Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell is a force. He's honest, fiery, and will ride for his team until the wheels fall off. It's a personality that has yet to rub anyone the wrong way, with key departures for the squad since his hiring having more to do with injuries, or a frugal front office, more than anything else. He's a football player's dream of a leader.
That's part of why NBC Sports' Patrick Daugherty has Campbell at 8th overall on his latest head coach rankings ahead of the 2026 season. Daugherty doesn't hold back in his criticism of the skipper, fairly bringing up the fact that the Lions fell flat in a concerning way in 2025, but he doesn't attribute that fall-off to Campbell's style.
"Campbell did not lose the locker room. Nothing went off the rails. The Lions were competitive until the very end of the year, where they beat Johnson for the second time in as many tries in Week 18. But his words after the team’s 2024 NFC Championship Game defeat —“this may have been our only shot”— are looking all the more prophetic. The Lions arrived earlier than expected."
Campbell earns warning about Lions' success in latest head coach rankings
Detroit has a shot to redeem their tumultuous 2025 season thanks to them turning a new leaf on their offensive coordinator position, and thanks to health. Injuries to the Lions' defense really dragged their success rate down, with the offense only able to carry them in the win column for so long. Without the ability to get stops when it mattered, Detroit was bound to sink.
Campbell is the top-ranked coach in the NFC North on this list, too, which speaks to Detroit's strength in the division despite a fourth-place finish last season. Matt LeFleur is 10th, Kevin O'Connell is 12th, and Ben Johnson is 13th. Many NFC powerhouse head coaches sit above Campbell, like Sean McVay in 1st, Mike Macdonald at 4th, and Kyle Shanahan at 3rd.
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The so-called "hangover effect" that Daugherty refers to in this ranking is one that's still lingering for the Lions. With the draft a few weeks ago, we still haven't seen what the teams' plans are to revamp their offensive line or their pass rusher room. They're also sitting ducks as it pertains to their safety room, with Kerby Joseph's availability a question mark headed into camp.
With an unbelievably light regular season schedule ahead of them, the Lions have a clear opportunity to bounceback.