In a heartfelt letter to the city of Detroit, Lions linebacker and co-captain Alex Anzalone said the entire team supported Dan Campbell's fourth down calls in Detroit's loss to the 49ers in the NFC title game, declared that anything less than the Super Bowl next season will be a "failure" and vowed that the Lions will soon bring the Lombardi Trophy to Detroit.
Anzalone, in a piece published Tuesday on The Players' Tribute, started by saying that "we were all behind Dan on the 4th down call" and that "if you could rewind time, we'd all do it again." The Lions turned it over on downs twice in the second half of their 34-31 loss to the 49ers, including midway through the fourth quarter when Campbell passed on a 48-yard field goal attempt that would have tied the game.
Anzalone called it "the right call for us, especially in that moment," adding that "if you shy away from your identity in that moment, then you're betraying the very thing that got you there."
"On 4th down, in that situation, we're always going for the kill," he said. "That mentality took us from 0–10–1 to the NFC Championship game in just a few seasons. ... When the chips are down, Detroit is always going to bet on Detroit."
After the game, Anzalone said the Lions' standard moving forward is "Super Bowl or bust." He reiterated that in his letter to Detroit and said, "We will get there."
"It's something we feel in our bones. We want to make history next season. Anything less is failure," said Anzalone.
Anzalone signed a three-year, $18.3 million deal with the Lions last offseason after playing the prior two seasons in Detroit on one-year deals and said that "what we're building here is extremely special." He cited the talent on the roster, mentioning Jared Goff, Aidan Hutchinson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Penei Sewell, Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Frank Ragnow and Sam LaPorta, and the fact that OC Ben Johnson and DC Aaron Glenn, both of whom were up for head coaching jobs, will be back next season:
"It's one thing to say that a city, and a team, and a culture is unique. It's a whole other thing to actually turn down the cheddar. (Great to have you back, Coach Ben and Coach AG.)"
In his exit meeting with Campbell last week, Anzalone said Campbell asked him if he planned to watch the Super Bowl. Anzalone said that "it made me sick thinking about going to some Super Bowl party and standing around like an idiot, trying to pretend to be happy."
But Campbell told him, "No, you gotta watch it, man. Use every second of it as motivation. I'll sure as hell be watching."
"This year," said Anzalone, "it sucks. Next year, it's us."
