Detroit's rapid turnaround has earned its most senior members some additional job security.
General manager Brad Holmes and coach Dan Campbell both agreed to contract extensions that will keep them with the Lions through the 2027 season, the team announced on Thursday. Special assistant Chris Spielman, one of the most decorated Lions in franchise history, also received an extension in his advisory role with the team.
"We are thrilled to have Brad and Dan under contract for the next four seasons," Lions owner Sheila Hamp said in a statement released by the team. "They have been the driving force behind the rebuild of our football team and the success that we have enjoyed. The continuity they provide for our football program will continue to be the key to our future success on the field."
Holmes and Campbell represent what a high-potential partnership can produce at the NFL level when all parties are aligned on vision, process and motivation. Both had to scratch and claw their way to their jobs, and neither attempt to hide how much they value their positions and the responsibility that comes with it.
Such an approach has endeared Campbell and Holmes to Detroit, where Lions fans found themselves awash in euphoria following the team's first division title since 1993, and first playoff win -- over Matthew Stafford, no less -- in 32 years. It was Holmes and Campbell who had the courage to move on from Stafford, sending him west to the Rams in exchange for Jared Goff and additional draft capital that would pay off toward Detroit's rebuilding efforts. And when it came time to spend some of that capital in the draft, Holmes and Campbell remained aligned, flouting player value rankings and choosing their guys.Â
While most criticized Detroit for overdrafting players like Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell, Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch, Holmes and Campbell trusted their guts, then reaped the rewards when they each made significant contributions. The pair looked like geniuses again when they decided to part with both D'Andre Swift and Jamaal Williams after 2022, then replaced them with Gibbs and David Montgomery and enjoyed even better production in 2023.
In relatively quick fashion, Holmes and Campbell transformed the Lions from a team that relentlessly frustrated fans and players alike, to one that entered 2023 as a favorite to win their division. They nearly exceeded greater expectations, taking a lead into the second half of the NFC Championship Game and forcing the entire football world to consider, if only for roughly 30 minutes, the prospects of a Super Bowl featuring the Detroit Lions.
Though they fell short, the future remains bright for the Lions, who have helped Goff reach new heights in his frequently scrutinized career. With Thursday's extensions, Detroit is ensuring the leadership group that pushed them here remains in place for the stretch run.
