Former NFL quarterback has criticized Dan Campbell’s decision-making following the Detroit Lions’ playoff exit.
Campbell’s choice to go for it instead of kicking field goals on two occasions in the second half of the NFC Title game against the San Francisco 49ers has drawn him lots of stick since Sunday night. He didn’t do himself any favors by going for a run play on the one-yard line late in the game that forced Detroit to burn an important timeout either.
Brady discussed the 34-31 result on his ‘Let’s Go’ podcast this week, expressing confusion as he tried to break down Campbell’s reasoning.
“Well, the whole team’s responsible. I’ll say it’s ultimately a team sport and the coach makes these decisions and you gotta go execute,” he said (H/T Fox News).
“My opinion differed on all those plays, too,” he added. “I definitely thought the handoff there late in the game, that was the one that I didn’t understand because you’re just, unless you saw some incredible look to walk the ball in, you just can’t take the chance that you’re gonna be stopped short and keep the clock running, because you just can’t get the ball back.
“So that was the one that I just said I don’t know what they’re doing. And I thought it was just a flat-out error.”
As for the fourth-down situations, Brady said he would have taken the points instead of risking it.
“And then the other ones are judgment calls, and they’ve been aggressive all year. Obviously, when you’re aggressive, and it doesn’t work, it comes back to bite you, and it came back to bite ’em yesterday,” he said. “And again, I would’ve taken the points. I’ve been in those situations. I look at them and I say, OK, this is the opportunity for you to continue to keep the pressure on the 49ers to make great plays, and you were in a good position.
“So, you know, it’s an aggressive coach, an aggressive mentality. I’m sure the players really wanted to go for it, you know, when you’re on the field, and you feel like you let him down. But at the same time, the coach has gotta make in his mind the best decision to win. And obviously, it didn’t work out for the Lions.”
Campbell has built a culture in Detroit in which bravery is the order of the day. It’s what got the Lions within one win of a Super Bowl appearance, but it proved to be counterproductive against San Francisco on Sunday.
The head coach insisted he had no regrets regarding the fourth-down plays after the game but admits he should have gone for a pass instead of a run at the end.
