Dan Campbell isn't hiding from the truth. Aidan Hutchinson is "going to be missed."
"There's no way around it," Campbell said Tuesday on 97.1 The Ticket, "but that production has to go somewhere for us to stay as potent as we've been."
Campbell has full faith that Hutchinson's teammates will step up in his absence, particularly those on the defensive line. And to the fans who say the Lions' Super Bowl dream is dead, Campbell said, "Well, we can stop playing. You want to just end the season now? We can do that, let's just call it off."
"No, it's not over," Campbell said. "This is why we go through all the training we do and why stress all the time here, and the players know this: man, we play with three phrases here. You play with 11 on offense, 11 on defense, 11 on special teams. And we can adjust and do whatever we need to do. We can raise the levee, we can lower it. And we will find a way to play any game and every game and find a way to win — because that's all that matters."
Campbell is calling on defensive linemen Alim McNeill, Levi Onwuzurike, D.J. Reader and Josh Paschal to elevate their games. He's also prepared to ask more out of linebackers Alex Anzalone and Jack Campbell. The defense as a whole has to reach a new level after losing its best player, starting Sunday against the 5-0 Vikings, and Campbell believes that it will.
"It's going to take everybody on this team," he said. "And as long as everyone holds the line and does their job, does their responsibility, no more, no less, we'll find a way to win."
