When news broke that the Detroit Lions had added former Giants interim head coach/offensive coordinator Mike Kafka to their coaching staff, many began immediately wondering how he’d fit in. A week prior, the Lions had hired Drew Petzing to be their offensive coordinator, and many believed Kafka was worthy of that job either in Detroit or in several other OC vacancies across the league. With no official title given to Kafka yet, it’s not entirely clear what his role will be with the Lions.
But that has already lead some to question whether the Lions’ offensive staff is a bit too crowded. Not only will Petzing and Kafka both have high-ranking voices in the room, but head coach Dan Campbell is likely to have a heavy influence, as is run game coordinator/offensive line coach Hank Fraley, assistant head coach/wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery, and maybe even pass game David Shaw, if he will remain on the coaching staff.
Is that too many voices? Will these coaches be able to get along and be a team player and collaborator? We try to answer that question and a whole lot more on this week’s Midweek Mailbag podcast.
Other topics on this week’s show include:
- Given Kafka’s history of developing quarterbacks, could the Lions be in the market for a new, young passer?
- Is Kafka essentially Petzing insurance?
- What sort of concepts, plays, and tendencies will Kafka be bringing with him?
- Our favorite defensive coaches the Lions should consider adding
- Why do so many NFL centers play predominantly guard in college?
- Could Miles Frazier be a starter in 2026?
- Breaking down this year’s free agency edge defender class
- Revisiting positional value with Jack Campbell and Jahmyr Gibbs
Check out this week’s episode by listening in the embedded player below or by searching “Pride of Detroit” on your favorite podcasting platform.
As always, you can also catch the video version of our podcast over on our YouTube or Twitch pages. Those editions have bonus content in between segments. This week, that includes discussion of the Cleveland Browns mess with Jim Schwartz, the Hall of Fame fiasco, and whether Tanner Engstrand could squeeze onto the Lions’ coaching staff.
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