It’s been quite some time since we checked in with Detroit Lions fans regarding their opinion of general manager Brad Holmes. The last time we polled our audience was almost exactly a year ago, following the team’s 2025 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, those poll results were lost to time (and a migration to a new content management system at SB Nation).
Detroit, MI
Locker Room Buzz: Lions Have Kicked ‘Everyone’s Ass’ Last 11 Weeks
Here is a collection of quotes from Detroit Lions players and coaches following their 48-42 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 15.
Dan Campbell
On whether he thinks the Bills were great or if the Lions have serious defensive issues:
“No, I just feel like we didn’t play at the same level that that team did today. That’s how I feel, and that’s why, honestly, I put this on me. I didn’t, I just didn’t feel like I had them ready to go, not like we’ve been. You can get away with, maybe if you’re not quite all the way to a 10, but not against the Buffalo Bills, Kansas City Chiefs or Green Bay Packers, Minnesota, Philadelphia—whoever they are. It’s not going to be good enough, and it wasn’t good enough today.”
Jared Goff
On the importance of not overreacting to a loss:
“We don’t, yeah no. We’ll be just fine. I’m sure there will be a ton of stuff written about the sky falling, but no, internally, we’re good. Yeah, we had won how many in a row up to that point, but it sucks to lose. We would’ve loved to win every game out, all the way through the Super Bowl and I hope we can look back on this one as a good learning lesson for us and move on and use some of the stuff that we learned in this game to help us win these next three before we hit the Playoffs.”
Terrion Arnold
On if the defense felt like it was trying to claw back the entire game after a slow start:
“Nah, I wouldn’t say it feels like that. It’s one of those things where you look at, ‘What did we do wrong?’ On the plays that they scored, it wasn’t something where they necessarily went out there and won a 1-on-1 matchup or they went out there and did, it was on us. Aaron Glenn does a great job of putting us in positions to succeed, and we just have to go out there and execute the game plan.”
Dan Skipper
On his touchdown catch in the second quarter:
“I was trying to — the whole design of the play is the timing of it all. So getting the timing right, and once the ball is in the air, catch the ball, secure it. And then from there, they took (tight end) Brock (Wright). Turned around, there was one guy coming at me, so I lowered the shoulder on him.”
Josh Paschal
On the importance of moving forward after Sunday’s loss:
“He’s a great player, dynamic. He can hurt you with his legs, his arm. They got us today, but we’re gonna regroup. It’s a long season, and the good news is we’re still in control of our own destiny. We’ve got to get coached up and get back to work.”
DJ Reader
On how the team will respond after losing for the first time since Week 2:
“It’ll be fine, just can’t let it snowball. That’s really the thing. People get beat every Sunday. So we just can’t let it snowball. We still are what our record says we are, we’re 12-2. We’ve got a division opponent next week, we’ve got to go out there and get it done.”
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DJ Reader tells LionsOnSI on playing Bills again — DetroitSportsPodcast (@DetroitPodcast) December 16, 2024
— We have to do our part and they have to do theirs. We’ll see pic.twitter.com/PxPAylTvCb
On if this loss will elevate their urgency:
“I think there should be urgency every Sunday. We’re getting closer and closer to the playoffs, we’ve already got a spot there. So I think the urgency, if it wasn’t, we should have it high. I think we do have it high. We just lost man. I think that’s what it is. It happens in this league. S**t, we’ve been kicking everybody’s a** for 12 weeks. This week, it happened to us.”
Sam LaPorta
On the importance of bouncing back next week against Chicago:
“We’ve got three games left. We’re gonna take it one game at a time. We know the opportunity of taking the one seed, just the benefit of playing here at Ford Field, the home-field advantage. Our fans are tremendous. Of course there’s tremendous urgency, but there is every week in the NFL. Every game is a tough game and everybody’s gonna give you their best.”
On if he wants to see the Bills again in February:
“Of course. You always want payback, especially when a team gets the best of you. But that’s the competitor in me saying that.”
Al-Quadin Muhammad
On whether playing a team like the Bills can teach them what they need to improve upon for the playoffs:
“As we watch the film there’s always things you can learn from playing the great football teams. But we’re gonna watch the film, we’re gonna evaluate us and we’re gonna go out there and do what we do best, play our style of football.”
But as you can see below, Holmes has been an extremely popular figure among Detroit sports fans for pretty much his entire career.
Although, if there was a time when Holmes’ popularity took a hit, it was likely during the 2025 NFL season, when the Lions took their first clear step back since he and Dan Campbell came to town.
Since last year’s data was lost to time, this is a good opportunity to check back in with Lions fans. While Holmes certainly deserves a ton of credit for getting the Lions back to relevancy and helping them produce four consecutive seasons with winning records, there are some serious blemishes on his resumé now. The 2024 NFL Draft class has not lived up to his high standards through two seasons, some of his riskiest picks over the last few years have all failed to pay off, and last year’s roster just wasn’t good enough to withstand the injuries.
But Holmes is also coming off a very crowd-pleasing draft. Detroit addressed their two biggest needs with their first two selections, and there were no crazy head-scratching picks or expensive trade ups. Many have categorized his latest draft as “back to business as usual,” which could have some fans he lost back on his side.
However, that is all up to you. Vote on your thoughts about Holmes’ time in Detroit below, and share your extended thoughts in the comment section at the bottom of the page.
Dan Gilbert paid for an army of Cleveland Cavaliers fans to take over Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena for Game 2 of the NBA playoffs against the rival Detroit Pistons.
Gilbert, the longtime Cavs owner who has founded several Detroit-based companies and owns much of the real estate in downtown Detroit, sent seven bus loads of Cavs season ticket holders up I-75 North on Thursday, May 7, to wear maroon and gold shirts that read “BEAT DETROIT!”
Coworkers Rick Amador, 46, of Lorain, Ohio, and Eric Karr, 24, of Strongsville, Ohio, said they were thankful their trip to the playoffs in Detroit was fully paid for.
“Dan Gilbert fully paid for all of our tickets, paid for the shirts that you see here today,” Amador said. “He paid for the swag and he brought us here, fed us. We had a party at The Beacon [in Detroit, owned by Gilbert]. DJ, food, it was phenomenal.”
[ Pistons vs Cavaliers score updates, Game 2 highlights, commentary ]
Gilbert earned a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State and a law degree from Wayne State in downtown Detroit.
“I’m just ready to bring a dub home to Cleveland,” Karr said. “It’s been a long time coming. We got lucky with LeBron [James] always coming here and now it’s time for us to build our own future and win our own championship. All of them. Yes, Donovan [Mitchell] has to have his legacy game.”
The Pistons on Tuesday night won Game 1 of the best-of-seven series, 111-101, in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Games 3-4 will be in Cleveland on Saturday afternoon and Monday night.
As for a prediction for the rest of the series?
“Five games, Cavs win it,” Karr said without hesitation.
On the roster: Aidan Hutchinson, DJ Wonnum, Derrick Moore, Payton Turner, Tyler Lacy, Tyre West, Ahmed Hassanein
Twentyman: Hutchinson, 25, was named Second-Team All-Pro after setting a new career single-season high in sacks (14.5) while leading the NFL with 100 total pressures. Hutchinson is the first player in franchise history to log multiple 10.0-sack seasons through the first four years of a player’s career. With Al-Quadin Muhammad and his 11.0 sacks last year signing with Tampa Bay in free agency, the Lions needed to find Hutchinson a new running mate on the opposite edge.
Detroit added Wonnum in free agency and Moore in the NFL Draft and like what both bring to the table. It will be interesting to see how their unique skillsets fit in Kelvin Sheppard’s defense. Onwuzurike is a defensive tackle by trade but could also get some run as the big end.
While Detroit’s 49 sacks were the fourth most in the NFL last year, Detroit’s average time to pressure of 2.92 seconds was the slowest in the NFL, per Next Gen Stats. It wasn’t always the kind of pressure that affected the timing of opponent passing attacks as opposing quarterbacks finished with a 92.5 rating against Detroit’s defense, which ranked 19th.
On roster: Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez, Jimmy Rolder, Damone Clark, Trevor Nowaske, Joe Bachie
Twentyman: The departure of Alex Anzalone means the Lions will have a new starter at the WILL in 2026. The leading candidate to fill the role is the veteran Rodriguez. Rolder has an interesting skillset, but is he ready to step in right away after playing limited defensive snaps at Michigan? Could the versatile Clark potentially be a fit there too? The competition for the starting WILL spot will be one of the better ones to watch in camp.
It will also be interesting to see how Sheppard might evolve his scheme after an extensive sit-down with head coach Dan Campbell this offseason going through all the cut-ups on defense from last year. Detroit wants to be more adaptable and versatile. Will Barnes’ SAM role change at all within the defense? Will a team that played the most base defense of any team in the NFL last year play more nickel?
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