The regular season is finally here as the Detroit Lions begin their preparations for a Week 1 matchup Sunday against the New Orleans Saints at Ford Field. Head coach Dan Campbell feels good about where his team is at heading into the first game of the season as he kicked off the week with a Monday press conference.
Campbell said it's hard to really know the true identity of his football team along with their strengths and weaknesses before Week 5 of the regular season, but he likes the preparations from training camp and where his mostly veteran team is at ahead of Sunday's season opener.
"Game 1 is always a barometer a little bit, you know?" Campbell said. "Last year, we went up to Lambeau and that was a tough one for us, man. We knew where we were at at that point and as bad as it was, it wasn't as bad, but yet we had work to do.
"This is no different. This is Game 1, Week 1. We'll find out a little bit where we're at relative to the opponent and then you just take it to the next week and figure it out over the next month."
Here are all the key questions from Campbell's media session:
What did Campbell see from offensive coordinator Drew Petzing and quarterback Jared Goff during training camp to make him believe those two can hit the ground running Week 1?
Their ability to work together, and the give and take Campbell saw from that relationship impressed him.
"I feel like they pulled the best out of each other," he said.
Petzing brought some clarity in Goff's mind to several areas, but was also open to some suggestions Goff made on concepts he likes and thinks will work with the personnel the Lions have on offense.
Campbell thought the two allowed each other to grow in different areas, which avoided the offense getting stale. He thinks the offense has a chance to be pretty dynamic with Petzing calling the plays and Goff being the field general.
What jumps out to Campbell about Detroit's Week 1 opponent New Orleans?
Campbell referred to the Saints as a 'young, hungry' opponent that progressed throughout last season and played some pretty good football at the end of the year. New Orleans won four of their last five games to finish the 2025 season.
Campbell saw second-year quarterback Tyler Shough begin playing with a level of confidence and maturity toward the end of the year. Detroit has respect for some of the potent weapons the Saints have on offense, including wide receiver Chris Olave, running back Travis Etienne Jr. and tight end Juwan Johnson.
Defensively, Campbell has a lot of respect for edge rusher Chase Young and believes he's playing some of the best football of his career. Campbell also shouted out linebackers Kaden Elliss and Pete Werner as well as edge rusher Carl Granderson.
"This will be a good opponent," he said. "But we got them in our house and we'll be ready to go."
Who impressed Campbell with their growth & grit over training camp?
Undrafted rookie edge rusher Eric O’Neill out of Rutgers.
"Talk about a guy who was kind of on the outside looking in from the time he got here in the spring and had to defy all odds," Campbell said of O'Neill.
"He had to make plays every day and had to catch an eye every day and he did that every day, whether it was special teams or defense. He did something every day. There wasn't a coach on any given day not saying something good about O'Neill. You can't ignore it."
The Lions didn't ignore it. O'Neill joins Aidan Hutchinson, DJ Wonnum, Derrick Moore and Ahmed Hassanein in the Detroit edge rotation heading into Week 1. He could be an early contributor on special teams as well.
What did Campbell think of the camp edge rusher DJ Wonnum had?
He referred to Wonnum as a 'lunch pail guy.' He was exactly the player in camp the Lions thought they were getting when they signed him to a one-year contract in free agency.
"I think he's come in and just done his job," Campbell said of the seven-year veteran. "I think he's been very consistent in what we've asked him to do. There's nothing flashy about it, but man, he's a crafty, sneaky, smart, veteran football player that understands how to play the run and has some slipperiness as a rusher. I think he's going to complement Hutch very well on the other side."
What can we expect from the RB2 role vs. the Saints?
Both Sione Vaki and Jacob Saylors will play that role in a committee approach, per Campbell.
Vaki is one of Detroit's best special teams players, but Campbell likes the development he saw out of the third-year running back as both a runner and pass catcher in camp. Expect both Vaki and Saylors to get some carries Sunday. Campbell said he trusts both players to step in if Jahmyr Gibbs needs a breather.
What is the plan for the two remaining roster spots ahead of Sunday?
Detroit currently has two open roster spots after waiving center Seth McLaughlin and running back Jabari Small last week.
"You never know, things can (change)," Campbell said. "But we know what we want to do."
