The Lions finally broke a 32 year playoff curse

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ChumbaCasino.com. Uh, Dan Miller is the voice of the Lions. That much I know. A long time ago, in a different life, Dan and I used to hang out in the early morning hours on the radio. He is now the voice of the Lions. He has advanced in his career much further than I have.

And he joins us on the Adam Gold Show. You, sir, did a playoff game in which the Lions won. It's been 33 years, 32 seasons. And since somebody has been able to say that, that had to be an absolute thrill.

How you doing? Well, I'm good, A.G. Yeah, man, it was great. And, um, it had been 30 years since they got a playoff game at home. And they had never had a home playoff game inside Ford Field, and the building's been open for more than two decades. So, uh, there was a lot of pent up emotion in that building on Sunday night, and it was an amazing scene. And, you know, I've been lucky enough to see some big events and feel some big crowds, and that was unlike anything I'd seen. It was, and I knew it would be, because I know what these fans are like.

I know what the acoustics in that building are like. And, uh, it was, it was a really special night. And, and honestly, it was a win they had to have. You lose that game, uh, you're still headed in the right direction, but it just doesn't feel the same.

And they got it done. So, how much did it add to the situation that Matthew Stafford, who, he did not leave on, I mean, I'm just looking at it from outside. I don't believe he left on bad terms. I think there is still a fair amount of love both ways between Stafford and the Lions, or am I reading that wrong?

No, you're reading it right. Um, I think when Matthew left, I think people understood that it had run its course, and he was just looking for another opportunity to close his career. And the Lions were headed for a full rebuild.

Right. Um, you know, it probably has gone a little quicker than people thought and certainly better than a whole lot of rebuilds we've been through before here. But, uh, no, no bad feelings, but it was just, look, that, that storyline, once it became established a week before the game, it just became Stafford, golf, golf, Stafford, Stafford, golf, golf, Stafford, to the point where once that game began, I mean, fans were chanting Jared Goff's name in the stands and it, and it became something of the beginning of the week, people were talking about Stafford and his time here. And then all of a sudden it was like, and I even treated this, I said, look, our guy wears 16, that guy plays for the other side.

There's no ill feelings, but there's also no confusion. And it wasn't a night to feel all warm and fuzzy about what had happened when Stafford was here. It was a night to win a playoff game. And Stafford got booed lustily when he came out, but there's, these are not people that dislike him. These are people just taking note of the fact that he plays for the other team. And if this had been a regular season game, I think you would have seen a much different scene. This, this was just a huge night for the lions, for Detroit, for lions fans everywhere. And I thought, I think you just saw the raw emotion come out at that point. I want to get into a bigger picture conversation with you about head coach Dan Campbell in a second.

But I am, I am curious about this. I know he downplayed it, but Goff downplayed the opponent because more than Stafford, it was Goff who was really given up on by Sean McVeigh. McVeigh had decided that I can't do what I want to do with Jared Goff. I need an upgrade, which is the whole impetus for that trade. Deep down, doesn't Goff have to be like about a half foot taller today?

Um, couple of things. One, there is no doubt. This was a bigger game for golf and the lions, the lions, because they hadn't won a playoff game since January 5th, 1992 and golf because of everything you just described. Look, the Rams won their Superbowl.

That trade worked for them and not that a playoff game isn't a big deal for them, but I'm just telling you, it was bigger for the lions and the big picture. And I sat down with golf yesterday and I told him, I said, Jared, I'm going to make a statement and give you an opinion. I'm not going to ask you a question. I said. This was a big moment for you. And this is a moment that gives you closure because they traded you. You came here, they won.

You did nothing but lose for a while. And now you've got an opportunity to go back at them. And if you don't win, that whole probably just gets bigger. And if you do win, you're able to just say, you know what? They got theirs.

I got mine. I'm at peace and I'm moving forward. And while you didn't give me everything in his heart, he did say, yeah, there's no doubt. This meant a little bit more and it meant something and I'm paraphrasing here in any, and then he put team and city first, but he did give me that there's no doubt that, that there was some measure of closure for him in this game.

And then it did mean a little bit more. So Adam extrapolate that out to what he really feels. There's no doubt in the world that Jared golf, whom I know to be a incredible competitor.

You have to be to even be in this league to begin with, wanted to do nothing but beat that team. And believe me, we can all sit here as humans with emotions and understand the difference of waking up the next day with a win and peace or a loss and the feeling that, you know, dad gone it, they got me again and he woke up feeling better about things and I'm, I'm thrilled for him because I know what he's been through and I've watched him deal with it. And he's a pros pro and it was a big night for him. Dan Miller is the voice of the Detroit lions. You can also, if you're for people, if we have a lot of people here from Detroit at Dan Miller, Fox two on Twitter. I'm going to draw a comparison between Dan Campbell and our coach of the Carolina hurricanes, rod Brenda more in that while I am not in any way diminishing their ability as coaches to scheme and all of that. I think their biggest skill is how they demonstrate how they care about the players in their locker room and how they get their players to care about the cause. Because while I don't know, Dan Campbell's coaching acumen, I do know that it's apparent that that team plays with a great deal of care for each other and for the fans they represent.

Because I see it every day here with rod Brenda more in the hurricanes where they are playing for something bigger than just, you know, what they go out and try to win a hockey game. The pack therapy podcast is in session. Tim Donnelly here, host of the drive in your guide for pack therapy. Every episode is your chance to score inside information on the pack. We set you up for Wolfpack games all season long and we break down the ACC competition. What to watch for as we roll towards the tournament madness. Plus special guests to keep your Wolfpack hope alive. Follow pack therapy wherever you discover your favorite podcasts or watch it on YouTube.

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No purchase necessary. Yeah, there's no doubt. Look, I've been through a lot of coaches in 27 years in Detroit and not just this sport, other sports as well. And I don't know if I have found one that resonates with the players as much as Dan Campbell. I don't think I have Jim Leland, but probably Jim Leland's right up there. Guys like that just endear themselves to players to the point where the players don't want to disappoint them.

They want to do anything they ask them to do, and they know how to pull a team together. Dan Campbell was doubted by a lot of people and frankly made fun of by a lot of people when they got the job. He was asked about that yesterday and he said, I've got all the receipts.

This just isn't the time to hand them out. And it got personal in in many cases where people basically inferred that he was dumb and that that wasn't cool. And that that shows that people don't know him because he's not. He's a really smart guy. He is just somebody that is relatable. He doesn't carry himself like he's better than anybody else. He is the same guy all the time. There's an amazing consistency to him. I've never one time in hundreds of press conferences seen him get upset with a question and fire back at somebody. He just handles himself well, and he he has a wonderful ability with this team to just always set the tone and put them in the right frame of mind.

We haven't lost two games in a row since October 30th of last year. I don't know how many NFL teams can say that it's because he's constantly got this team ready to go. No, look, we've gotten our hat handed to us a couple times, but he always hasn't bouncing back. And he just he's got control of that room. The players love him. He's smart. He surrounds himself with smart people. And I can't say enough about him as a person and that's where it starts. But then him as a coach as well, because he's done things that we haven't seen anybody do here in a long time. And he gives you a feeling that this thing is built on a firm foundation and it's going to be around for a while. And they're doing it the way you're supposed to do it. And I just he's the easiest guy in the world to root for because of who he is.

And it's a pleasure to work with him as much as I do. Dan Miller, before we let you go, voice of the Detroit Lions. It was the only close game and it was the only one that was in doubt, really, until the basically the last few snaps of the football. How do we how do you avoid the Lions avoid that being the high watermark?

Yeah, I'd go back to what I said about Campbell and just his ability to reset this team. And look. What you're saying isn't out of the realm of possibility because there was such a feeling in the city of finally we did it and exhale. But very quickly, you've got to turn around and get ready for your next challenge. And I think you'll have them ready for that. There's no doubt in my mind. These guys now know.

Look, there's great possibilities out there. Not that they avoided a trip to Dallas, which is what it looked like we were going to end up with. And now they're back home. And this home crowd will not let them down.

And it will be another amazing electric atmosphere. And they've got to go out and play. And you know, they know what it takes to win. They've won 13 games this year, including that last one.

So I have no doubt he'll have them in the right frame of mind. And this team understands what it takes. Can't guarantee anything about the outcome because I think Tampa Bay is hot right now. They're battle tested. They had to fight to win the division.

They've won six out of seven coming in here. And it's going to be a heck of a game. And maybe it comes down to between these two quarterbacks, two one ones back in their day.

You know who makes the mistake and who maybe gives the other team a possession or scores points off their defense or something like that. And it's I think it should be a heck of a football game. We played them earlier this year. We beat them 20 to six down there. I have no doubt they're a better team now. And they'll bring that on Sunday. Yeah. And their wide receivers right now are playing at the highest possible level.

They are loaded at that position. It should be an absolute blast. Dan, I appreciate your time always, sir. Good luck. I hope we get a chance to keep talking to you. Appreciate it. Always a pleasure. You got it. Dan Miller here on the Adam Gold show. Hello, it is Ryan. And we could all use an extra bright spot in our day, couldn't we?

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