Dan Campbell did not always see himself becoming a coach

The transition from not being a pro athlete anymore can be a tough one for some, no matter the sport. Broadcasting becomes a path to "stay in the game", in the various forms it can take nowadays, as does coaching. But coaching is not something everyone can do. And it's not something some former players even want to do.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell brings a refreshingly unique element to being a head coach. Beyond the "kneecap biting" comments from his introductory press conference, he was openly emotional after a tough loss during his first season. In a pre-game interview last season, he got emotional when thinking about those players from his first season as Lions' head coach.

But to hear him tell it, Campbell once had a different future in mind as his playing career came to an end.

Dan Campbell didn't think he wanted to be a coach

During an appearance on a Texas radio station this past week, and with some apparent history with at least one of the hosts due to having played at Texas A&M and for the Dallas Cowboys, Campbell's post-playing career journey was discussed.

"Just to think of your story—it’s really wild, man, and I assume it’s wild for you to think about if you give yourself a moment,” one host said. “From afar, I’ve always been rooting for you, but I can’t even believe that that’s the same Dan Campbell from the ‘Bob and Dan Show’ in 2003.”

Campbell agreed with the notion, and that his journey to being a coach was something he wouldn't have foreseen back then.

"I never thought of coaching—not really, you know. My whole vision of it was coming into the game plan and the coach is walking out with bedhead, (because) they slept up in their office, got the game plan ready, and it’s like they don’t ever go home until maybe Saturday. I’m like, man, that’s just not for me.”

Campbell's thoughts about being a coach obviously changed.

"Pretty soon, you can’t play anymore. And you love the sport and everything about it, you’re like, ‘You know what? Maybe this is for me,’” he said. “I enjoy the grind, I enjoy the game. I respect the hell out of the game. I love the guys, being around our players and coaches. I love the chess match and the grind of it.”

Prompted by being asked if the reality of being a coach is similar to what he perceived it to be 20 years ago, Campbell offered some thoughts on the perception of the "coaching life" that everyone can take a lesson from.

"There was a time where more was more, and that’s not the case,” he said. “If you don’t get sleep, your creativity is lost. Man, I can’t tell you the number of nights as a young coach, you’re sitting there trying to solve a problem and I’m not kidding you, two hours I’m on the same problem ... and I go to bed, and I wake up and within five minutes I’ve got it.”

Dan Campbell. Not just a football coach, however he may not have expected he'd be one in the midst of his playing career, but a life adviser.