Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell explained during a Tuesday appearance on Detroit sports radio station 97.1 The Ticket why he doesn’t regret what became a controversial two-point conversion try late in this past Saturday’s 20-19 loss at the Dallas Cowboys.
“I told our offense, I think I said this before, we’re going for the win,” Campbell said, as shared by Andrew Gould of The Spun. “We’re going to go down, we’re going to score, and we’re going for the two. And I wasn’t coming off of that.”
Campbell’s plan seemed to work when offensive tackle Taylor Decker caught a pass from Detroit’s Jared Goff in the end zone. However, the score was negated because referee Brad Allen questionably deemed that Decker failed to properly report as eligible before the snap.
Per The Associated Press (h/t ESPN), an offsides penalty ultimately put Detroit at the 3-yard line for the try. Campbell was directly asked Tuesday if he had second thoughts about not kicking the extra point and playing to enter an overtime period at Dallas’ AT&T Stadium following the penalty.
“No,” Campbell answered.
While speaking with reporters on Monday, Campbell insisted the 11-5 Lions will use Saturday’s disappointment “as fuel” heading into the playoffs. On Tuesday, he mentioned how the loss against a fellow postseason club could benefit Detroit.
“We got put in that moment in a big-time game where there’s no way out,” Campbell said. “We’re going to find a way to win it there at the end. They knew it, and so now we’ve been through that stress level. We’ve been through that in a big-time game, and it’s going to be good for us.”
As of late Tuesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Lions as fourth among the betting favorites at +750 odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LVIII. If nothing else, it sounds like Campbell won’t play for a tie even if a championship is on the line.
