Campbell not shocked by Lions' slow start on offense, sees Goff "trying to do too much"

Dan Campbell
Photo credit © Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

For Dan Campbell, two years means more than two games. He isn't fretting the Lions' slow start on offense, even if it continues for a couple more weeks. Nor is he all that surprised by it.

"You’re always hopeful that you’re going to hit the ground running, every coach would tell you that," Campbell said Tuesday on 97.1 The Ticket. "You’re just hopeful that you’re hitting on all cylinders, but no, I’m not shocked. I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t be shocked if we’re not cooking by the time we get to the bye.

"I mean, sometimes it takes a minute. All those great offenses we had in New Orleans, the great offenses that we’ve had here over the last three years, it’s not always perfect early. So no, I’m not rattled or shaken by this at all."

The Lions ranked third in the NFL last season in total offense, fourth the year before that. Through two games this season they rank ... second. They have been prolific as ever under Ben Johnson, at least in terms of moving the ball.

But they've struggled, at times, to find the end zone, and the passing attack hasn't looked as crisp as usual. The Lions went 1-for-7 in the red zone in last week's 20-16 loss to the Bucs, the fewest points they've scored at home since November of 2022.

Campbell said the red zone issues came down to "the small little details and the nuances of the game plan per the opponent." There was one play call that Johnson would "like to have back," a missed assignment on a route that would have been "a gimme," a missed block on a run, a misread on another play. All correctable problems, Campbell said.

"It was just one person here, one person there and we’re just a tick off. That was really the story of the day down there," he said. "But we are so close to just blowing this out."

In a pass-heavy game against the Bucs, the Lions tripled down in the red zone. Of their 22 red zone plays, only five were designed runs for either David Montgomery or Jahmyr Gibbs. And those runs added it up to just 13 yards, or 2.6 yards per carry (although one of them was a one-yard touchdown plunge by Montgomery). Outside the red zone, the duo averaged 5.6 yards per carry.

"We tried to get our run game going there late, and particularly in the red zone it wasn’t good -- other than the 4th and 1 where Gibbs hit it and we got a big gain," said Campbell. (That run came outside the red zone.) "But everything else, we just couldn’t get it going. And that was the plan: Once we opened it up in the passing game, we’d run it."

But the passing game never had much flow. Jared Goff threw for over 300 yards as a result of attempting 55 passes, second most in his Lions tenure, but he also threw two costly picks. The second came in the fourth quarter just outside the red zone on a back-foot pass to no one in particular that he never should have attempted.

Goff has thrown three interceptions through two games, and he's fortunate it's not more. He got away with a couple other ill-advised throws against the Bucs that the defense easily sniffed out. The Lions depend on Goff taking care of the ball. They're 15-5 dating back to 2022 when he doesn't throw an interception, 7-9 when he does.

“I told him this yesterday," said Campbell. "One of the notes I wrote, ‘I’m like, man, I just feel like a couple of times you’re trying to do too much, is all.' He’s trying to keep the play alive little longer than need be, just a couple of things there that I felt like didn’t help us.

"But other than that, he’s going to find his rhythm. For some things that didn’t go well, he also threw some outstanding passes in this game, some big-time passes. ... I did think he saw it well, but there were a couple of times, too, where he’s in there and the throw is there to be had and he’s gotta get rid of it, there's (pressure) in his face and the way the play is designed, that guy is open but we can’t get him the ball."

Campbell has no doubt that Goff is "going to bounce back and be just fine." Again, two years worth of data speaks louder than two games, and Goff has been one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL since 2022. Same goes for Detroit's offense in the red zone, where the Lions ranked third last season and fourth the season before that.

It's fair to assume this slow start will soon be behind them -- ideally before they hit their Week 5 bye.

"We're so much closer than I think a lot of people even realize," Campbell said. "Our players understand it, the coaches understand it. We just have to correct those issues that came up the other day."

Featured Image Photo Credit: © Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images