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DETROIT, MICHIGAN – SEPTEMBER 14: Head coach Dan Campbell while playing the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on September 14, 2025 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
There was a bit of controversy that has emerged since the Detroit Lions and Taylor Decker parted ways with one another, with the latter accusing the former of breaking off contact as if it were a high-school relationship where they couldn’t even make eye contact in the hallways.
During a recent interview with Lions beat writer Justin Rogers, Decker said that the essential breakup between him and the Lions, which took place after he said he was unwilling to take a pay cut, was akin to “radio silence”.
“It’s been radio silence,” Decker told Rogers. “It’s uncomfortable. It’s awkward. It feels like a high school breakup, where you can’t even make eye contact when passing each other in the hall.”
Rogers later wrote, “After giving everything he had to the franchise for a decade, Decker expected more. He wanted to hear from his coach, from the general manager.”
Now, Lions head coach Dan Campbell is responding.
Detroit Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell Responds To Taylor Decker’s Claims Of “Radio Silence”
While appearing at the NFL’s annual spring meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, Campbell said that there was a path for Decker to return to the Lions at a reduced price tag.
“There was a path [for him to come back],” Campbell said. “It was on a reduced price, but yeah, we were willing to. But we knew we needed help, too. And that was kind of a little bit of, with Decker and David [Montgomery], we get some capital to where now we can use it on free agents.”
He continued:
“It’s hard because you understand what they do and all that they give to do it the right way, to make it work. They buy into the vision. So, when you lose those guys, it’s harder because the other thing, it’s abrupt,” Campbell said. “Just like David (Montgomery), you ask about David, we talked right when everything happened and I love him to death, but that’s it. Now, we’ll talk again at some point, but these guys are around all the time.
“Like coaches, and they’re just gone. And it’s crazy, but that’s the nature of the business and that’s the way it was when I was a player. Some of these coaches, it’s like I had a coach that we talked every day. He would send me messages. We would talk and then the minute I got to another team I never heard from him again.
Dan Campbell Will Get In Touch With Taylor Decker
Finally, Campbell said that he plans on reaching out to the now-former Lion and let him know the franchise appreciates the work he did on their behalf for so many years.
“I’m going to give nothing but flowers to Deck for everything he did for us and what he did for this organization. Look, I’m sure as hell not going to call him right now, not after all this article came out. But I’ll call him,” Campbell said. “I’m going to call him in time. But I want him to know it’s real and it’s a real phone call. Man, we appreciate everything he did.”
Michael Whitaker Michael Whitaker is a sports journalist based in metro Detroit with nearly a full decade of experience with publications like Clutch Points and The Hockey News. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism from Eastern Michigan University. More about Michael Whitaker
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