Lions Prove There's No Drop-Off After Coaching Staff Departures

The perceived narrative surrounding the Lions’ hiring of offensive coordinator John Morton reached peak absurdity when he was criticized for wanting to move on from the ugly Week 1 loss to the Packers.

“From the Packers [game]?” Morton said after being asked about the red zone issues in Green Bay. “Can we move on from that game? Yeah, let’s move on.”

“Scared to compete” was what The CoachSpeak Index said, a humorous social media account designed to decipher what coaches say at the podium to help fantasy football managers make better decisions with their lineups. But most of the comments on that post didn’t take it as a joke. They seemed pretty sure that the Lions were doomed for making a so-called uninspiring hire to replace Ben Johnson as the offensive play-caller.

The downfall of the Lions was written well before the 2025 season started, but as Amon-Ra St. Brown said on a hot mic Monday night after scoring a touchdown in Baltimore, he and his teammates are still running things. More importantly, so is coach Dan Campbell, who’s still just as gutsy as ever, calling for a successful fourth-down conversion that began to put away the mighty Ravens in Detroit’s 38–30 statement victory.

It’s now become clear what Morton, the competitor, meant when he said he wanted to move on from the Green Bay game. He was just itching for the next game to arrive to prove he and his unit were a lot better than what they showed in the season opener. I get that calling someone a competitor isn’t as good as being labeled as an offensive genius, but Morton has only called three games in Detroit: one stinker and two electrifying performances, including 52 points on the Bears in front of his predecessor.

The Lions’ offense was better than the Ravens’ offense, which has been regarded as one of the best units in the league the past few seasons. Detroit stopped being viewed in the same light the moment Johnson accepted the Bears’ head-coaching job. Suddenly, the Lions weren’t going to be able to execute trick plays or run the ball efficiently or block properly—or at least that’s what was deciphered based on Detroit’s offseason departures.

But all those strengths showed up in a big way in Baltimore, especially when David Montgomery (12 carries for 151 yards and 2 TDs) galloped for a career-high 72-yard run behind a new-look offensive line. His 31-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter gave the Lions a 14-point advantage.

There’s been no downfall since Johnson left and All-Pro center Frank Ragnow after he sustained a season-ending injury in June. Detroit GM Brad Holmes is still around to build stout trenches. The offensive line hasn’t missed a beat with new starting guards Christian Mahogany, a 2024 sixth-round pick, and Tate Ratledge, this year’s second-round pick.

Defensive regression was also expected in Detroit when former defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn stepped down to take the Jets’ head coaching job. But new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard was certainly pleased after his unit forced Derrick Henry into a fumble, or whenever this stacked defense knocked Lamar Jackson backward. Detroit generated 426 total yards and held Baltimore to 318 total yards.

The 37-year-old Sheppard is much younger than the 55-year-old Morton, but not many were quick to call him a wunderkind. Funny how these labels quickly stick to coaches and how many résumés get overlooked. But I get it. It’s too soon to put labels on new coordinators after only three games.

With the Lions winning two straight after dropping their season opener, maybe it’s time to stop ignoring that Morton helped Broncos coach Sean Payton produce a proper development plan for a rookie Bo Nix last year as Denver’s pass game coordinator. Or that Johnson reportedly wanted to hire Morton for his coaching staff in Chicago. Let’s also stop overlooking that both Morton and Sheppard had prior experience working with Campbell, because these Lions still operate in a similar fashion as when Johnson and Glenn were calling plays.

Maybe it’s better to just wait for the downfall before we rush to conclusions, because that doesn’t seem to be happening in Detroit. Perhaps the negative narratives should follow the 1–2 Ravens, who seem to always get the benefit of the doubt whenever significant changes occur. That’s the luxury Ravens coach John Harbaugh gets for winning a Super Bowl and constantly fielding playoff teams. But it’s time Campbell starts getting some of those benefits.

The Lions have won just as much as the Mr Ravens and Bills since Campbell and Holmes arrived in 2021. They’ve drafted just as well as the Rams, Eagles and Chiefs. But, somehow, critics forgot that the Lions were still loaded with talent.

And maybe, just maybe, Jared Goff reminded the football public what the Lions are capable of after floating a perfect pass to St. Brown on fourth-and-3 with the game on the line. It’s safe to say skeptical minds were refreshed Monday night.