The Detroit Lions had a ton of chatter around the offense following Sunday's win over the Washington Commanders. Head coach Dan Campbell ended up taking over offensive play-calling duties, and it was a massive success, as the Lions scored 44 points, had 546 total yards of offense, and averaged 8.0 yards per play.
On Monday, Campbell revealed (h/t @colton_pouncy) that his play-calling took input from offensive coordinator John Morton, offensive line coach Hank Fraley, wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery, passing-game coordinator David Shaw, tight ends coach Tyler Roehl, and RBs coach Tashard Choice in Week 10.
Interestingly enough, Mike Payton of A to Z Sports later posted that Campbell said, "Who knows? Maybe sooner," when discussing if Morton will be calling plays next season, which caught many Lions fans' attention.
Lions Open to Having John Morton Call Plays Again
Campbell's latest quote may not be the answer Lions fans want to hear, but it shows that Campbell isn't ready to part ways with his OC. It wasn't a good look for Morton, though, as several players voiced their frustrations last week with how the offense was looking.
Instead of taking accountability for the offense's underwhelming showing against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9, Morton put the blame more on the players. That wasn't received well, and there likely were some rumblings in the locker room last week that led to Campbell taking over.
While this is a pleasant surprise for the Lions, fans shouldn't expect Morton to be leaving the Motor City. Campbell wanted to make it known that it isn't just him making all the decisions on the offensive end, and there are multiple people he's leaning on. And that includes Morton.
Even though the veteran OC has some areas where he needs to improve, the offense wasn't a complete dud under him. They still scored 30-plus points in four games when Morton dialed up the plays, showcasing that he can draw up plays that move the ball.
One of the biggest areas where they had problems was the underwhelming third-down offense. That immediately improved under Campbell, with the Lions going 5-of-10 on third down against the Commanders.
Campbell will likely continue calling plays for the Lions in a Sunday Night Football battle against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 11, but Morton's input will still be there. Whether or not he will call plays in 2025 remains to be seen, and there's definitely a chance it happens.
The biggest takeaway from Campbell's comments is that Morton will be around for the foreseeable future, but fans shouldn't be shocked if he gets full control again. He is backing his coach despite taking away play-calling duties, which is exactly the brand of football he's been building up in Detroit.
Campbell felt that was the right lever to pull at the time, and it paid off. It'll just be interesting to see how long this continues and will stay a topic of discussion among Lions fans.