With the Lions at 1-5 and just 4-18-1 since General Manager Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell took over the team’s football operation, owner Sheila Ford Hamp talked to reporters on Wednesday to state her confidence in the current regime.
At this point, it sounds like Holmes and Campbell aren’t in any danger of being replaced.
“We’ve got a long way to go in this season. I wanted to talk to you guys because I know — really, talking to you, talking to the fans — everyone’s frustrated. I’m frustrated,” Hamp said, via video from Brad Galli of WXYZ Detroit. “But, again, I really believe in what we’ve got and what we’re going to be. It just takes time.”
Hamp noted that the team’s youth, while not an excuse, is a reason why on-field mistakes have been made that have cost the Lions games.
“Hopefully, we’re not going to repeat those. Hopefully, we learn,” Hamp said. “But it is a process and that’s what it is. It’s hard. And it’s really hard to stay disciplined. No one hates losing more than I do, than my family does. But we’ve got to sort of gut through it.”
Hamp took over as the principal owner of the Lions in the summer of 2020. After dismissing former G.M. Bob Quinn and former head coach Matt Patricia in Nov. 2020, she hired Holmes and Campbell to lead the team.
“This, I would say, was like a tear down and then a rebuild,” Hamp said. “We really had to take it down to the ground level. And it’s been not only the football side, but across the organization — we’ve put in a lot of new talent at the top. I really believe in the top leadership in this organization and I think we’ve got the people to do it, to carry this out. I think that’s what’s different.”
When asked directly if jobs were in jeopardy this season, Hamp said, “I believe in the leadership.”
“What I really have confidence in is the process we went through in the first place when we hired Brad and Dan,” Hamp said. “It was extremely thorough and we really believe we’ve come up with the right people. So, I can’t comment on other teams rosters or what they had in the first place. All I know is what we had and where we’re going.”
The Lions have shown some progress this season, but still have the league’s worst defense — ranking last in points allowed and yards allowed. The club will take on the Dolphins at home this weekend.