Lions HC Dan Campbell's aggressiveness backfired in loss to Patriots

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell is one of the most fascinating people in the NFL. 

He has the type of fire and passion that can make people want to run through a brick wall for him, and his team entered Sunday's game in New England with one of the league's top offenses and one of its worst defenses. He is also HYPER-aggressive in terms of his in-game decision-making.

That aggressiveness seemed to backfire in Sunday's ugly 29-0 loss to the Patriots, and it is earning him some criticism in the aftermath. At the center of the criticism was the Lions' 0-for-6 day on fourth-down conversions, starting with their very first drive of the game.

And it was not so much the decision to keep going for it that was necessarily the problem, but the Lions were getting tactically outsmarted by a more well-prepared coaching staff. 

Lions Wire contributor Jeff Risdon wrote that if Patriots coach Bill Belichick was playing chess, "Campbell was breaking his Hungry Hungry Hippos game by slamming the handles way too hard and always at the wrong time."

No team in the NFL has gone for it on fourth down more than the Lions' 18 times this season, yet their 44 percent success rate is among the lowest in the league. Though, to be fair, they were 8-for-12 going into Sunday's game.

One of the biggest mishaps on Sunday was a crucial fourth-and-nine decision late in the first half. 

Trailing by six and facing a fourth-and-nine at the New England 32-yard line, and having already failed on a fourth down call that helped net the Patriots a field goal, Campbell again elected to go for it instead of trying a long field goal to get back in the game. The result: A Lions fumble that was returned for a New England touchdown to give the Patriots a 13-0 lead and a momentum-changing score that would completely flip the game. 

From that point on, Campbell and Lions continued to chase the game, kept going for fourth downs, and kept missing. 

There is a lot to be said for Campbell's ability to motivate his team and fire people up. 

But at some point you have to make decisions that are also going to get your team wins. That is not happening enough and expectations should be higher. After going 3-13-1 in his first year, the Lions are now 1-4 through the first five games in 2022 despite having an offense that was one of the league's best before Sunday's game. Good soundbites and speeches are great. You still need wins to make them matter.