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AIPROPX ReportYahoo Sports · 1h ago
Dan Campbell Explains Major Lions Camp Change
For the first time in the Dan Campbell era, the Detroit Lions opened training camp’s full-pads portion without sending players crashing to the ground during their familiar one-on-one tackling drill.
The drill remained. The physicality did not disappear.
Campbell simply changed how quickly Detroit reached it.
Instead of full live tackling during Monday’s first padded practice, the Lions used two-hand touch. Campbell said the decision was designed to let players regain their technique before the collisions become real.
“Let’s just do it to where these guys get a feel,” Campbell said to Jeremy Reisman of Pride of Detroit. “It’s crazy how you saw that drill under control and all this.”
The shift may seem surprising from a coach who has built Detroit’s identity around toughness. Look closer, and it feels less like Campbell backing away from contact and more like him refining how the Lions prepare for it.
Lions Wanted Better Technique Before Full Contact
Campbell has long considered tackling a skill that must be practiced.
During the Lions’ appearance on “Hard Knocks” in 2022, he explained that Detroit could not expect its defense to pursue and tackle properly during the regular season without rehearsing those fundamentals during camp.
His belief has not changed.
What changed was the timing.
When players are finally allowed to put on full pads, the excitement can overwhelm the technique. Defenders charge downhill. Ball carriers lower their shoulders. A controlled drill can quickly turn into two players trying to prove who is tougher.
That is not what Campbell wants from the opening session.
“Let’s just fundamentally, let’s go through it a couple times,” Campbell said.
The Lions used Monday’s drill to work through angles, footwork, balance and body position without taking runners completely to the ground. Full tackling will come once the players have settled back into football shape.
That is coaching, not caution for caution’s sake.
Two-Hand Touch Allowed More Lions to Participate
The adjustment also gave Detroit access to players who might otherwise have watched the drill.
Campbell has held certain players out of live tackling periods in previous camps, particularly explosive offensive weapons whose injury risk outweighed the value of a handful of collisions.
Removing the takedown component allowed those players to join the work.
“There were some guys I held out of that drill last year,” Campbell said. “And that are, they have got some juice, and they got some cuts, and they got some…
“So, by not doing it live, you get them and keep them in the drill, which works the tackler a little bit.”
That creates value on both sides.
Ball carriers can practice setting up defenders and making decisive cuts. Defenders must react to NFL-level speed and movement instead of tackling a limited group of runners selected mainly because they can absorb contact.
Detroit still gets the competitive rep. It simply removes the final collision.
Recent Injuries Add Context to Campbell’s Decision
The Lions have already dealt with several injuries during the opening stretch of camp.
Tight end Anthony Firkser suffered a broken fibula during Monday’s padded practice and was placed on injured reserve. Sione Vaki broke his nose, while Miles Kitselman, Jimmy Rolder and others have also missed time with injuries.
Campbell made his tackling decision before those injuries occurred, so it would be wrong to frame the change as a reaction to Monday’s medical news.
The developments still reinforce the challenge every NFL coach faces in August.
Players need enough physical work to prepare their bodies for the regular season. Too much too soon can cost a team valuable contributors before the games count.
Campbell is trying to locate the narrow strip between those two outcomes.
This Is Part of a Broader Lions Camp Reset
Detroit has changed several pieces of its preparation this year.
The Lions adjusted portions of their spring schedule, declined to hold joint practices and may give starters more preseason work than they have received in recent years. Campbell said the team felt it could accomplish more by practicing against itself rather than spending days working against another organization.
The controlled tackling drill fits that larger approach.
Detroit is not eliminating hard work. It is attempting to make each period more useful.
Without joint practices, the Lions control the tempo, matchups and physicality of every rep. They can build toward live tackling rather than turning the first padded session into an uncontrolled collision course.
Campbell’s teams have never lacked intensity. Sometimes the harder coaching challenge is teaching players when to dial it back.
Live Tackling Is Still Coming
Anyone worried that the Lions have gone soft can relax.
Campbell made it clear that Monday’s two-hand-touch approach was only the first step.
“We will get to that drill and do it live for you, Jeremy,” Campbell said. “It is coming, my friend. I’m telling you.”
There it is.
Detroit will still tackle. Players will still hit the ground. Campbell still believes defenders must practice finishing plays before they are asked to do it against New Orleans in Week 1.
The Lions are simply building toward that moment differently.
Bottom Line
Dan Campbell did not remove live tackling from Detroit Lions training camp.
He delayed it.
By opening with two-hand touch, the Lions were able to emphasize proper technique, involve more offensive players and prevent an early-camp drill from becoming reckless. Once the fundamentals sharpen, Campbell plans to turn the contact loose.
That is not a retreat from Detroit’s physical identity.
It is an attempt to make that identity safer, smarter and more effective when the real tackling begins.
Dan CampbellDetroit LionsCampbellDetroitInsteadMonday’sLionsLet’sJeremy ReismanPrideIt’sDetroit’s
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