Detroit Lions ‘locked in’ after emotional week: ‘We owe it to’ Jack Campbell
Music blared and players moseyed around as usual, laughing and talking and playing cards and studying their tablets like they would before any game.
Jack Campbell wasn’t in the locker room this week. The Detroit Lions’ All-Pro linebacker was still at Henry Ford Hospital recovering from the scary neck injury he suffered in last week’s win over the Minnesota Vikings.
But as his coaches and teammates tried to regain some sense of normal, they decided the best way to deal with the hurt and anger and emotion they’re still feeling was to be like their captain on and off the field.
“We’re going to prepare like he prepared,” Lions assistant head coach Scottie Montgomery said. “We’re going to play like he plays. We’re going to do the things that he would have us to do.”
The Lions visit the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, Nov. 8, in their first game since the scariest moment many players said they’ve witnessed in football.
What Happened To Jack:
Campbell injured his neck on the first play of the fourth quarter against the Vikings, when he made a seemingly routine tackle on tight end T.J. Hockenson and fell motionless to the ground.
Doctors and trainers tended to Campbell for 10 quiet minutes, then took him off the field on a medical cart as players from both teams kneeled in prayer.
“Lot of emotions in the game of football, and one emotion you kind of condition yourself not to let creep into your brain is fear,” Lions safeties coach Jim O’Neil said. “And then obviously when Jack went down, I think everybody felt it.”
Campbell released a statement this week saying he regained full movement in his lower body and some movement in his upper body, and Lions coach Dan Campbell said the progress continued Friday.
“Jack continues to improve, which is all great news, and again this is about, man, how would he prepare, how would he play?” Dan Campbell said. “Those are the standards for us going into this game. We owe it to him.”
“We Owe It To Him” — The Message All Week:
That line — “We owe it to him” — became the standard for the week.
Dan Campbell said it Wednesday: “I think we owe it to him, we owe it to all of ourselves to make sure we’re locked in and we make the most of this.”
He said it again Friday: “Those are the standards for us going into this game. We owe it to him.”
And the players are repeating it back.
“[Jack’s situation is] definitely something that’s heavy on a lot of mentals, mine included,” defensive tackle Alim McNeill said. “But that’s just kind of how life works sometimes is you have something going on here but you got to focus on this. That’s just how it works sometimes. But we’re all locked in. We have to be locked in. We have a ball game to win this weekend, and we’re going to play and prepare like 46 [Jack Campbell] would. We’re just going to do it in remembrance of Jack. That’s what we’re going to do.”
Linebacker Trevor Nowaske, one of Campbell’s closest friends, said the momentum carried from Thursday into Friday:
“I think we’re, like you’ve probably heard from a million people, it’s like, what would he want us to do?” Nowaske said. “And that’s really all you can do. You try your best to compartmentalize everything. When you’re here, you’re here, and outside of the building, it is what it is. But no, I think we do a great job of addressing things. Coach Campbell did a great job as you probably heard of addressing things at the beginning of the week, and it’s not like we’re all not thinking about it, but it’s one of those things. We got a game this weekend and we’re focused on that, as well.”
O’Neil said the Lions “had one of our best” practices of the season Thursday, their first full practice after Jack Campbell’s injury.
History Says Emotion Can Fuel A Team:
Historically, teams with players who have suffered catastrophic injuries on the field have channeled the emotion from those incidents into their play.
After Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest in a game in 2023, the Buffalo Bills won their next two games. In 2017, the Pittsburgh Steelers won three of their next four games after Ryan Shazier suffered a career-ending spinal-cord injury. And in 1991, the Lions won six straight after Mike Utley was paralyzed while pass blocking.
The Lions are hoping Sunday is the start of that kind of run.
Why Sunday Still Matters — NFC North Race:
The Lions (5-2) need a win against the lowly Dolphins (1-6) to keep pace in the cramped NFC North.
The Vikings (6-1) lead the division by a half-game over the Chicago Bears and host the AFC-leading Bills this week on “Monday Night Football.” The Bears, 6-2 and winners of three straight, host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday and are one of the Super Bowl favorites in the NFC after acquiring Jeffery Simmons in a trade with the Tennessee Titans. And the Green Bay Packers (5-3) are right behind the Lions in the standings and about to get top pass rusher Micah Parsons back from a torn ACL.
The Lions have won three straight, and a win Sunday would vault Dan Campbell past Potsy Clark and George Wilson, who led the Lions to their first and last NFL championships, respectively, as the second-winningest coach in franchise history.
Campbell, who got his start as an NFL assistant with the Dolphins in 2010 – he spent six seasons in Miami and went 5-7 as the team’s interim head coach in 2015 – is 53-38-1 in the regular season in his career with the Lions.
The Dolphins have the second-worst scoring offense (16.7 ppg) and one of the least-talented rosters in the NFL, but they beat the New York Jets for their first win two weeks ago and have played four straight games decided by a touchdown or less.
What To Watch Sunday:
• Can the patched linebacker group — K.J. Britt, Joe Bachie, Trevor Nowaske, plus possible debut of Ahmed Hassanein — hold up without Campbell? • Can Goff (1,964 yards, 15 TDs, 1 INT) and Gibbs (110.4 rushing yards/game, NFL leader) keep the No. 1 offense rolling? • Can the defense, last in pass defense at 276.6 yards/game, survive without Campbell, D.J. Reed (hip), and DJ Wonnum (concussion)?
But more than X’s and O’s, Sunday is about this: prepare like 46, play like 46.
Mabel Joshua is the founder and lead editor of CelebrityTale.com with 4+ years covering celebrity news, entertainment trends and pop culture. She curates breaking stories with verified sources, focusing on real-time updates from Hollywood, music and lifestyle. When not reporting, she tracks emerging talents and viral moments across social platforms.
