The Player "Empowerment" Era Needs More Dan Campbells
On Sunday, the legend of Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell reached greater heights than ever. Not only did his team absolutely wallop the Dallas Cowboys to the tune of 47-9, but they straight-up toyed with them, running up the score with trick plays simply because they could. After losing to Dallas last year due to controversial officiating, make no mistake: the Lions were out to make a statement.
It's right on-brand for Campbell, who has become perhaps the most passionate coaching personality in the NFL and sports today. He's the type of guy who makes his own rules, and you can either take it or leave it.
From day one, when he talked about "biting kneecaps" in his introductory press conference, it's been him and his team against the world -- and most of the time, his team wins. His rhetoric is that of a man you hate if he's on the opposing sidelines but love to death if he's on yours.
Dan Campbell's Empowering Environment
Most importantly, Campbell's gunslinger mentality sends a message to his players. He expects nothing short of greatness; they deliver because they know he believes in them.
They'd run through a brick wall for him because it's clear just how much he cares and that his passion is totally authentic. He's instilled a tough-minded, strong-willed, and—perhaps in the best terms—empowering culture surrounding the Lions franchise.
In the player empowerment era of sports, no part of the game has suffered like the coaching realm. To put it bluntly, most modern HCs are not hired to be coaches. They are hired to be chaperones.
Their job is to make their players comfortable, effectively manage the game (or rather, not actively mismanage it), and give the media cliche PR-speak. They are expendable, replaceable figureheads who take all the blame when the team loses but never get credit when it wins.
That's not what coaching is. Coaching is about leadership, motivation, and building an identity that a team collectively takes on when it goes into battle. It's about being a mentor to players rather than a buddy and an ambassador for the franchise who can inspire passionate energy both in the locker room and within the fanbase. It's about—again, in the best terms—empowerment.
Can This Coaching Style Make A Comeback?
Look around the sports world today and count how many coaches—specifically, how many young coaches—exhibit the traits that Campbell exhibits. Joe Mazzulla of the Boston Celtics may be the only other one who registers.
His quirky personality, known for his witty soundbites and borderline psychotic dedication to his craft, has helped take the Celtics to the next level while endearing him to many NBA followers. Like Campbell, he is an iconic figure in the making.
Elsewhere, though? They're few and far between. There are still some holdovers left from the old guard -- Gregg Popovich is still doing his thing, someway and somehow. Andy Reid has to be considered synonymous with the Kansas City Chiefs' dynasty, even if not necessarily its defining figure. They're slightly more common in college sports: Tom Izzo, Mike Gundy, Bruce Pearl, Brian Kelly, and even the cult legend Greg Kampe. Love or hate them, all of those men exude a certain type of character in which their status commands respect.
Not even any of them come across with quite the charisma Campbell does, though, which makes him one of one. He's like a rougher, grittier, edgier Ted Lasso, someone who could be the protagonist of a Netflix series where he takes a team of underdog misfits and makes them winners. His rhetoric and philosophies harken back to beloved bench bosses like Vince Lombardi and John Madden, men whose competitive spirit embodied the heart and soul of NFL football.
Sports today need more Dan Campbells, coaches who can speak their minds and wear their emotions on their sleeves. They need leaders of men who play by their own rules while bringing passion and enthusiasm to their teams, thriving off of a mindset in which it's them against everybody.
They need tacticians who'll spend an entire game drawing up trick plays to run up the score, purely as petty revenge from being slighted against their opponent last time. They need coaches who will make their players feel strong rather than comfortable.
End Of Rant
In the age of player "empowerment," the most genuinely empowering aspect of sports has been forced to take a backseat, and it's a damn shame. Athletes like Aaron Rodgers and LeBron James, who have leveraged their superstar status to jettison teammates and coaches during tough times, are not really empowered -- they are enabled. Dan Campbell is what true empowerment looks like, and it's time that the sports world recognizes this once again.
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