Mandatory Photo Credit: © Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports / © Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / © Junfu Han - USA TODAY NETWORK
DETROIT — No Detroit fan could’ve asked for a better season from the Lions. But a month later, the pain hasn’t gone away.
On Monday HC Dan Campbell said still he has one regret about his late-game decision-making in the Lions’ 34-31 NFC championship loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
“The only thing that, if I could go back, that I felt greedy on was at the very end of the game, and instead of just deciding what we’re going to do on fourth down to hold the timeout,” Campbell said.
“You can run it, do it on third down, and I should have waited till fourth. And at least you score, hold onto that last timeout. But I did, I got a little bit – I thought we were going to just pop the run. But hindsight, the smarter thing is you throw it. And at least you know the clock stops and you score and you hold the timeout, for one more chance, for another opportunity.”
What made the error so critical was how little time was left on the clock. Detroit would score on the next play, cutting the deficit to 34-31, but there was not enough time left to get a stop and get their offense back on the field. Blowing a 24-7 in the NFC Championship game will certainly leave a salty taste in the mouth. And while Detroit’s season was incredible with their first NFC North division title, the ending could’ve been better.
“For me, I’m always going to look back and reflect on every game that happens, particularly the losses, those always hurt worse,” said Campbell. “And my job is, if I can alleviate pressure, where do I do that, where do I give our team the best chance to win?”
Admitting his greed, Campbell said the loss “absolutely” should benefit the Lions when they return to the field next season.
“I think that if the losses are, they don’t motivate you to not lose again, and for sure lose to not lose an NFC championship game, then something’s wrong. To me, that’s the ultimate. I mean, you just don’t want to have that feeling anymore. Like you should do whatever it takes not to want to feel that. So, absolutely, we benefit from that.”
Detroit now looks to pick up the pieces as they gear up for 2024. The NFC North may have one of the more difficult divisions in football – with the emergence of the Green Bay Packers, and Chicago Bears.
