Brad Holmes Talks About What’s Next After Lions' Heart Wrenching Playoff Loss

Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell have a clear vision for the team’s future and what it takes to be great.

During a recent interview with Local 4 News, Holmes shared his thoughts on talent evaluation and rebounding from the disappointment of falling short in the playoffs after a 15-win season.
Holmes emphasized the importance of intangible qualities over raw talent in identifying top NFL players.

Brad Holmes on Intangible Qualities

“It’s just the intangibles, the intangible qualities of the players,” Holmes said as quoted by Lions OnSI. Talent is easy to identify, it’s easy to find. This guy’s big and he’s strong. Okay, I get that, all these other hundreds and thousands are big and strong, too. But, who has the makeup and drive and determination and competitiveness and passion for the game that we’re looking for?”

Building the Lions’ Success

Holmes and Campbell have built the Lions’ locker room around players who fit their vision for success.

“That’s how we built our locker room. That’s how me and Dan built this thing. And that’s why it’s grit all over this building, because this game is really hard, it’s really hard to play. It takes a certain person, it takes a special human being.”

The Separation Between Good and Great Players

For Holmes, it’s the intangible qualities that separate the great players from the average ones.

“It’s not just about how much talent you have, it’s about how much determination, how you’re gonna face adversity. Are you gonna sink down in a hole? Are you gonna just rise to the occasion? And do you have the mental toughness and mental fortitude to do that? Those intangible qualities, that’s what we look for. In my opinion, that’s the separation between being a great player and being just an average player.”

Brad Holmes Looks Ahead to 2025

Holmes remains focused on improving the team after a gut-wrenching playoff loss in 2024.

“Just to become better, just to get better. That was always the case. Every single year, it was like, ‘What’s the next step?’ Well, the next step was continuing to improve every single year, and we were doing that. From 3-13-1 to 9-8 to 12 wins to 15. We’ve been doing that,” Holmes said.

He also stressed the importance of staying true to the team’s identity despite the expected changes.

“Me and Dan will do the necessary work to get better. After that gut-wrenching loss, there’s nothing else to do. You can pout about it for the next month or the next two months, but there’s nothing else to do but get back to work and get better,” Holmes continued.

So, we will definitely do that. Yeah, there will be some new faces, that’s every year, that’s the nature of the business. But, as long as me and Dan are here, we’re big on sticking to our identity and really not compromising that.”