The 12–2 Detroit Lions may have suffered their first loss in 12 weeks last Sunday—a 48–42 thriller against the Buffalo Bills—but quarterback Jared Goff doesn't forget what it was like to be on the losing side of a season, nor has he lost faith in his team or the words of head coach Dan Campbell.
In the first full team meeting since the defeat (when Detroit also lost a ton of players to injury), Campbell dispensed some of his now-famous motivational advice: “Nobody writes our story. We're the only ones who write our story,” he said, per WXYZ 7 News Detroit's Brad Galli. “We have the pen.”
Asked later what kind of difference it makes to have a coach like Campbell leading the charge, Goff gave the perfect response, one that acknowledged how far the team has come and how the coach has played into that.
"It's funny because it's relative, right? Because adversity two years ago is different than adversity right now. So, watching [Campbell] stand in the storm at 1–6 and 3–13 or whatever we were that first year, that's what, for me, makes his words mean so much more now when we're 12–2 facing our first loss in the last 12 weeks," Goff said. "So if that's our adversity right now, we'll be just fine, we'll handle it, we'll move on, but I think when he stands in front of the room, people listen, and the way that we handle adversity as a team has been pretty good."
Jared Goff said when Dan Campbell stands in front of the room, people listen.
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) December 18, 2024
“Watching him stand in the storm at 1-6 and 3-13 or whatever we were that first year, that’s what, for me, makes his words mean so much more now when we’re 12-2,” the Lions QB said. pic.twitter.com/hQOkBNT435
Campbell, known for his aggressive play-calling, shocked everyone last week when he decided to go for an onside kick at the start of the fourth quarter. It ultimately didn't pan out; Buffalo recovered the ball and was able to score on the next play. Of course, Monday criticism ensued, even though that wasn't the only reason Detroit lost. That call, plus the pile-on of injuries had many pundits and fans prematurely claiming the Lions were through.
But it's nice to see the team is looking forward and moving forward despite it all, at least from Goff's perspective.
Next up for the Lions is a meeting with the division rival Chicago Bears on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jared Goff Shares Powerful Perspective on Dan Campbell After Lions' Loss to Bills.
