Before taking the Detroit Lions' job, offensive coordinator John Morton had two other options.
According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Morton had an offer to join the coaching staff of former Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who left to become the Chicago Bears' head coach.
Also, Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton was lobbying for Morton to stay after two seasons as the team's passing-game coordinator, but Morton ultimately chose to return to Detroit, where he served as a senior offensive assistant in 2022.
“I talked to some people and they’re like, ‘Dude, if (Campbell) offers you the job, you freaking take it. What are you, an idiot?’ ” Morton said.
“I didn’t know Ben would call him, but I had a good hunch that Ben would call him,” Campbell told Birkett. “I mean, he’d be crazy not to. That’s the thing, Johnny is like a behind-the-scenes grinder. He's not somebody that has ambition to be a head coach, he just wants to coach offensive football. That’s all he gives a crap about, and then just –that’s it. And so anybody that’s looking for somebody that’s creative and is a grinder, you’re going to want John Morton.”
Morton takes over a unit that is already a well-oiled machine.
Detroit has sported an elite offense for a few years now, putting Morton in a great position to succeed. But he's also in position to be a major scapegoat if the Lions' offense sees a significant dip in production in 2025.
“I watch these guys warm up,” Morton said. “I’m just like, ‘Man, I just can’t screw this up.’”
As a result of the coordinator changes, there is no shortage of analysts who believe the Lions could take a step back in 2025. However, quarterback Jared Goff downplayed the significance of having a new play-caller.
“In every offense, there’s formations, shifts, motions, routes, run plays, protections, I could keep going. Cadences, ways to get in and out of the huddle,” Goff said. “A lot of the stuff we’re doing in the eight things I named is the same, and some of it’s different. So it’s hard to answer that question when, ‘What’s different? What’s different? What’s different?’ Some of it is the exact same, some of it is a little bit different, and I’m not going to get into the minutia of what’s different.
“But I think if the transition from what we were doing last year to him (Morton) is a lot lesser than you guys are making it seem with the questions, I believe. Like, I get that question every day. A lot of it is the same, and there’s some that we’re learning that is new, and it’s not that big of a gap between those two," he added.
Seeing as how Morton was on the Lions' staff with Johnson in 2022, there is at least some continuity with the change, and the same can be said at defensive coordinator, as Kelvin Sheppard also worked under Aaron Glenn.
We'll get our first look at the Morton-led offense and Sheppard-led defense when the Lions travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 7.
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