Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell has faced a lot of criticism—and a fair amount of praise—for his bold decision to go for it on fourth down late against the Green Bay Packers, despite being backed up at his own 24-yard line in a tie game. Though the Lions didn’t convert, the strategy worked. As Campbell said after the game, he knew if they didn’t convert, they’d still get the ball back for possibly the final possession. Detroit did, and they made it count with the game-winning field goal.
Campbell
was asked about his overall fourth-down philosophy again on Wednesday, and in the midst of talking about his years of experience in the league and influences like Sean Payton, he also made a hilarious pop-culture reference.
He said that he views his affinity for fourth-down aggression much like John Candy titular character in the movie “Uncle Buck” views his iconic trapper/ushanka hat.
“You guys ever seen ‘Uncle Buck?’” Campbell starts. “I think I’m a little bit like—his fedora, you know that hat he wears? It’s a little bit of a flavor.”
Then he paraphrases a quote from the movie: “Just the mere sight of it bothers a lot of people.”
“So I always think a little of ‘Uncle Buck, ’ man, when John Candy’s wearing that hat. ‘Is it the hat?’”
Campbell’s analogy wasn’t all that clear, but fans of the movie may remember this specific scene, where Uncle Buck talks about how he believes people judge him simply based on the hat.
“A lot of people hate this hat. It angers a lot of people, just the sight of it,” Candy’s character says.
Perhaps he believes people just hate fourth-down aggression without even thinking about it. Or they see Campbell as a meathead, and his fourth-down process as a reflection of surface-level thinking. Or maybe it’s just Campbell’s little quirk that you either love or you hate.
Either way, it’s just another iconic moment in a Dan Campbell press conference.
