The Lions lost their top two assistant coaches this offseason when offensive coordinator Ben Johnson became head coach of the Bears and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn became head coach of the Jets. Lions head coach Dan Campbell knows that if his team struggles this season, questions will be raised about whether the coordinators meant more to the Lions’ success than the head coach.
Campbell told WXYZ that he gets motivation from the thought of people thinking he can’t get the job done without Johnson and Glenn.
“It’s not hard for me to find things that can drive you,” Campbell said. “That’s how I was as a player, that’s how I am as a coach. I’ll pull anything negative because it motivates me. So I would be lying if I said, ‘No, that doesn’t get me going a little bit.’ That’s the next challenge.”
But Campbell said that ultimately, head coaches can only set a tone for the team and let the players do their jobs, and he said that if he has done his job right over the duration of his tenure in Detroit, by this point all of his players and assistant coaches should know what they’re doing without him.
“If I really did this right, I should be able to just leave and these guys don’t miss a beat. If you really do your job, that can happen,” Campbell said.
And if Campbell hopes to show that with the way he does his job, two coordinators can leave and the guys don’t miss a beat.
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