Dan Campbell On The Ravens And Win Over The Bears | Costa and Jansen

Dan Campbell On The Ravens And Win Over The Bears | Costa and Jansen

Dan, good morning. We appreciate you joining us again today. Yeah, good to be here. How you guys doing? We’re doing good. You guys certainly didn’t panic after week one and I imagine it felt really good to see your team respond that way in week two. Yeah, it was um you know, we got back on track and uh guys prepared well. I mean, it was really good practices. Uh you know, they got better and better every day. Guys were locked in. Um, but I I knew we would I knew we’d bounce back. I mean, that’s the type of guys we have. Um, you know, so I was proud of the players, proud of the coaches, and uh and now we just got to get better again. We got a good opponent coming up. Yeah, it’s a tough opponent. But let’s talk a little bit more about that game because there was a lot of questions going into the season about Mahogany and Rattlage and game plan being what it was or the series or the the situation being what it was at Lambeau at home. I’m I would I’m curious your take on how those two guys performed against Chicago and how did you see them grow from week one to week two? Yeah, both of those guys uh played winning football. They were they were uh both much improved uh from game one and and that goes with the whole line as well. You know, they were all better and for the team my for good gosh I mean we were um every one of us got better from week one to week two. But Mahogany and Rattlage, you know, I thought really improved and I would tell you it was um man, it was the fundamentals, man. It was I thought we were all on point. it helps, you know, because everything’s verbal. You can hear, but yet, uh, there’s so much of this that’s just about working through the kinks. Um, but their fundamentals, their technique, all, you know, they they’re it was just their landmarks. They’re running off the football, man. They’re anchoring in pass pro, they’re passing off twist. Uh, so it was good, man. It’s a step in the right direction, you know? So, um, that’s what you’re looking for is just constant growth. And it doesn’t out have to happen in one week. And I don’t expect it to, none of us do. But just steady, constant growth. You mentioned a lot of that communication can be verbal at home because offense is on the field, crowd’s not cheering, they want to see what this offense can do. Um, but in week one, you did mention that there were some communication issues. How do you make sure that that’s not an issue going on the road to Baltimore? Well, look, we just like we did Green Bay, we do what everybody does, right? We bring out 38 speakers and uh and we park them about 10 feet behind us and then on the sides and way in the back and so you can’t hear and so you force that environment anyway. But you know I’m going to be on high alert on point. Uh we’re going to make sure that’s going but if there’s any inkling of we we targeted wrong, I didn’t hear this. I didn’t do we we’ll just start the whole period over and do it until we get it right. um cuz that’ll always uh kind of create some urgency there and I don’t expect that to happen. But but we’ll make sure that we’re we’re good, you know, and it’s on us as coaches to make sure that this plant we have enough ammo, but yet we don’t overload our guys or put too much on their plate to where, you know, we’re actually creating a problem as coaches. I know we’ll talk a lot about the Baltimore matchup, but just one other question on the Bears game. How big was that for John Morton? Right, you take over the number one offense. week one doesn’t look right. Just how big was it for him to have that performance from the offense? Well, I mean, look, John’s a perfectionist, you know. I mean, uh none of us were were happy about uh what happened in Green Bay. Um you know, top to bottom any coach, but he’s a perfectionist. And uh and I can tell you this, his motive, his at the end of the day, the guy’s got no ego. He just wants to put our players in a position to have a chance to to produce, man, and have a chance to win and put our best players where they belong. And so when it doesn’t go that way, he takes that stuff personal, man. He feels like he let those guys down. So, um, so yeah, it’s big. It’s big for the whole staff. Um, you know, and and, uh, our guys responded. How much does the offense become more of a threat and in terms of Isaac Tusla being another weapon? I know he’s only had two catches. They’ve been spectacular. John, I imagine when he starts using both hands, but how much does that add to this offense having him earn the trust of the players, the coaches, and and the play caller to get more time? Yeah, it look the the more guys you have that you can lean on and have have a skill set, um you know, one of the things we like about him is, you know, okay, you’re seeing he’s he’s got an opportunity to make some plays. He’s made some plays, but he’ll also mix it up in the run game. He’s a big guy. He’s physical. Um he’s not afraid to go in there. So, and he’s pretty smart. You know, now we don’t want to put too much on him. Um but yet man he’s you know we got to get him more involved and we will we’re going to put him out there but that only helps St. Brown, it helps JO. Uh it helps Gibbs. It helps Leaporta. Um you know that that’s that it only helps. So at some point there’s going to be somebody that’s going to draw one-on-one and that person’s got to win. So it’s good to see him get better. We’re going to use him a little bit more here. Um, but we’re still going to use everything we’ve got, too. I mean, Leaf’s a part of this and, uh, you know, we get Viky back this week. Um, you know, so we we we like where we’re at. Talking to Lions head coach Dan Campbell this morning ahead of the Baltimore game on Monday night. You say get better each week. What’s the emphasis? Where do you need to get better this week? Well, look, I think the the the most glaring thing that took place the other day, just when you, you know, when you um you really look in the totality of of the team and what transpired was, man, we really we had a lot of missed opportunities off of takeaways. I mean, our defense, uh, you you get two takeaways and two fourth down stops and we only come away with, uh, you know, really 14 points off of that, or excuse me, 10. That’s not good enough. Um, and so that was my point to the team is, man, we cannot, and one of those was in plus territory. Um, so we have to capitalize on those. We do. uh you you know when the defense uh gives you that and uh fights and and scratches and claw to get a takeaway, you got to turn those into points. So that’s where we can be a lot better and we’re going to have to be a lot better. One of the challenges against Baltimore is that one-two punch in the backfield of Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry. How do you slow them down um defensively? Well, it I tell you what that there’s no easy task here. Uh they those two players and uh look and they got let’s not forget they got skill now on the perimeter. They they got they got some receivers. Uh they got a tight end. This old line will come off the ball. Um but it does start with Lamar and that runner man. And uh he’s a load. What they do, they do a lot of shifts. They do motions. There’s a lot of, you know, read run out of it or the illusion there’s play pass, there’s boots, there’s so this is, you know, look, our defense has got their hands full and uh I think more than anything, the two things um what you see a lot of is even the teams that play them pretty well, man. They they’re they do well, they do well, uh three yard, three yard, three yard, all of a sudden there goes a 60 yard. Um, and so this team, if you’re not, if you don’t stay disciplined for 60 minutes, you know, you make one false move at some point in the game, it’ll cost you because, you know, when Henry gets going downhill and there’s an open gap and you don’t you don’t stop him before he hits line of scrimmage or make him move his feet, he’s dangerous. Um, so man, we got to be disciplined and we we have to have population to the football. We’re gonna have to have all 11 scream into the football no matter where it is. I mean, that’s that’s what you have to do to contain this offense and we got to find a way to get a takeaway. Last time you guys played Baltimore was 2023. You guys were still ramping up. In what way are you guys better equipped to play them and face them this time? Well, look, are we we’re better on the perimeter? You know, there’s that’s that’s one. Uh but I think also having faced that um you know it’s one thing to say or see it on tape but but when you actually face it which we have a significant amount of guys that are still here that that uh actually live through that then you really know the task at hand. You know the environment. You know what they’re made of. Um they’re well coached. I got a lot of respect for coach Harbaugh. Um and they’re just every year, man, they’re they’re a tough team. They’re competitive, they’re rugged, uh, and they’re disciplined. So, um, this is this going to be a good challenge and I’m looking forward to it. Our guys are going to be looking forward to it. Any update on on Marcus Davenport and if he’s unavailable? Uh, any concerns with uh any depth at the uh at the end position? No, no, nothing new there. I mean, I’m probably not going to know till the end of the week. Um, but as far as depth, we’re good. Uh we’re in a pretty good place here. You know, we we got some we made some acquisitions, Brad did, you know, right out of camp. So, we’re pretty good depthwise here. Um but we’ll we’ll know more at the end of the week. How much of that is Alcadine Muhammad, the game he just played? I know you were raving about him at uh the press conference earlier this week. Where are you at with his role in this defense? Yeah, I mean, look, he’s he’s a he’s a significant u role player for us and he’s and there’s a good chance he takes on, you know, more than he’s been doing, but he’s also earned that. He he just he’s really improved just in the run game and then his pass rush, you know, he’s able to squeeze the edge. Everything starts with power for him and then he transitions off the rush and and you watch him break out of the stack and run balls down and talk about population of the football. He’s one of those guys, man. He is running to the football. So, it I thought he did a good job and um and I like where he’s at a lot, man. I really do. He’s Lions head coach Dan Campbell. Dan, appreciate you waking up with us. Okay, have a good one. It’s 971.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell joined Costa and Jansen Wednesday morning to preview the teams game on Monday Night against the Baltimore Ravens. Campbell also talks about the big time win over the Chicago Bears. #lions #bears #nfl

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