By Don Yaeger,Nic Antaya,Senior Contributor
Copyright forbes
DETROIT, MICHIGAN – OCTOBER 08: Head coach Dan Campbell of the Detroit Lions looks on and smiles before the game against the Carolina Panthers at Ford Field on October 08, 2023 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
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On Sunday afternoon, the Detroit Lions found themselves in the middle of a familiar setting. Late in the game, fourth quarter, fourth down. Except in this particular setup against the Cleveland Browns, the Lions weren’t going for it on fourth, as has become their signature. Instead, the Browns had the ball and they were punting it to the Lions. When Detroit’s Khalid Raymond received the kick, he raced it back 65 yards for the score—every juke perfect, every block sublime.
It’s the kind of game-sealing play a team makes when they’re completely bought in and on the same page. It’s the kind of game-sealing play that Coach Dan Campbell’s Lions teams now routinely make—no matter what side of the ball they’re on. Raymond’s return put Detroit up 27-10 and the Lions ultimately defeated Cleveland, which just last week had beaten the Green Bay Packers, 34-10.
A former NFL tight end, the Texas-born Campbell started his NFL coaching career in 2010 as an intern with Miami. He moved up the ranks over the decade and in 2021, he took over as head coach in Detroit. He’d played for the team from 2006-2008 and was well aware of the franchise’s moribund history. The team boasted more fans wearing paper bags on their heads than playoff wins. But Campbell wanted to take on that challenge.
He knew he had a tough road. He had to turn around a laughing stock of a team, one that lost an NFL record nine consecutive playoff games from 1992 to 2022. So, Campbell went about it a few ways. He demanded toughness—fans and players will never forget his now-famous “We’re going to bite kneecaps” speech. He also brought in offensive and defensive coordinators who were so good they’re now head coaches elsewhere.
But more than anything, Campbell showed he believed in his team, that he trusted them. How? By going for it on fourth down an NFL record 151 times since taking over in 2021. While the team ranks 10th in conversion rate (they’ve made it 80 out of 151 times), Campbell has been the main advocate for defying the unwritten rule that says to always punt the ball on fourth down. Indeed, his teams have gone for it a whopping 32% of the time on fourth.
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DETROIT, MICHIGAN – DECEMBER 05: Amon-Ra St. Brown #14 of the Detroit Lions celebrates after catching a touchdown as the time expired to defeat the Minnesota Vikings 29-27 at Ford Field on December 05, 2021 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
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Campbell’s willingness to go for it on fourth down has not only manifested success for his team, but it engendered loyalty from his players. It’s given the previously pathetic Detroit Lions team an identity. A rallying cry, a mission statement. It’s given them a sense that they are never out of it. With a roster like they have—including standout receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and nimble running back Jahmyr Gibbs—it’s the right choice, too.
Last week, football fans saw not one but two spectacular plays from the Lions on fourth down. Against the favored Baltimore Ravens, the team pulled off this spectacular handoff-plus-pitch play to Gibbs for a score in the fourth quarter to break a 21-21 tie. Then with less than two minutes to go and the team up 31-24 at the 50-yard-line, Campbell decided to go for it again on fourth-and-two.
Announcing the game, three-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Troy Aikman noted that Campbell must have some “big onions” to make the call like that. But Detroit fans know: Campbell’s onions have made a lot of people cry over the last half-decade. For the play, he and his staff called a genius play-action pass and QB Jared Goff floated a 20-yarder to St. Brown for the first down. Game over. Detroit wins. Tears for Baltimore.
Business leaders could learn a lot from Campbell and his daring approach. While so much in business is rooted in risk management and avoiding unforced errors, the other side of that coin is the reality that a company can’t improve if it’s not occasionally willing to push it all to the middle of the table. In Campbell’s case, those risks have created buy-in from his players. And that buy-in has led to blowouts on the field (sorry, Cleveland).
Forbes contributor Guneet Bedi wrote eloquently about this idea in 2021, highlighting potential factors and strategy options when it comes to taking risks. In the end, Bedi concluded that risk remains essential for necessary growth. “Go through the process of identifying the risks and value propositions,” Bedi advised, “but don’t let the idea of risk alone hold you back. If you don’t do it, somebody else will—and they’ll be the ones to reap the rewards.”
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – DECEMBER 24: Jahmyr Gibbs #26 of the Detroit Lions scores a rushing touchdown against Mekhi Blackmon #5 of the Minnesota Vikings during the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium on December 24, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
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Critics of Campbell will point to the 2024 NFC Championship game between the Lions and San Francisco 49ers. One game from the hallowed Super Bowl, Detroit relinquished a 24-7 lead after mistakes, bad luck and fourth down calls by Campbell that didn’t pan out. In sports – as in life and business – everything isn’t going to go your way. But without the risks he’s taken over the years, Campbell almost certainly wouldn’t have the toughness and chemistry his division-leading, 3-1 Detroit squad shows now. That’s the bet he’s made and he’s willing to see it through.
“I’ve got a tremendous amount of trust in those guys,” Campbell said after last Monday night’s win over Baltimore. “That’s been built up now in five years…It’s those guys, it’s the players. They’re the ones who make this stuff come to life. They’ve earned that trust, you know? Once again, they step up and make huge plays at critical times. It’s unbelievable, it really is. It’s a thing of beauty.”
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