To paraphrase what Al Michaels stated on the Prime Video presentation last Thursday night, there is a fine line between insane and genius. Dan Campbell straddles that line for some “football” fans, going for it on fourth down more than any other coach in the NFL during his four-year tenure as head coach of the Detroit Lions.
If the choice to go for it on 4th-and-short late in the fourth quarter against the Packers fails, and Green Bay rallies to tie or win on Thursday night, we’ll have a different discussion today. It eventually made no difference in the game-winning field goal (four yards), so was it worth it? Jared Goff’s fall as he attempted to hand the ball off to David Montgomery added to the drama of the moment.
But all of that talk is about the result more than the process. Campbell’s process is rooted in instinct, feel and belief in his players beyond what the analytics might say, and when the results don’t back it up that confidence it looks bad.
Overall, the Lions were 4-for-5 on fourth downs last Thursday night.
When it comes to Campbell’s aggressiveness, individuals have a wide range of perspectives, and some of the unfavorable or dubious ones are well-founded. Then some of those negative or skeptical views go too far in that direction.
On “Sunday NFL Countdown” Sunday morning, ESPN commentator Tedy Bruschi went all in to criticize Campbell’s boldness.
“Give me Dan Campbell on the field, and I will take it. Don’t put Dan Campbell on my sidelines. “I just don’t know, I don’t know how this coach handles his emotions,” Bruschi remarked. “You mean every time? Does it have to happen every time? The fourth-and-1, when you’re on the 30-yard line heading out, was evident to me. This cannot happen.”
“This guy wants to go for it, even now, and they get stopped right here and basically give Green Bay a touchdown because all they’ve got to go is like 29 yards and they score a touchdown here and it’s a different game,” says Bruschi. “So, you wouldn’t have been in this predicament if you punted and let your defense face a quarterback who has a tendency to throw it to the opposing side. Every single time? “Why must it be every time?”
Bruschi then used Campbell’s now-famous inaugural news conference to deliver a poor punchline.
“There are no more ankles or knee caps to bite. You are on top. Begin playing like it and coaching like it.”
Remember, Bruschi spent his entire career with the New England Patriots, the majority of it under Bill Belichick. Belichick was not known for being aggressive on fourth down, even if going for it when it makes sense has grown more commonplace. Bruschi is a product of the “Patriot Way,” thus anything else would be improper.
Yes, Campbell’s boldness on fourth down might come back to haunt the Lions in a big game (and it may have in last year’s NFC Championship Game, even if he didn’t have a reliable kicker). There is a balance to strike, and Campbell appears to be improving there. Bruschi wants Campbell’s to tone down its aggressiveness in favor of “being on top” today. If he paid attention, he’d see that’s not going to happen, and Campbell’s coaching style is a major reason the Lions are succeeding.
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