Dan Campbell takes full blame for Lions' loss to the Bills

The Detroit Lions were not going to go the entire season with just one loss, and it's fair to say Sunday's 48-42 loss to the Buffalo Bills feels like more than a six-point loss. A slow start was not able to be recovered from, and after the game Dan Campbell took full ownership of that.

“I didn’t have those guys ready to go, not like that,” Campbell said. “Not when you’re playing a team like that. That’s with me. We had a number of guys that have played a lot better than that, just overall, and so that tells me that’s (on) me. I didn’t have these guys completely ready to roll.”

When asked if injuries have caught up to the team, with three more defensive players (Carlton Davis, Alim McNeill, Khalil Dorsey) going down on Sunday, Campbell had the expected response.

"I’m not buying it. I’m not. I don’t buy it,” Campbell said. “We can be better. We should’ve been better. We know how good they are, but that team was more urgent than us today, overall.”

Dan Campbell explains onside kick decision

With 12 minutes left in Sunday's game, after a Jahmyr Gibbs touchdown to make the score 38-28 in favor of the Bills, Campbell decided to try an onside kick. The play is always pretty low-percentage to be recovered by the kicking team, and new rules starting with having to declared you're doing it beforehand makes it a not less likely (3-of-41 onside-kick attempts (7.3 percent) had been recovered this season entering Week 15).

After a big bounce over a wall of special teamers, Bills wide receiver Mack Hollins returned the onside-kick 38 yards, setting Buffalo up at the 5-yard line. They scored on the next play to make the score 45-28 and practically seal the win.

The critics have naturally come out about that decision, questioning Campbell's judgement. A more reasoned analysis says the Lions' defense was not able to stop the Bills' offense, and conceding possession to them at all was not the best option to keep mounting a comeback. It just worked out poorly

Campbell explained his reasoning, but with hindsight he ultimately regretted the onside kick decision.

“I just thought we’d get the possession. I thought we were going to get that ball,” Campbell said. “It was one of (Jake) Bates’ best kicks that I’ve seen him have. That was a big kicker at the end, you know, that thing took a good jump on us, and (Bills WR Mack) Hollins made a heck of a play on it. And, you know, obviously, now sitting here hindsight after them taking it down to the 3-yard line, yeah, I wish I wouldn’t have done that, but is what it is.”

The onside kick decision so early in the fourth quarter was not the reason the Lions lost to the Bills. It was just the final part of Campbell taking full blame for the loss, and most obvious point of criticism for those who want to lament Campbell's aggressiveness every chance they get.