The Lions are one of five NFL teams still looking for a new head coach after the Jacksonville Jaguars hired Urban Meyer and the New York Jets settled on Robert Saleh.
According to Nan Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, a former New York Giants tight end, is the leading rival in Detroit.
# Saints assistant head coach / TEs coach Dan Campbell is the favorite to be the new # Lions head coach, sources tell me and @ TomPelissero. No personal interview can be conducted before their season ends, so it is officially waiting until then.
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Pro Football Talk reports Campbell who was interviewed with the Lions on Monday.
Campbell has been with the Saints since 2016. Prior to that, he was the Dolphins coach from 2011-2015, spending the last 12 games of the 2015 season as Miami’s interim head coach. The Dolphins were 5-7 under Campbell. Campbell spent three seasons with the Lions from 2006-2008.
Campbell’s NFL career began in 1999 with the Giants as a draft pick of the third round by New York, number 79 overall. He played four seasons for the Giants before moving to the Dallas Cowboys and eventually the Lions. His career totals included 91 receptions for 934 yards and 11 touchdowns.
In Detroit, Campbell will replace Matt Patricia, who fired the Lions in November after being sidelined 13-29-1 in two plus seasons. The offensive coordinator of the Lions, Darrell Bevell, ended the 2020 season as interim head coach and passed 1-4 over the last five games.
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