Was going for it on 4th down the center of the Lions’ collapse? | Sunday Night Blitz
Yahoo Sports’ Jason Fitz and Frank Schwab discuss Detroit head coach Dan Campbell’s decision to go for it on 4th down instead of kicking a field goal twice in the Lions’ 34-31 loss to the 49ers in the NFC title game. Hear the full conversation on “Sunday Night Blitz” - part of the “Zero Blitz” podcast - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.
Video Transcript
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FRANK SCHWAB: Being an analytics guy, I enjoy analytics, but I do also understand taking the points sometimes. I-- we just need to get into this, Fitz? What did you think? Because, Fitz-- Campbell passed on a field goal later in the fourth quarter. They passed on six points there, really made a difference at the end of the game. I noticed Dan Campbell's way, and this is how I'm playing, and nobody's going to tell me differently, and I'm going for it on fourth down more than every other NFL coach. But it just felt like at that point in the game, when you're up 14 points, take the field goal, Dan.
JASON FITZ: I hated it. I hated it and I hated it for a couple of reasons. One, late in the first half, what did they do? As time was expiring in the first half from, what, the 2-yard line, they took the points to made it a three possession game, which told you, hey, we want to stay up by three possessions. Then in the second half, to your point, they have two opportunities to do it. And I think the key number here is five. That's how many first downs they had. Like analytics are great, but you still have to turn around and understand the flow of the game.
If your offense is getting absolutely nothing done and you are in field goal range, you can't just look at it and say, well, the analytics say to go here. OK, do the analytics know that your offense is completely lost all of its life in the second half? Do the analytics at that point know that you're no longer seeming to be able to run the football the way you were? Do the analytics know that you have stalled? And there has to be a point from the coaches sideline that you stop with just the numbers and say, hey, what's the feel of the game say? Like, I don't want coaches to coach tight. But if the feel of the game is tight, then take the damn points because you lose this game by three points. And everything-- once you start chasing points, everything is different.
And you're right, I thought that it was all of it. Like, it's Campbell not taking the points. It's the drops that started to make it feel tight. It was the fumble that was absolutely asinine. It was the moment going down and having the opportunity to down a punt at the 1-yard line and stupidly having your foot on the end zone line. These were all examples of the Lions feeling tight. And if you feel tight, you got to take the points just to give everybody a little bit more breathing room. I thought that was a moment where Dan Campbell lost sight of what he was seeing and instead was just, hey, this is our personality. And you can't just be that black and white with it.
FRANK SCHWAB: I think Campbell at some point, kind of, gets caught up in the whole this is our identity and we have to be this identity. Well, you know what, you've never been up by 14 points in an NFC Championship game before either. What's the feel of the game? How this going to feel if you miss it? How's it going to feel if you make it. And I at that moment Dan Campbell is just a prisoner of this is who I am, this is what I have to do. No, you really don't, like, every situation could be different. And I think in this situation kicking the-- kicking a field goal there would have been just fine. And that's again something they're going to regret, and think about, and go over until we play football again in early September. And that's a tough, tough offseason for the Lions, and their fans, and Dan Campbell too.