Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell spoke to the media Monday one day after his team's impressive 40-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at Ford Field to improve their record to 5-7 on the season and stay in the playoff picture in the NFC.
Here are all the key questions from Campbell's Monday presser:
To make it two wins in a row, the Lions have to get by the Minnesota Vikings Sunday in Detroit. How are the Vikings different from the team the Lions lost to Week 3 in Minneapolis?
The Vikings are 10-2 and just one game back from the Philadelphia Eagles (11-1) for the top seed in the NFC. They must have a ton of confidence right now with the way they've won some of these games the last two months. Minnesota beat Detroit in Week 3, 28-24, in come-from-behind fashion.
"It's a better version of what they were (Week 3)," Campbell said of the Vikings team coming to Detroit this weekend. "They continue to win. This is a winning team. They find ways to win. That's what they do. And those are the hard teams (to play)."
The Vikings have found ways to win games in all three phases all season long and that makes them dangerous, according to Campbell.
What kind of game is Campbell expecting at Ford Field on Sunday?
He said it was an all hands on deck kind of contest for his team this week.
"Our fans have to show up, which I know they will," he said. "This is going to be electric."
Campbell said it's a big game for the players and coaches. It's a division game, the Vikings can clinch the NFC North title with a win, which no team wants to see on their home field, and there's probably a little bit of wanting to exact some payback for that Week 3 loss in Minneapolis, a game the Lions feel like they let slip away late.
What's been the biggest difference in the play of quarterback Jared Goff over this current 4-1 stretch?
Campbell said he's preached two things to his quarterback: Make the right decisions and take care of the football.
"He's done that," Campbell said. "And that's five weeks going now and that's a big part of the reason why we're winning."
Goff has thrown just one interception over Detroit's last five games and has gone four games straight without throwing a pick. He has seven touchdowns over that same stretch.
"He's making very smart decisions," Campbell said. "We were going to put a lot on him yesterday with his arm. Put it in the air. We just felt like that was the way to attack this team. And he did that and then some."
Goff finished 31-of-41 passing for 340 yards with two touchdowns, no picks and a 115.9 passer rating Sunday against the Jaguars.
Could we see Romeo Okwara return to action this week?
The veteran defensive lineman was activated to the 53-man roster off the PUP list on Saturday but was inactive for the game. Campbell said they just wanted to give him an extra week. Okwara has been rehabbing a torn Achilles suffered over a year ago.
Campbell said they'll see how he looks and feels on Wednesday and go from there, but there's certainly a chance he makes his 2022 debut Sunday against the Vikings. Like most Lions players this year who have come off extended injury absences, if Okwara does play, expect him to be on a snap count.
Who stood out when going over the Jacksonville tape on Monday?
Campbell thought the forced fumble by safety DeShon Elliott and the subsequent recovery by linebacker Alex Anzalone set the tone for the game.
After watching the tape, Campbell shouted out these players as having particularly good games:
- Offense: Goff, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, wide receiver DJ Chark and the entire offensive line.
- Defense: Cornerback Will Harris, cornerback Jerry Jacobs, Anzalone and Elliott.
- Special teams: Linebacker Josh Woods, running back Justin Jackson and kicker Michael Badgley.
