Detroit Lions' Dan Campbell on playoff run: 'I'm fortunate'

DETROIT (FOX 2) - It's been three years since Detroit Lions' head coach Dan Campbell made his famous opening speech as the new leader of the Lions. He talked about having a team that was going to bite kneecaps and get back up after getting knocked down. Three years to the day since that speech, Campbell and the Lions have delivered.

When Campbell arrived, he and new General Manager Brad Holmes inherited a team that had won just five games with Matt Patricia as head coach. Future Super Bowl-winning QB Matthew Stafford had been here for 11 years and won zero playoff games. Plus they had two bright spots in running back D'Andre Swift and tight end T.J. Hockenson. 

They would wind up being traded away. What did Campbell and Holmes do with those trades? They stocked up in the draft and got their QB in Rams castoff Jared Goff.

Among the draft picks the Lions have added over the past, 11 have made a major impact on the Lions success – RB Jahymr Gibbs (2023 1st round), LB Jack Campbell (2023 1st round), TE Sam LaPorta (2023 2nd round), DB Brian Branch (2023 2nd Round), DE Aidan Hutchinson (2022 1st round), WR Jameson Williams (2022 1st round), DB Kerby Joseph (2022 2nd round), LB James Houston (2022 6th round) OL Penei Sewell (2021 1st round), WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (2021 4th round), and LB Derrick Barnes (2021 4th round).

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Barnes may be shining the brightest this week – thanks to his key interception that sealed the win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But it's a complete team mentality – one that Campbell and Holmes have crafted from the day they walked in and started talking about biting kneecaps. It's Grit.

"I'm proud of Derrick. Derrick, he's one of our guys we drafted in the first year here and he was a late bloomer guy. It took him a little bit, and he really came on this season. He's playing at a high level. Just to see him – one of the biggest areas he s grown at…his psyche. Something bad happens, something doesn't quite go the way you want to, he's able to bounce back," Campbell said.

The Lions toppled the Bucs 31-23 thanks to Barnes' interception. Goff had a hand too, throwing for 287 yards and two touchdowns while Gibbs ran one in as well. It was a well-rounded game from a well-grounded team.

"That's playoff football," Campbell said after Sunday's win.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell celebrates with players the victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during an NFC Divisional Round Playoffs in Detroit, Michigan USA, on Sunday, January 21, 2024. (Photo by Jorge Lemus/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Campbell was introduced as head coach on Jan. 21, 2021. The Lions won over the Bucs also comes on Jan. 21 – of 2024. Campbell was quick to compliment the entire coaching staff and front office on Sunday.

"I got a lot of really outstanding people around me. I'm fortunate and it takes a village. without everybody involved. With Brad Holmes, without (Lions owner) Sheila (Hamp), without (Lions president) Rod (Wood), without Chris Spielman, without Ben Johnson, Aaron Glenn, Dave Fipp…I'm fortunate," he said.

The first year under Campbell, the Lions went 3-13 and started 0-10-1 before finally beating Minnesota on Dec. 5, 2021. The next year, 2022, the Lions finished with a winning record at 9-8, despite starting 1-6. The red hot Lions even ended Aaron Rodgers farewell in Green Bay despite being eliminated from playoff contention earlier in the day on the last day of the season.

This year, the Lions easily won the NFC North for the first time – and are now playing for a chance at a Super Bowl appearance. It's right where Campbell expected.

"I envisioned that we would have a chance to compete with the big boys and that's where we're at. All you gotta do is get in. It's about placing yourself in the very best position to where you can move. and you get a home game and maybe you get a second home and maybe it gets a little easier. And if you get a one seed, you only have to win two games," Campbell said. "Once you get in, it's about matchups and finding a way to win."

The final chapter to making the Super Bowl is in San Francisco. Beat the 49ers and the Lions are Vegas-bound.