The Detroit Lions’ “brain drain” will be an issue going forward

The Detroit Lions have succeeded using a unique coaching formula for the last couple of years. The triumvirate of Dan Campbell as HC, Ben Johnson as the resident offensive genius and Aaron Glenn as the defensive guy carried them to the top of the heap in the NFC this year, and only an unprecedented run of injuries on defense prevented them from reaching the Super Bowl.

But that run may be in jeopardy this year. Top teams in NFL lose coordinators to HC jobs every year, but taking a double hit is unusual, and the combination of personalities Detroit is losing is close to unprecedented.

The Dan Campbell storyline is about to be tested

We all know the basics of Dan Campbell’s coaching storyline by now. The former Dallas Cowboys tight end blitzed his way through his first HC presser by going viral with his memorable “biting kneecaps” line, and we all assumed Campbell was basically a tough guy goofball who would go the way of all the other Lions coaches who’d failed so spectacularly.

Except that isn’t what happened. Campbell did fail initially, but it turned out he was pretty great at building a winning culture, and he was no slouch when it came to selecting his coaching staff and working with and ascending GM, either.

That led to some pushback on the old Campbell storyline this year. Slowly, as the Lions continued to win, a series of stories emerged about how Campbell was actually much better at x’s and o’s than we were initially led to believe. But that new storyline will be sorely tested in 2025.

 

Was Jared Goff’s resurgence really all about Ben Johnson?

This is the critical question at the moment. Jared Goff was badly damaged goods when he got to Detroit. After a successful early run with the Rams in LA, Goff’s QB reputation was that of an immobile turnover machine who made poor choices when he was forced to move around too much in the pocket.

Supposedly, it was Ben Johnson who changed all that. Armed with an army of offensive talent assembled by GM Brad Holmes, Johnson used a combination of a strong offensive line, dynamic receivers, innovative motion schemes and an even more dynamic running game to transform the Lions offense turned into a scoring machine.

But Johnson is the head man in Chicago now, and he leaves behind huge question about what will become of Goff. Will Goff be able to build on Campbell’s confidence-building tactics to continue to have success, or will he slowly morph into what he was back in LA without Johnson around to make game-to-game and in-game adjustments? No one knows the answer right now, and it’s one of the most compelling offseason questions in the NFC.

Say a prayer for poor Aaron Glenn

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, if you’re a religious person who loves football you might want to say a quick prayer for Aaron Glenn. Glenn had a stellar career in New York with the Jets, which is basically a total oxymoron, and he even made the Pro Bowl twice as a Jet. Together with Campbell, he helped toughen up the Detroit defense, but his reward for his success doing that is he gets to go home and work for Woody Johnson and his teenage assistants.

Is there any chance that this will work? Sorry, but we all know there’s no way. Glenn probably had to take this job or risk being the last coach standing when the annual game of musical chairs ended. The only plus for him is that he knows what he’s getting himself into, and shame on him if he doesn’t.

The most entertaining part of this disaster-in-waiting would be if the Jets decide to do another go-around with Aaron Rodgers, but we’re assuming that Woody has enough after last year’s spectacular crash landing. With Johnson, though, you never know, so it’s best to keep popcorn and appropriate beverages close at hand.