Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell continues to earn recognition as one of the NFL’s premier leaders.

In a June 4 ranking of the league’s top head coaches entering the 2026 season, Campbell was placed fifth. The ranking considered the overall body of work, recent success, leadership ability, and schematic impact across the league. According to Bradley Locker of PFF.com, Campbell has certain skills that keep him this high in the list.

“Unlike his esteemed peers, Campbell may not operate best as a play-caller. But his high-end decision-making and culture cultivation are some of the foremost in the NFL.”

Campbell ranked just below Mike Macdonald of the Seattle Seahawks at #4, the San Francisco 49ers’ Kyle Shanahan at #3, the Kansas City Chiefs’ Andy Reid at #2, and the Los Angeles Rams’ Sean McVay, who was ranked as the best coach in the NFL.

When Campbell took over, the franchise had reached the playoffs only 3 times over its last 21 seasons. After a tough first 2 years, however, the Lions emerged as one of the NFL’s top contenders. They had a record of 27-7 from 2023 through 2024 and reached the NFC Championship Game in 2023 as well.

Campbell, with the help of general manager Brad Holmes, has created one of the best young cores in football. He has paired that talent with a league-leading 0.309 EPA per play and 59 conversions on fourth downs over the last 3 seasons.

Such aggressiveness and immense player skills have helped the Lions over the years and are expected to help them in the future.

With him being hailed as the top 5, Campbell also has praise for one of his coaches after the OTAs had ended.

Campbell Compliments Coach’s Improvement In Year Two

Dan Campbell made Kelvin Sheppard one of his first assistant coach hires when he joined the Lions in 2021. In 2025, Sheppard got promoted to defensive coordinator for the Lions after Aaron Glenn left the Lions to become head coach of the New York Jets. 

On June 11, Campbell, during a press conference after the OTAs had finished, gave his opinion on Sheppard’s progress.

“Relative to last year, he’s just much more comfortable. I think he’s got a much better grasp of how he wants it to look. You can’t help but get better,” said Campbell. “With time on task, under pressure, making corrections, adapting to personnel injuries, and he’s done all that. So I love where Shep’s at right now.”

Before the start of the 2025 season, the Lions had lost both Glenn and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to head-coaching jobs. After a season, Campbell made a change in offensive coordinators with Drew Petzing replacing John Morton. However, on defense, Campbell still believes he has the right coach for the job.

Do you think Sheppard will be better this season, like Campbell suggests? Let us know in the comments!

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Written by

Dhruv Vishnu Nair

Edited by

Zaid Quraishi