Dan Campbell gonna Dan Campbell.
The Detroit Lions’ head coach and preeminent “football guy” made headlines during his opening press conference, with a wild speech saying his team was going to “bite a kneecap off” if they get knocked down. Campbell now wants to take that tough-guy mentality – and the team’s name – to a new level.
“I don’t think we’re going to be able to do it, but I would love to literally just have a pet lion,” Campbell said on “Pardon My Take.” “Just a legit pet lion on a chain, a big ass chain, and he really is my pet. We just walk around the building, we go out to practice, we’re at 7-on-7, we’re behind the kicker when he’s kicking.”
Campbell is a former NFL tight end who made his name as a blocker throughout his 11 seasons with the Giants, Cowboys, Lions and Saints. He re-iterated his tough-guy mentality to team building in the interview, saying he believes teams “win and lose in the trenches.”
The Lions backed that up by drafting left tackle Penei Sewell with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, though Campbell said the team was prepared to take a wide receiver had the Oregon prospect not fallen to them. (The best receiver left on the board was likely DeVonta Smith, which would have thrown some interesting drama into the Eagles and Giants’ drafts.)
Campbell also addressed the kneecap biting, saying he is aware of how big of a deal the quote became.
“You’d be shocked how many things that friends have sent me of comments that were made, like, that’s a 15-yard penalty, I mean this is ridiculous, everyone on his team, they’re all gonna get kicked out of the game,” Campbell said. “And I’m like, please, believe me, I know we can’t bite kneecaps. I swear to you. That’s not in the rulebook.”