When you go from a dictator-like head coach such as Matt Patricia to a player's head coach like Dan Campbell, it is like night and day, and former Detroit Lions safety Glover Quin prefers the latter.
Quin recently joined the Stoney and Jansen Show on 97.1 The Ticket and he said Patricia was a coach who did not respect his players as men.
“Most players just want a coach they can vibe with, they can connect with and respects them,” said Quin. “I felt like Matt Patricia was a coach that didn’t have a lot of respect for his players. When you disrespect a lot of players, now you just messed up the whole relationship. Because at the end of the day, we’re all grown men. You’re not coaching kids, you’re not coaching high school kids, you’re coaching grown men. Whether they’re (age) 22 or 40, we’re all partners. But the approach that Matt had was a little different.”
On the flip side, said Quin, Campbell “seems to want to connect with his players and be in the trenches with his players.”
“You see him doing (up-downs) and conditioning and things like that with his players to get on the same level as them, to connect with them, where it seemed like Matt Patricia just sat up on a pedestal and looked down at us, not literally but figuratively.”
Glover Quin hopes Jeff Okudah will shine in 2022
In terms of third-year cornerback Jeff Okudah, Glover Quin is hopeful that the youngster will finally flash the talent that made him the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
“If he can stay healthy, I think we’ll get to see some of his ability,” said Quin. “But the thing that I hate for Jeff is this is his third year and he had Matt Patricia his first year and then he had another coach his second year, so he’s had to learn two different schemes already in the NFL.”
Quin noted that the Lions trading Darius Slay the same year that Okudah arrived was not good for Okudah because he really did not have an established veteran to show him the ropes.
“So the veteran corner that would help him learn and grown, I don’t know if he had that,” said Quin. “They had signed (Desmond) Trufant, but he was there on a ‘I’m trying to get paid’ type of deal, so I don’t know if he was really worried about the future and long-term success of Jeff Okudah. Coming in as the No. 3 overall pick, those are high expectations to live up to and I think he’s kind of dealt with the fire.
“Hopefully he can come back his third year and just be healthy and mentally be good. And being in the second year in this system, have a better understanding of what’s expected and what he needs to do, so we can just see his talent and what made him a No. 3 overall pick. I think it’s in there. He’s just gotta stay healthy and then have the confidence to be able to go out and play at that level.”
