FOUR DOWNS: Lions punch ticket to NFC Championship in ...

FIRST DOWN: CAMPBELL'S ANNIVERSARY

Hollywood couldn't have written the script any better for Dan Campbell and the Detroit Lions Sunday afternoon.

Sunday was exactly three years to the day that Campbell was introduced as Detroit's head coach and gave a press conference that made its fair share of headlines, but also laid out what kind of culture and team he was going to build in Detroit.

Three years later Campbell was standing behind a podium after beating Tampa Bay, 31-23, in the Divisional Round of the playoffs to punch Detroit's ticket to the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers next week for the first time since 1991.

Campbell had a three-year plan and he's delivering on all the promises he made that in that first press conference.

Campbell was quick to give a lot of credit to all the people around him that helped turn this around in just three years, mentioning GM Brad Holmes and owner Sheila Hamp at the top of the list. Campbell's plan after taking the job was to change the culture and bring in tough, gritty players who would find ways to win. He thought in his third season he'd have a chance to be in this spot, and here he is.

"I envisioned that we would have a chance to compete with the big boys," he said. "And that's where we're at. All you have to do is get in and it's about placing yourself at the very best position where you can move."

The impressive part of Campbell's three-year plan is that the Lions did it the right way. They built through the draft and supplemented with key free agents that fit the culture. Campbell went from three wins to nine wins, to 12 wins with a division title and one win from the Super Bowl.

"Dan is the greatest leader I've been around and has cultivated this culture that we have and our belief in each other pretty significantly," Lions quarterback Jared Goff said. "Yeah, you think about the dark times early on in 2021, a lot of people calling for his head. A lot of people in this room calling for his head. It's pretty good to be able to sit up here playing in the NFC Championship. It feels good."