PHOENIX – When Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell decided to move on from offensive coordinator John Morton following the season, Drew Petzing was a coach Campbell wanted to talk to right away for the job.
It wasn't because Petzing and Campbell have a long coaching history together. In fact, they've never coached on the same staff. Campbell wanted to talk to Petzing because he had gained a respect for Petzing's offenses in Arizona the last three seasons after studying them on the crossover opponent tape.
"The first thing that drew me to him was his tape," Campbell said this week at the Annual League Meetings. "Anytime we had crossover tape I love what they did offensively. I loved the fact that when you really watch his tape, he's about the matchups, man, and he's finding them wherever he can find them."
Petzing joins the Lions after spending the previous three seasons as the Cardinals' OC. Over his three seasons leading Arizona's offense, the Cardinals ranked second in the NFL in rushing average (4.92) and were ninth in rushing yards (6,399). Petzing has earned a reputation as a versatile and creative offensive mind who can adapt his offense and find advantageous matchups based on available personnel.
The Cardinals dealt with injuries at running back, quarterback and wide receiver last year so Petzing utilized more 12 and 13 personnel to create favorable matchups. Cardinals TE Trey McBride was named First-Team All-Pro in 2025 after leading all tight ends in receptions (126) and receiving yards (1,239) while tying for the most receiving touchdowns (11). McBride's 126 receptions established a single-season NFL record for tight ends.
"They had some injuries. They were limited in some areas," Campbell said of Arizona's offensive personnel in 2025. "And I thought he maximized what they had and what they did.
"When you listen to him and you sit down with him and you listen to him talk, he understands quarterback play, he understands tight ends, he understands O-line, he understands receivers because he's coached all of those. So, he can coach it from the ground up."
Petzing inherits the keys to a Lions' offense that was second in scoring and fifth in total offense last season. They return five Pro Bowl players in quarterback Jared Goff, tackle Penei Sewell, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, running back Jahmyr Gibbs and tight end Sam LaPorta.
"I think it's immense," Petzing said at the NFL Scouting Combine of the talent he's inheriting on offense. "There's a lot of different directions you can take it in. Ultimately, whatever we do, we want to be really hard to defend, and we want to make sure our best players affect the game.
"The nice part in Detroit is we have a lot of those and being able to move those guys around the formation and put them in different situations and not be predictable to a defense is going to be critical to our success."
Campbell said Petzing's transition to Detroit couldn't have been smoother over the last couple months.
"Nothing throws him off," Campbell said. "He's ready to adapt and adjust to whatever you want and whatever you need. 'We're going to make it work. We're going to maximize this.' He's been great, man. He's been good."
