Anthony Lynn hasn't had a break from football since he was six years old. His playing career led straight into his coaching career, which began in 2000 with the Broncos and will continue this season with the Lions.
But Lynn very nearly pressed the pause button a few months ago. The 52-year-old was set on taking this season off until Dan Campbell asked him to be Detroit's offensive coordinator.
Lynn was a coach for the Cowboys when both Campbell and Detroit's defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn played in Dallas. He couldn't turn down the chance to reunite with them on the sidelines.
“I have not had a break since I was six years old, literally every single fall,” Lynn said Tuesday on the Compas On The Beat podcast. “And I really had in my mind that I was going to take a gap year, man. Travel a little bit, go see some other teams and visit some of the coaches I know and see how they’re doing things. I had made my mind to sit out this year. But then when Dan called, that changed everything."
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Lynn, who was also a candidate for the offensive coordinator job with the Seahawks after a four-year stint as head coach of the Chargers, said he "did go talk with a couple other coaches."
"Guys that have helped me in my career on the way up, so I owed them that," he said. "But it just felt right in Detroit."
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Lynn and Glenn crossed paths a second time when Lynn was coaching for the Jets and Glenn was a scout. Lynn said both Glenn and Campbell "handled themselves like coaches as players," and he told them as much during their time together in Dallas. Now the trio is hoping to spark a new era of football in Detroit.
"When they called I had to go, because I wanted to be a part of that," Lynn said. "I knew it was going to be something special. And ownership has given Dan all the support in the world. Can’t say enough about Sheila (Ford Hamp) and how she’s handling the situation and (GM) Brad (Holmes). But it’s been smooth so far and I see it being that way throughout Dan’s coaching career there."