Dan Campbell has changed the NFL.
'Those guys go for it every play': 49ers' Fred Warner praises NFC head coach with aggressiveness joke originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The NFL's Week 5 wrapped up last night with Monday Night Football, and one of the most entertaining alternative broadcasts has become the "Manningcast," featuring Peyton and Eli Manning, and special guests.
On last night's "Manningcast," San Francisco 49ers' star linebacker Fred Warner joined the show as a special guest and provided some funny entertainment.
Warner got on the topic of fourth downs and going for it, and the star linebacker threw some jokes in the direction of Lions' coach Dan Campbell.
Warner Throws Shady Praise at Dan Campbell
Everyone knows Campbell loves to go for it on fourth down, but since Campbell took over as the Lions' coach in 2021, Warner believes Campbell is changing the game.
"Dan Campbell and the Lions were the worst thing to happen to football," Warner said. "I'm just kidding. Those guys go for it every play, so it's like now teams are like 'Man, that's actually not a bad idea. How about we go for it?' So you do expect them to go for it all the time."
.@fred_warner is always expecting teams to just go for it 😅
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) October 7, 2025
"Dan Campbell and the Lions were the worst thing to happen ... Nah, I'm just kidding." pic.twitter.com/n8PeQ4FIbM
Through just five games in 2025, the Lions have gone for it on nine of their 37 first downs, which adds up to 24.3 percent of the time. Similarly, Warner's 49ers have gone for it on eight of their 38 fourth downs.
Both teams have succeeded over 75 percent of the time, so it seems to be working.
This day in age in the NFL, and college football as well, it seems like as soon as a team crosses midfield, if they get into fourth and three or less, it's not even a decision. They're going for it.
#Lions HC Dan Campbell told his team before Week 14 vs the #Packers they were going on 4th down every time.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 10, 2025
“We’re f****** going. Four downs up and down the field.
They went 4/5 and won 34-31.
Dan Campbell makes you want to run through a brick wall. pic.twitter.com/Kcp5WXF73N
While there's other factors involved, Campbell has played a big role in that shift. When he took over as the Lions coach, his offensive aggressiveness was marveled at, and questioned often.
However, Campbell began to find success with his approach, and it formed an identity in Detroit. Now, more and more teams are willing to go that avenue because of the reward reaped from the risk.
Category: Football
