SACK ALERT: Lions Owners Isson ues a Shocking Contract Update Dan Campbell After Division Title

Dan Campbell, the Detroit Lions’ head coach, was motivated to lead the team to the NFC North championship in 2023.

The third-year head coach, who had never won more than nine games in a season before, guided the Lions to a 12-5 record and their second trip in a conference title game.

In addition to winning Detroit’s first division championship since 1993, when it was in the defunct NFC Central, Campbell also received a bonus: the reinstatement of the Lions’ black alternative uniforms, which he lobbied for after being hired again in 2021.

“We’re in the draft room literally months into his tenure, and he wore black when he was here,” Lions team president Rod Wood told reporters Thursday, according to WXYZ Detroit. “He asked, ‘Rod, when can we get our black jerseys back? I responded, ‘I’ll make a deal: if you win the division, I’ll bring the black jerseys back.’ So I made a risky move. Fortunately, he delivered. That is a true story.

The Lions revealed their new clothes for the 2024 season on Thursday. They contained Campbell’s beloved black shirts, replete with blue numbers and a silver outline, as well as a blue helmet with a black Lions insignia edged in silver.

“He loved them,” Wood explained of Campbell’s reaction. “When he was here, he wore them, and I believe they were the team’s favourite at the time, and he just kind of wished for them again. He sees it as a throwback to his playing days. I believe they have dressed up much better than when he was here. “It looks better than the silver pants we wore at the time.”

The Lions unveiled their black alternative jerseys in 2003, and Campbell wore them from 2006 to 2008. The 2024 season will be the first time Detroit wears black alternates since 2016.