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Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff was in favor of head coach Dan Campbell’s decision-making on fourth down despite losing to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship game.
“Love it,” Goff said, per ESPN’s Kimberley A. Martin. “Love it. Keep us out there… [As a player] it shows he believes in us.”
Campbell has shown a propensity to go for it on fourth down throughout his head coaching career, refusing to change his ways on Sunday. However, the Lions converted just one of their three fourth-down attempts and left points on the board.
Detroit blew a 17-point halftime lead, falling by the final score of 34-31. The 49ers were able to make their comeback thanks to a pair of missed fourth-down conversions by the Lions, both of which occurred in the second half while the team was in field goal range.
After San Francisco took a 27-24 lead with just under 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Goff was able to lead Detroit down to the 49ers’ 30-yard line. Instead of attempting a game-tying 48-yard field goal, Campbell decided to leave the offense on the field. Goff’s pass intended for Amon-Ra St. Brown fell incomplete, giving San Francisco the ball back.
On the 49ers’ ensuing possession, they scored a touchdown to push their lead to double digits and extinguish Detroit’s hopes of a Super Bowl appearance.
“I just felt really good about us converting and getting our momentum and not letting them play long ball,” Campbell explained to reporters after the game. “They were bleeding the clock out. That’s what they do and I wanted to get the upper hand back.”
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“I just felt really good about us converting.” – Dan Campbell on aggressive 4th down calls pic.twitter.com/ia3ZjA5qbB
“I don’t regret those decisions,” he added.
While Campbell’s aggressive mindset backfired in the NFC title game, it still helped the Lions experience their most successful season in decades. Detroit secured its first playoff win since 1992 by defeating the Los Angeles Rams in the wild card round before taking down the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the divisional round.
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