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ALLEN PARK — Dan Campbell is fully aware of what the Philadelphia Eagles fan base is capable of and has already prepared his team for the hostile environment they’ll face in Week 11. Of his 10-year NFL career, Campbell played seven of them between stints with the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys — fierce division rivals to the Eagles. During an interview with 97.1 The Ticket this week, Campbell shared his thoughts on the hostile environment at Lincoln Financial Field, stating that he had batteries thrown at him and was spit on during his playing days. In the same breath, he said it’s a “great place to play” and further elaborated on Wednesday. “I just think anybody — when you’re a competitor, you just love it,” Campbell said. “You go on the road, and it’s you against everybody else. And it’s very clear that it’s you against everybody else there. And there’s just enough — I just mentioned this before — you go someplace, they wave at you like, ‘We’re so happy you’re here to play against us.’ This is not one of those places. It’s as far from that as you can possibly get. “I don’t know, I love playing in atmospheres like that, and I just know the type of guys we have — I think they’re going to heat up. I really do.” Since becoming the Lions’ coach, Campbell has been unsuccessful in picking up a victory over the Eagles. In 2021, his first year in Detroit, the Lions suffered a 44-6 throttling on Halloween at Ford Field. The Eagles amassed 236 yards on the ground, averaging 5.1 yards per carry and four touchdowns. The following season, both teams met again in the season opener, with an almost identical offensive performance (216 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns) en route to a 38-35 victory at Ford Field once again. Sunday will mark Campbell’s first trip to Philadelphia as the Lions’ coach, and knowing his coaching history against the Eagles does add an extra incentive to pick up a win over them. Still, in general, regardless of the opponent, Campbell is focusing on leading his squad to a win. “That’s what being competitive is—you want to win. And yeah, we’ve played them twice, they’ve got our number twice, they got after us both times, really,” Campbell shared. “I mean, we fought our way back in ’22, but we were down pretty good. They have a style and they’re very good at it. I wouldn’t say there’s anything necessarily complex about it, but it’s very sound. And like I say, (Eagles coach) Nick (Sirriani) has done an unbelievable job. (Defensive coordinator Vic) Fangio—he’s a legend, man. It’s stood the test of time, that style of defense. The way they play the coverage, the rush—it goes hand in hand. It’s a pain in the (expletive). It’s hard to deal with offensively. “But I just think it’s good, sound football, and they don’t beat themselves. At the end of the day, they don’t beat themselves. And when they need a critical play, they come up with a critical play. That’s what champions do, and that’s why they’ve had the success they’ve had.” Currently No. 3 in the NFC, behind the Eagles and Seattle Seahawks, respectively, the Lions picking up a victory in Philadelphia could have significant playoff seeding implications in their favor down the road.
