The Lions are one of five NFL teams still looking for a new head coach after the Jacksonville Jaguars hired Urban Meyer and the New York Jets settled on Robert Saleh.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, a former New York Giants tight end is the leading contender in Detroit.
#Saints assistant head coach/TEs coach Dan Campbell has emerged as the favorite to be the new #Lions head coach, sources tell me and @TomPelissero. No in-person interview can be conducted until their season has ended, so it’s all on hold officially until then.
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Pro Football Talk reports Campbell interviewed with the Lions Monday.
Campbell has been with the Saints since 2016. Before that, he was the Dolphins tight ends coach from 2011-2015, spending the last 12 games of the 2015 season as Miami’s interim head coach. The Dolphins were 5-7 under Campbell. Campbell spent three seasons with the Lions as a player from 2006-2008.
Campbell’s NFL career began with the Giants in 1999 as third-round draft pick by New York, No. 79 overall. He played four seasons for the Giants, before moving on to the Dallas Cowboys and eventually the Lions. His career totals included 91 receptions for 934 yards and 11 touchdowns.
In Detroit, Campbell would replace Matt Patricia, who the Lions fired in November after going 13-29-1 in two-plus seasons on the sideline. Lions offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell finished out the 2020 season as the interim head coach, going 1-4 over the final five games.
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