Three games into losing play-calling duties, Anthony Lynn sounds more than ready to move on from the Lions after the season.
It’s certainly not all his fault, but Anthony Lynn’s first season as Detroit Lions offensive coordinator has not gone well. Any calls for him to be fired during the bye week were a stretch. But head coach Dan Campbell followed all the way through on wanting to be more involved with the offense by taking over play-calling coming off the bye.
Lynn has obviously remained involved with the offense, and he fully understands why he lost his play-calling role. Campbell has said he’ll call plays for the rest of the season, even as he acknowledges what he’s done wrong. Going back to Lynn would not be an option anyway.
Lynn spoke to the media on Thursday. He generally comes off as reserved, calculated and careful with his words, as confirmed by media present for his availabilities. But he apparently couldn’t quite hold all his feelings in anymore.
Anthony Lynn sounds resigned to his fate and ready to move on
Via Justin Rogers of The Detroit News:
“You know, three weeks going into this thing, knowing what Dan wants, (I’m) trying to assist him the best I can,” Lynn said. “I’m very comfortable with the role. Don’t mistake comfortable for liking the role, but I’m very comfortable with the role and I want to help and assist Dan the best I can.”
Lynn plays things very close to the vest and is cautious and thoughtful with the limited words he uses in these weekly media sessions. He's being a team player, but clearly there's some discontent with the change. Still feels like a divorce after one year is possible.
— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) December 2, 2021
An offensive coordinator who has play-calling taken from him during the season is going to be on thin ice automatically. Add in rumored (and refuted, of course) struggles to connect with Jared Goff prior to losing those duties, and it’s a complete recipe for all sides to move on as soon as the season ends.
Lynn will certainly quickly find another job as an assistant coach in the league next year. He just could not overcome the talent-deficient eight-ball he was behind as he was tasked to run the Lions’ offense. And other than a more productive run game, it’s not like Campbell has gotten better results calling plays.