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A question that has been looming over the Detroit Lions offense all season has been who will call plays on gameday. Last year, coach Dan Campbell took over playcalling duties from now-former offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn and it provided a spark to the offense for the rest of the season.
But with new offensive coordinator Ben Johnson in the captain’s chair of the offense, many have been wondering if Campbell will cede play-calling duties to start the season. Campbell has been coy about answering the question all offseason, and on Monday morning—just six days away from the season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles—Campbell wasn’t budging when asked who would call plays.
“Well, this is going to be interesting to find out,” Campbell said with a sly grin. “I’m excited to know, too.”
While Campbell is being cheeky, this may not be that much of a mystery. Johnson has been calling offensive plays all training camp and during the preseason. Campbell even admitted that Johnson looks ready to call plays... but with a caveat.
“Yeah, but I am, too,” Campbell said. “So this is going to be good. It’s going to be fun. He’s done a great job.”
One may think that Campbell is keeping it a secret as a competitive advantage over the Eagles, but the Lions' head coach questioned whether that is really any sort of edge for his team.
“Maybe, maybe not. I don’t know,” Campbell said. “I’ll be honest with you, I’m just not quite there yet. I still have this eagerness to want to call it myself and so—man, it’s going to be—I don’t know. It’s going to be good.”
Will Campbell actually succumb to the temptation to call plays on Sunday or will Johnson, as expected, man the ship? I guess we’ll have to wait until Sunday to find out.
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