Wherever he goes, Dan Campbell rallies the troops. It was true in Miami when he served as interim head coach in the 2015 season, and it was true in New Orleans when he served as assistant head coach from 2016-20. It's certainly been true in Detroit.
Take it from Ndamukong Suh who played under Campbell on the Dolphins and told Jared Goff this offseason, "Dude, you’re going to love playing for him, how fun it is on game day, how good he is during the week."
Take it from Larry Warford and John Kuhn who played under Campbell on the Saints and confirmed after the Lions hired him as head coach, "Guys are going to love him. He’s a tough-ass when he has to be, but he’ll shoot you straight. He’s a hell of a coach, the energy he brings, the passion."
Or take it from Broncos QB Teddy Bridgewater who also played under Campbell in New Orleans and is preparing to face his old coach when the Lions visit Denver on Sunday. Bridgewater, backup QB for the Saints from 2018-19, said Wednesday he "wasn't surprised at all" when Campbell landed the job in Detroit.
"Dan, he's awesome. His energy is contagious, and I’m pretty sure those players in Detroit love playing for him. I was able to spend those two years with him in New Orleans. Whenever he stood in front of the team and talked, you’re ready to just storm out of that meeting and punch a guy in the face for no reason," Bridgewater said. "Dan is awesome.”
For the most part, that's how the Lions have played this season. For as many times as they've been punched in the face, they keep punching back -- just as Campbell promised. They landed their first win of the season last week with a walk-off touchdown against the Vikings, and Goff ran right into Campbell's arms to celebrate.
Campbell hugged him tight and screamed, "That’s the way to throw it when we needed it, motherf**ker!"
"We’ve developed a great relationship," Goff said Wednesday. "I think even furthermore, ever since he took over play-calling, that relationship is special. And as you grow together in that relationship, it tends to bring you closer. I think it has. For us, it’s been great. I think he’s done a great job."
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By the way, Campbell had plenty of complimentary things to say about Bridgewater, who went 5-0 for the Saints in 2019 while filling in for an injured Drew Brees to help the club to its third straight division title. Campbell said Bridgewater embodies what it means to be a winning quarterback.
"He made everybody around him better. He was a guy that on Saturdays would pull all of the young guys out. He was our backup quarterback, so he would take all of the young guys, all of the practice squad guys, any of the backups, and go through the whole game plan with them. Run the routes, talk through them, talk to them, tell them what he wanted, everything. So not only is he going through the game plan himself to prepare, he’s developing those young guys.
"He was ultra-competitive on practice squad. Our defense hated him. They had friendly wagers on who would connect, who wouldn’t, who would score, who wouldn’t. It was very competitive, but he made everybody around him better. To me, that’s a sign of a winner.”