The Detroit Lions have the most fourth NFL conversion attempts in 10 weeks, but Lions coach Dan Campbell broke character in Sunday’s win over the Chicago Bears when he threw a basket early rather than trying to convert fourth and fourth.
Campbell said Monday he “felt like it was the right decision at the time,” and insisted his decision did not signal a change in his aggressive approach. The Lions won, 31-30.
“Just with where the game was going, where I thought it was going, and we had a pretty good ride,” Campbell said. “We had to overcome a lot to get that first possession. We ended up with second and longs, thirds and longs, we overcame them. And so I wanted to make sure that we come away with points on this record.
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After the Bears threw a 33-yard field goal on the game’s first possession, the Lions responded with a 14-play, 68-yard drive that stalled on Chicago’s 7-yard line.
The Lions converted a third-and-5 and a third-and-9 on the drive, but after Justin Jackson gained 6 yards on a short pass from Jared Goff on the third-and-10, Campbell sent Michael Badgley for a 25-yarder. field goal.
Badgley gave the kick, but mathematically the Lions would have increased their chances of winning the game by trying to convert in fourth and fourth, according to the famous decision bot fourth down which analyzes every fourth decision on Twitter.
Last week, the Lions were stopped on a fourth-and-1 against the Green Bay Packers in a similar situation, when Goff pitched incomplete to Tom Kennedy on the fourth-and-1 of 7 on the first drive.
They then beat the Packers, 15-9.
On Sunday, the Lions converted their only fourth attempt, a fourth and a goal from the Bears 2-yard line in the second quarter, when Goff threw a short touchdown pass to Brock Wright. They also stopped the Bears’ fourth down on Chicago’s final possession of the game.
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For the season, the Lions are 10 of 23 (43.5%) on fourth down conversions, including two conversions on fake punts. Their opponents converted six of 13 attempts (46.2%).
“I could have very easily gone there,” Campbell said of his kicking decision. “But I just felt like it was the right thing to do at the time.”
Pleasant ridge
Former Lions secondary coach Aubrey Pleasant has joined the Green Bay Packers staff as an offensive assistant. ESPN reported.
Pleasant, who was fired Oct. 31 in the Lions’ 1-6 start, worked with current Packers coach Matt LaFleur with the Washington Football Team in 2013. Pleasant was an offensive assistant on a team from Washington which also included current NFL head coach Kyle Shanahan. , Sean McVay and Mike McDaniel. LaFleur was the team’s quarterbacks coach.
“I joke with people all the time, I say the biggest mistake I’ve ever made in my coaching career was leaving the attacking side of the ball,” Pleasant joked with the Free Press earlier this year. season.
The Lions are 2-0 since firing Pleasant and giving safety coach Brian Duker high responsibility with the defensive passing game.
After the Lions beat the Packers in their first game without Pleasant last week, Campbell called Pleasant “a hell of a coach.”
“He’s going to land on his feet and he’s going to get back up and he’s probably going to be a head coach one day,” Campbell said. “That’s how much I think of him. But unfortunately that’s where we were.
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ESPN reported that Pleasant started working with the Packers last week.
Half measures
Campbell gave the players what he called a “half” victory Monday after beating the Bears and with two games over the next 10 days. The Lions visit the New York Giants on Sunday, then host the Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving.
“These guys keep working,” Campbell said. “We haven’t changed what we’re doing in that regard, and they’re continuing, but that’s also I know what we’re about to face, and then in that… 12-day window, call it like you want. So it’s a half-victory Monday. These guys are responsible for, ‘Manage your bands, and you come and ride together as a band and watch the movie together and then get out of here. Process the body and exit. Prepare to leave for Wednesday. So I trust them. »
In the NFL, teams typically meet on Monday to lift and review film, take Tuesday off, and then practice Wednesday through Friday. When asked if he believed in Victory Mondays after beating the Packers, Campbell said yes, but it was too soon for his team.
Contact Dave Birkett at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
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