DETROIT – Dan Campbell and his players had high praise for Detroit Lions fans who were at Ford Field for the team’s first playoff win in over 30 years.
The Lions held on for a 24-23 victory over Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams to advance to the divisional round. This was the first time Ford Field has hosted a playoff game, and fans in Detroit made it count.
“That is arguably the best environment I’ve ever been in,” Campbell said. “That was absolutely electric, and I think, what’s crazy is, I was coming down for pregame warmup, and you could just feel it. It was humming. The building was humming, and I swear you could feel the electricity down the tunnel from where I was coming down, and it only just grew from there.
“Our fans showed up in a big way. That was clearly -- and I thought for two years now that building’s been rocking -- it was different today. That was a whole other level. That’s what the playoffs are all about. So our fans showed up in a big way. They helped us win this game.”
Quarterback Jared Goff and defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson were also impressed.
“This place is special to me, and like I said, these people are special,” Goff said. “That’s the best home atmosphere I’ve ever played in front of, and I expect next week to be on top of that or second. It’s a special place to play.”
“It was wild,” Hutchinson said. “The fans came out. It’s maybe one of the loudest stadiums I’ve been in. That first half and the end of the game, it was crazy. Detroit, they ate all this up.”
Fans will get another taste of playoff football on Sunday, when the Lions host either the Philadelphia Eagles or Tampa Bay Buccaneers.