Detroit Lions coaches couldn't enjoy the division title. And they absolutely love it.
Dave Fipp couldn't sleep, and the minute his eyes got too tired to stay awake, it felt like he was back up again.
The Detroit Lions had just beat the Minnesota Vikings on Christmas Eve to win their first division title in 30 years, but Fipp didn't have visions of sugarplums or playoff games dancing in his his head. He was still reliving the blocked extra point his protection unit gave up — and wondering what the Lions' opponent this week, the Dallas Cowboys, would do to try and take advantage of their mistake.
"I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about it," Fipp said Thursday. "I woke up, yeah, I mean, a million times you think about those plays. The negative plays stick with you much more so than any of the positive plays. In my time, we’ve made a lot of plays, too, but the ones that really stick with you the longest are all the negative plays.”
Lions players celebrated their first division title since 1993 with dancing and music and laughter. They donned championship T-shirts and hats and cried tears of joy.
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Chase Lucas went live on Instagram from the locker room during the celebration, and when Fipp's kids saw video on social media, they asked their dad why he wasn't in any of the clips.
"I was like, ‘Well, I was changing and getting ready for the next game,’" Fipp said. "And that’s just how it is. I wish I could sit in there and celebrate, but really, it’s their day anyways. I think that’s how a coach sees it, too. It’s like you’re happy for the players, you love it for them, that’s why you do it. It’s really not about you, or me, or I. It’s really more about them. And so you’re happy for them, for sure. But for you, you’re getting ready for the next thing.”
Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said he experienced a similar sensation Sunday.
The Lions hung 30 points on a Vikings defense that has been one of the stingiest in the NFL all season; only the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 2 have scored more. Jahmyr Gibbs (100 yards from scrimmage, two touchdowns) and Amon-Ra St. Brown (12 catches, 106 yards) had huge days to lead the charge.
Yet, Johnson has been mad at himself for days about his unit's inability to close out the game in four-minute offense and about his own role in the Lions' three delay-of-game penalties.
"What a big game, what a big win to seal the division like we did and you still got to the locker room and I'm over here still thinking about, 'Man, I wanted to finish the game with the football. I really wanted to seal it out that way,' and so I’m kind of kicking myself," Johnson said. "The delay of games, those are, the play caller’s got to get the call in faster and the guys will make it faster, that’s the bottom line. I know that Jared (Goff) said it’s everyone involved, but that’s on me. I’ve got to fix that and I will going forward."
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When Lions coach Dan Campbell warned his players Tuesday not to dwell on the successes they've had this season because doing so would keep them from accomplishing bigger goals, he spoke a truth that coaches at all ages and levels and experiences live.
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Fipp said he turned last week's blocked extra point — Benito Jones and James Mitchell let a rusher run free between them on the left side of the protection unit — into a teaching moment for players this week, one he hopes will help keep the Lions sharp for Dallas.
"That blocked field goal is an opportunity to talk about, ‘Hey man, you can’t let your guard down in this game,’" Fipp said. "It’s just like life. I know I say that all the time, but it is like life. And I think what happens to people is there’s — the head coach used this word with us, but complacency sometimes sets in and you think, ‘I could give maybe just a little bit less and get the same result, or the same reward, and I don’t maybe have to' — and maybe the longer I do it and the more proficient I become, like with your job or my job, maybe I don’t have to quite do that anymore. Or, ‘I deserve to not maybe have to put as much in as I used to when I was young coming up.’
"And I think this game will humble you that way and as soon as you give it a little bit less or less than your full attention at times, it’ll — you’ll pay the price for it and that’s really what we did on that field goal block."
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The Lions need a win Saturday against the Cowboys to keep their hopes alive for the No. 1 (and probably No. 2) seed in the NFC.
They've locked up a spot in the postseason and at least one home playoff game, and while the coaches who helped get them there may come to appreciate that one day, for now that doesn't matter one bit.
"It is hard to win in this league so I always keep that in the back of my head, even when things don’t go exactly as planned, and particularly in this organization, this city where it’s been a long time coming to win a division, so very happy for that," Johnson said. "But just like Coach (Campbell) said, we’re not complacent. He made that loud and clear early this week that our focus is now shifting and I think our guys are responding the right way."
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
Next up: Cowboys
Matchup: Lions (11-4) at Dallas (10-5).
Kickoff: 8:15 p.m. Saturday; AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas.
TV/radio: ABC, ESPN & ESPN2 (ManningCast); WXYT-FM (97.1).
Line: Cowboys by 6.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why Detroit Lions coaches love that they couldn't enjoy division title
