NFC Notes: Dan Campbell, Kevin O’Connell, Lions, Packers, Vikings

Lions

Lions HC Dan Campbell admits that the team hasn’t played their best football recently but has no problem in also admitting that he is a fan of the mounting adversity Detroit faces with six games left to go in the season. 

“I love this,” Campbell said Monday, via The Athletic’s Colton Pouncy. “I’m serious. I love this and I love that, man, it’s doom and gloom outside our building. We’ve got six to go, we’ve got an unbelievable opportunity, and man, I love it. I really do, man.”

“I went back and after watching it, I’m actually more encouraged because, to me, it’s not what it appears to be,” Campbell said of the team’s loss to Green Bay. “It’s turnovers. … (We gave) up four against Chicago, three against Green Bay and (have) only gotten one back. That’s the major issue right now. So, we can talk about all these other things, but until we clean that up, the other parts of this are a little bit irrelevant. This is (when) we find out what we’re made of — and, really, everybody in this league, for that matter. There are teams that will begin to rise and teams that will fall out of this. And I love our team. I love where we’re at. I know the guys that we have in the locker room, I know these coaches, so this will be good.”

Lions QB Jared Goff also weighed in on the team’s situation following a one-score loss to the rival Packers in Week 12.

“We’ve had some success up to this point,” Goff mentioned. “We’re 8-3 … teams are going to give us their best shot. We’re leading our division. This is a divisional opponent. They came in ready to play and did a great job. I don’t know if it changes how we approach the game. We’re still hunting a whole lot. We’re still hunting first overall in our division and then whatever we can get after that. But, yeah, it’s a long road ahead and we’d like to still be on the offense of hunting what we’re trying to get.”

• According to Aaron Wilson, the Lions hosted Tom Kennedy for a visit.

Packers

Packers second-round WR Jayden Reed has had a standout season so far in his first year, drawing praise from both HC Matt Lafleur and QB Jordan Love for his preparedness and abilities.

Reed also mentioned that he isn’t concerned about the fact that he was overlooked by some teams and wasn’t selected in the first round of the draft.

“I don’t really look at that, nah,” Reed told Matt Schneidman of The Athletic on Monday. “I just think everything happens for a reason. Everybody gets put in a certain position, certain place for a reason. I’m just grateful for where I got drafted. I honestly didn’t think I was gonna go as high, but I did. Thank the lord and my hard work has paid off. I’m not a hater in any sort of way. Some people can do that, but I just don’t think that’s gonna help me focus on what I need to get better at, so I don’t really pay attention to that.”

“I think the numbers are more reflective of him making the most out of his opportunities because you never quite know where the ball’s going to go and just a lot of it is coverage-dependent, and when it’s came his way, he’s made plays,” LaFleur said of Reed. “I just think with experience, naturally, it happens for most and he’s a talented guy … it means a lot to him and I just really love his mentality. I think he’s wired the right way mentally in terms of just how he attacks it. Not that it’s always going to be perfect, but when he does make a mistake, there’s no flinch to him. He just keeps it moving and he doesn’t get rattled. He doesn’t allow one play to affect the next and we expect him to continue to grow and develop.”

“It was right away,” Love said of his chemistry with Reed. “He came into camp and you could tell what kind of player he was. And then obviously just how he stacks his days, continues to work. He’s eager to learn and grow every day and now he’s just going out there and playing, playing free, playing fast and he’s making plays. He’s playing at a high level right now.”

Vikings

Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell revealed that the team will consider all three of their quarterbacks this week following a down performance from QB Joshua Dobbs, as QB Nick Mullens is back on the active roster, and rookie QB Jaren Hall cleared concussion protocol last week.

“We’re going to take a look and really evaluate the inventory of plays we have of Josh,” O’Connell said, via Kevin Seifert of ESPN. “We got healthy. We got Jaren back available to us, and then Nick Mullens is available as well.”

“I acknowledge [the interceptions], man,” Dobbs said of his frustrating Week 12 performance. “I’m frustrated with myself because it starts with me. I’ll be better from it. I’ll learn from every single one of them tonight, and we’ll use it to build momentum into the next opportunity.”

“Honestly, I think that’s a coaching decision,” Dobbs added. “I just focus on myself. Focus on how I can help this team win. Focus on how I can be a better teammate, a better quarterback and focus on how I can make sure the offense is in the right play based on the scenario to go out and execute.”