Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions. (Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports)
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell gave the game ball after his team’s first win of the season to the nearby Oxford community.
While Dan Campbell will celebrate his first win as an NFL head coach later, he dedicated the Detroit Lions‘ victory to the Oxford community and those who lost their lives in the tragic high school shooting.
Detroit was 0-10-1 entering play on Sunday. Though the Lions have been competitive in many games this season, winning a single one had been a challenge. While they had played well enough to at least get one by this point, it wasn’t until stunning the division rival Minnesota Vikings in the final seconds that the Lions notched their first W in the win column. It was big moment for sure.
However, somethings are bigger than football. Here is Campbell at the podium giving the game ball to the entire Oxford community before reading off the names of all the shooting victims.
Dan Campbell dedicates first Lions win, game ball to the Oxford victims
Even if it has been a fantastic football weekend for many Michiganders with the Wolverines making the College Football Playoff and the Lions getting their first win of the season, there is a community just outside of Detroit that is in mourning. Campbell is well aware of this and once again proves he is the perfect head coach to be leading this new era of Detroit Lions football.
Ultimately, football is just a game, and there are way more important things out there than watching two teams clash on the gridiron. Campbell might be in the business of winning games, but he has already won over the entire Lions fanbase. Wins have been an extreme premium for this year’s Lions team, but Campbell sees the bigger picture. This is how to rebuild the right way.
Campbell was pure class in dedicating the biggest win of his life to those in mourning in Oxford.