Pressers and scrums: Dan Campbell shares how he's improved and which safety is Brian Branch studying?

Allen Park — Last week, I received an email from a reader with a bunch of questions they wanted me to ask Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell. Not that any of them were bad, but many were big-picture philosophy queries that wouldn’t organically fit into the flow of a day-to-day press conference.

But as these emails often do, it got me thinking about the topic of Campbell’s growth as a coach during his three-plus years at the helm. This week, he’s often talked about his staff’s desire to see steady improvement from individual players, so with that in mind, I asked Campbell where he’s seen personal growth, even throwing in the coach’s signature hand gesture to symbolize improvement.

I found Campbell's answer interesting and informative. He said his biggest area of growth is his ever-expanding understanding of situational football, which is an area of emphasis with the team’s offseason (and likely regular season) practice routine.

“That’s why I try to keep those (situations we practice) as fresh as possible, and you try to fabricate as many difficult decisions that you can put your team in, and yourself,” Campbell said. “…You get in the middle of those and the players need to live it — (backup quarterback Hendon) Hooker needs to live it, I need to live it, (offensive coordinator) Ben (Johnson) needs to live it. And those make you better.

“So as many of those as you can fabricate, I think it makes you a much sharper, much more prepared coach.”

As a coach, nothing gets put more under a microscope than how you manage the clock and handle situational decisions. It’s no secret Campbell is one of the NFL’s most-aggressive coaches. Between the special teams fakes and regularly going for it on fourth down, all while leaning on his gut as much as the analytics, consistently opens himself up to criticism.

But what people don’t understand is how much thought and preparation go into those decisions long before they’re made. I followed up, asking Campbell how his process for making those in-game decisions has evolved since taking the helm in 2021.

As he’s done in the past, Campbell shared credit the team’s lead football counsel, Jon Dykema, for his role before, after and during games.

“He gets the eye in the booth, before I do, and so I've got to rely on him on some things,” Campbell said. “We worked together, really the first time was 2022. We had to get through some rough spots and now we flow pretty well. …He knows exactly what my thought process is.”

In addition to providing immediate input during a game, Dykema compiles postgame reports of every decision the Lions faced that week, noting the situation and time on the clock. The two then analyze what went right and where the coach can be better.

But just like all things in football, the biggest factor with improvement is repetition.

“I just think when you do those over a certain amount of time, you get better,” Campbell said.

● Speaking of gradual improvement, I checked in on how Campbell feels defensive tackle Brodric Martin has developed during his second offseason. To this lesser-trained eye, the former third-round pick has been flashing more frequnetly, both in practice and the preseason games.

“When it’s good, it’s good, and then when it’s not, it can be glaring,” Campbell said. “And so it’s just that consistency of it. The good news is that he can get in there, use his wing(span), strike blocks. He’s strong, he’s physical, and then it’s just a matter of doing it over and over and over. He’s got to be able to just do a yeoman’s job, play in, play out.

“Look it’s a thankless job, it’s selfless,” Campbell continued. “You’re in for the long haul when you play that position, the nose tackle. But he has grown, he’s gotten better, and that’s ultimately what you’re looking for.”

The comments are about what we’ve come to expect from Campbell. He’s not going to hand out over-the-top praise to a player not yet deserving. But the team is clearly encouraged by Martin’s progress.

How much last year's third-round pick will see the field to start this season will likely be determined by how quickly DJ Reader is ready to go. As of now, veteran Kyle Peko is looking like the primary fill-in for Reader’s reps, while Martin has a good chance of scooping up the scraps in the early-season rotation.

● For Georgia fans and the family members of quarterback Jake Fromm who were hoping to see the former Bulldog in the preseason finale, don’t get your hopes up.

“That’s tough, because we haven’t really gotten to see much of him,” Campbell said. “When we brought him in, it was dependent on when Hooker can or can’t come back (from his concussion earlier this month).

“I don’t anticipate really getting to see him,” Campbell said. “I don’t want to say absolutely not, but I think the priority (against Pittsburgh) will be Hooker, and I think we need to get Nate (Sudfeld) some reps. Then we’ll see what’s there with Fromm.”

Our of curiosity, I looked up how much Fromm would earn as a short-term insurance option for the Lions. The 2024 training camp salary for veteran players is $3,200 per week, so he’ll get double that after signing on the 12th.

That’s not a lot, relative to NFL salaries, but not too shabby for a couple weeks of minimal work. Of course, I imagine he’d take less if he got a chance to put down some tape against Pittsburgh.

● Behind the scenes, the Lions have been running their annual rookie talent show. According to Sports Illustrated’s John Maakaron, running back Sione Vaki wowed teammates with his singing.

Campbell, doing his best Simon Cowell impression, tempered the enthusiasm.

“Well, I don't know if it's the best performance, but as far as the best voice that I've heard, probably, it's up there,” Campbell said. “Now, (rookie defensive lineman Isaac) Ukwu has got a damn good voice too, all right. They may be singing a duet today after practice.

“(Vaki's) performance was, ‘Meh,’” Campbell said. “The voice, it was pretty phenomenal. It really is. So maybe he'll sing for you guys sometime. You need to ask him.” 

Well, guess what? We did. And damn, voice of an angel. I guess Vaki just didn’t bowl his coach over with his stage presence.

● Brian Branch prepared for his shift to safety through extensive film study, even more than usual for the former Alabama standout. And he’s been watching one NFL safety closer than others: Atlanta’s Jesse Bates III.

“You can tell he be in the film room, just how his instincts are and just how cerebral of a player he is,” Branch said.

It’s almost too perfect. Like Branch, Bates is both a playmaker and underrated. A two-time, second-team All-Pro, he intercepted a career-high six passes in his first year with the Falcons, while also establishing a new personal best with three forced fumbles.

Branch has shown a knack for popping the ball free from his teammates' grasp this camp, jarring one out of the hands of Jameson Williams earlier this week.

“Just seeing how the receiver holds the ball, there’s a tell to it,” Branch said. “And AG (defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn) is always preaching ‘punch at the ball.’ So just create habits and hopefully I can do it in the game.”