Dan Campbell vs Matt LaFleur
By: Jake Rajala
The NFC North has four well-respected head coaches. The two top ring leaders have to be none other than the Detroit Lions HC Dan Campbell and the Green Bay Packers HC Matt LaFleur. With that said, I’m simply going to untwine which HC has the edge.
Campbell deserves a heap of respect for managing the Detroit Lions. They were first in points on offense and seventh in PPG allowed. The Lions have also had three Top-5 scoring offenses under Campbell.This comes after Jared Goff was seen as a game manager and that their defense was too injured to shine. I believe that Campbell deserved COTY, but it went to his nemesis Kevin O’Connell.
Campbell lost both of his coordinators, as Ben Johnson went to the Chicago Bears and Aaron Glenn went to the New York Jets.
Campbell worked his way up the NFL ranks over the past several years. He was the TE coach in 2011 with the Miami Dolphins. He then was the assistant HC/TE coach in 2016 with the NO Saints. In 2021, he was named the Head Coach of the Detroit Lions.
In 2021, he went 3-13. Then he went 9-8, 12-5, and then 15-2! The patience with Dan paid off.
Matt LaFleur came out of nowhere to shine. He had 13 wins in each of his first three seasons. Of course, they won the division title in each of those seasons, as well. Sadly, the Pack haven’t won the NFC North in the past three seasons. The Packers winning percentage with Matt is .67
Interestingly, the Packers have only have had a Top-5 scoring offense one time with Matt.
It’s worth noting how each HC figure has played against each other. Well, the Lions swept the Pack last season. In the season prior, the Lions beat the Packers in two of their match-ups. The Lions have poured it on the Pack defenses.
Each QB will move forward with veteran QBs, contrary to the Bears and Vikings. They can help their young weapons more via their experience. The Lions will also need to properly replace their OC and DC. Of course, Johnson went to the Bears. Well, this also means that the Lions know what to expect from the the Bears offense!
So, which HC has the edge? I believe it’s a no-brainer: Dan Campbell has the edge. He’s recorded 15 wins in a season. He’s had a few seasons with insane scoring. His squad has also man-handled the Packers. It hasn’t really been much of a “competition” between the Packers and Lions.
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