable, understanding your weaknesses, understanding you don't have it all figured out and knowing where to lean on people. And that's what we've done as a team. That's what we've done as an organization. And it's the reason why we all enjoy being here."
Kelvin Sheppard on Jack Campbell: "Would he want us to sulk and feel sorry? Absolutely not. He’d be pissed off if he found out guys were crying about him.”“The way you honor him is to wipe those tears from your eyes and make sure you prepare and play like him." https://t.co/C9BbWVyRw4
— 97.1 The Ticket: (@971theticketxyt) November 5, 2026
Whether anyone stepped up and spoke is for the players to say. But after watching one of their captains go down in such frightening fashion, "our mood this week is, we want to do it for him," said fellow captain Amon-Ra St. Brown.
"We want to make him proud, make him happy, whether he's watching it at the hospital or at home, wherever he's watching it make him proud. Jack's one of the hardest-working guys we have on our team. We know how much he loves the game and pours his heart into it. He would do anything he could to be out there on the field with us this weekend if he could, but unfortunately he can't. So we're blessed that we're able to be out there and play the game that we love. I would say, man, we're energized."
The positive news on Jack's condition was a major relief, said St. Brown.
"I think that's what everyone wanted to hear after seeing what happened to him on the field. That's all you can really hope for, and more and more positivity as we keep going," St. Brown said. "But he's so tough mentally that, to me, there’s no way he doesn’t overcome this, just because of how he’s built and what he’s made of."
Kelvin Sheppard on the 4th down stop after Jack Campbell's injury: "We’ve never pressured here on 4th down in the time that I’ve been here ... Why that call in that moment? It’s because when I looked at our players. I looked at that call sheet and I said, 'Let’s go for 46.'" https://t.co/595lmz0zDJ
— 97.1 The Ticket: (@971theticketxyt) November 5, 2026
The Lions now shift their focus to the Dolphins, just as Jack Campbell would want them to.
"It's not easy because he’s going to always be on our minds over here," said Dan Campbell. "The good news is, he is improving. But also, we've got a job to do. This is what we’re tasked with. There’s a reason why we go through all of this stuff, and it’s to get to where we want to go collectively as a team. Adversity comes in all shapes and sizes, and we gotta overcome everything that comes our way. So we gotta reload and lock in.
"This Miami team is hungry. They play hard. And everybody they’ve played they’ve given fits to, so we know what we’re about to face here."
