NFL coach of the year candidate list doesn’t include the top option
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell should be the NFL coach of the year for the 2022 season, but he’s not even on the list. Okay, even if you want to debate that the true “winner” of coach of the year should go to someone else (we will also accept Kyle Shanahan), then at the very least Campbell should be on the list, right?
Right?
Well, he’s not.
Dan Campbell snubbed from NFL coach of the year list
The Lions and Dan Campbell finished +33 in points margin against 4/5 of the Coach of the Year finalist pic.twitter.com/bptWGnGoYk
— Honolulu Blues (@HonoluluBlues_) January 25, 2023
What is Sean McDermott even doing on this list? McDermott is a fine coach, but what did he do this season to deserve to be on this list in terms of living up to or exceeding expectations? His team was supposed to be playing this weekend at the very least. Instead, they got drubbed at home by Joey Burrow and the Bengals.
Brian Daboll did a tremendous job in year one with the Giants, no question about it. Doug Pederson took the Jaguars from having the top pick in the NFL Draft last year to winning the AFC South. A very worthy candidate.
Nick Sirianni and Kyle Shanahan coached two of arguably the best teams in the NFL, but Shanahan’s work with all of the injury issues his team had at quarterback? An absolute masterpiece.
Why is Andy Reid not on this list?
At any rate, Dan Campbell is the focus here. His Lions were expected, by most, to be bad. Even though some people fell in love with the Lions during Hard Knocks, most people expected them to be bad yet again. They weren’t.
The Lions had one of the best offenses in the league. They made a major adjustment defensively midway through the season and started playing complete team football. The only reason they didn’t make the playoffs is that the NFL has bogus seeding rules which allow every division champion to get in, even if they have a losing record (looking at you, Bucs).
Campbell’s Lions went out in Week 18 and, although they had “nothing” to play for, went out and took the Packers’ playoff hopes away from them on their home field. The Lions won nine games, which isn’t earth-shattering, but it’s the fact that Campbell has truly delivered on his promises as an NFL head coach that makes his candidacy for NFL coach of the year so strong, in my opinion.
This guy isn’t just all talk out there. He’s a great leader, a great coach, and he doesn’t just say funny things at the podium. His vision and expectations for his team are reflected in the way they’ve played and responded to him.
He’s got multiple guys on his staff getting calls from NFL teams to be their next head coach. Campbell is building something special in Detroit and deserves recognition for it.
The NFL’s not giving it to him.