Campbell Likes His 3-2 Lions Better Than Last Year's 5-2 — the Packers Test That Sunday
Dan Campbell says he feels better about this year's 3-2 Lions than last year's 5-2 group. First up in a two-game divisional stretch that he calls crucial for the playoffs: Jonathan Gannon's blitz-happy Packers, fresh off dismantling Dallas.
- Dan Campbell is more optimistic about this year's 3-2 Lions than last year's 5-2 team. Brian Branch and Cade Mays are expected back for the Packers game, and Campbell calls the upcoming two-game divisional stretch crucial for the Lions' playoff hopes. m:…8946
- The Packers beat the Cowboys 23-13, with Jonathan Gannon sending all seven players on the line at the quarterback on the game's first third down, holding Dallas to seven points for 59 minutes, and lining up All-Pro safety Xavier McKinney in a three-point stance at three-tech. m:…1740 m:…9494
- Green Bay converted 11 of 18 third downs against Dallas with 117 yards after catch; Matthew Golden had six catches for 104 yards and a touchdown. Cowboys linebacker Dee Winters recorded the Cowboys' first interception of the season, then exited with an Achilles strain. m:…9494
- Jordan Love has a 123.4 passer rating in three career starts at Ford Field, where Green Bay has scored 28-plus points in each of its last three trips. Each of the last eight games in Detroit has been decided by one possession; the Packers lead the regular-season series 106-78-7. m:…1418
- The NFC North leads the NFL with a .727 winning percentage. Minnesota is 5-0 and in first place, Green Bay and Chicago are tied for second at 4-2, and Detroit is 3-2 and in last place. m:…1418 m:…1740
- Gannon describes Detroit's offense as creative and lacking predictable tendencies, and identifies Jahmyr Gibbs as a high-speed threat with elite vision and contact balance. Packers running back Josh Jacobs is scheduled to return to practice Wednesday, but Matt LaFleur has not guaranteed he plays Sunday. m:…9713 m:…1740
Campbell's contrarian take
Dan Campbell has a take that reads oddly on paper: he feels more optimistic about this year's 3-2 Lions than the team that started 5-2 last season. The Lions come out of the bye getting healthier — Brian Branch and Cade Mays are expected back for the Packers game — and Campbell is framing the next two weeks as the season's hinge, calling the upcoming two-game divisional stretch crucial for Detroit's playoff hopes. m:…8946
The standings make his urgency legible. Detroit sits at 3-2, in last place in the best division in football. The Packers arrive as the immediate problem, though Campbell's camp notes they have been one-dimensional and may get Josh Jacobs back this week — the kind of detail that reads as respectful scouting and a little bit of gamesmanship at once. m:…1740 m:…8946 m:…1418
The test: Gannon's pressure circus
If Campbell's optimism has a scheduled stress test, it is Jonathan Gannon's defense. The Packers' 23-13 win at Dallas was a pressure clinic: on the very first third down of the game, Gannon put seven players on the line of scrimmage and sent all seven at the quarterback. Dallas managed seven points over 59 minutes, with the Cowboys' offense recording only one completion longer than 17 yards. m:…1740 m:…9494
The exotic looks kept coming. All-Pro safety Xavier McKinney lined up in a three-point stance operating out of a three-tech — a formation the Packers' own podcast hosts said they had never seen from a safety. The Cowboys' offense has now struggled to maintain rhythm against blitzes in consecutive weeks, and Gannon's disguised pressure gave Dak Prescott problems all afternoon. m:…1740 m:…9494
It was not all defense. Green Bay converted 11 of 18 third downs and piled up 117 yards after catch, with Matthew Golden posting six catches for 104 yards and a touchdown. The Cowboys' one bright spot came from linebacker Dee Winters, who recorded the team's first interception of the season — a play his head coach called incredible — before exiting with an Achilles strain. Prescott still owns the third-most completions and touchdowns against the blitz among NFL quarterbacks over the last five seasons, which makes Gannon's success against him the more striking data point. m:…9494
Detroit has been Green Bay's second home
The recent history at Ford Field favors the visitors. Jordan Love owns a 123.4 passer rating in three career starts there, and Green Bay has scored 28-plus points in each of its last three trips. But none of it has been easy: each of the last eight games in Detroit has been decided by one possession, and the Packers have won two of the last three in the building. The all-time regular-season series stands at 106-78-7 in Green Bay's favor. m:…1418
The stakes go beyond one Sunday. The NFC North's .727 winning percentage leads the NFL, with Minnesota 5-0 on top and the Packers and Bears tied for second at 4-2. For the Lions, this is the week Campbell's 3-2-is-better argument either gets its evidence or gets filed away. m:…1418 m:…1740
Gannon, for his part, is not taking the matchup lightly. He described Detroit's offense as creative and lacking predictable tendencies, identified Jahmyr Gibbs as a high-speed threat with elite vision and contact balance, and praised safety Evan Williams' reliability, physicality, and intelligence. Jacobs is scheduled to return to practice Wednesday and the Packers' offensive staff expects him to provide a spark — though LaFleur has not guaranteed the running back plays Sunday. Campbell's better-than-last-year Lions are about to find out exactly how good they are. m:…9713 m:…1740
What is still unresolved
- Whether Josh Jacobs actually suits up Sunday is unresolved — LaFleur has not guaranteed it.
- Brian Branch's workload is still being determined in practice despite the plan to have him back.
- How Detroit's offensive line handles Gannon's exotic pressure packages has no evidence yet — the Dallas game is the only recent data point.
- The two-game divisional stretch's second opponent is not specified in the cited manifests.
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