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If you thought that the Detroit Lions were just going to roll over and die after losing star coordinator Ben Johnson to the Chicago Bears, head coach Dan Campbell has a message for you.
Campbell and Lions struggled mightily in a Week 1 loss to the Green Bay Packers, raising questions as to whether the team could continue to succeed without Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who is now the head coach of the New York Jets.
However, a dominant 52-21 victory over Johnson and the Chicago Bears in Week 2 has silenced some of the doubters, at least for now.
Dan Campbell Reminds Everyone That The Detroit Lions Are ‘F—ing Fighters’
After the victory, the always animated Campbell had a stern message for his team and anyone else who might be listening.
“We believe in us. We’re the ones who put in the work. It’s like they forgot that we’re f—king fighters!” Campbell said to the raucous applause of his team. “That’s win number one.”
So, what exactly went wrong in Week 1 against the Packers? Campbell tried to explain in his Week 2 postgame press conference.
“I know this: That was a tough loss [to the Packers] last week,” Campbell said. “That was tough. We went out there and we expected to play much better than we did. And we didn’t give ourselves a chance. Green Bay got after us pretty good.
“I think more than anything, that was a big part of it. I think we answered a lot of questions. I’ve said this all along, this train keeps rolling, man. We’ve got plenty here and it’s always going to start with the players. We’ve got players, we’ve got playmakers and they’re made the right way. They’re the right kind of guys. They know how to get in the ditch and just start digging. They don’t worry about the other stuff.”
Detroit was always too talented to just fade back into obscurity, even without Glenn and Johnson. But Sunday’s blowout of the Bears shows that the Lions might just be every bit as good as they were a year ago.