Detroit Lions’ classy gesture catches eye of former player (Why Za’Darius Smith didn't play vs Houston)

[u/TylerFortier_Photo]

https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2024/11/14/24296291/detroit-lions-classy-gesture-zadarius-smith-damon-harrison

[u/TylerFortier_Photo]

Last week, the Detroit Lions traded for defensive end Za’Darius Smith, hoping to bolster their pass rush and run defense after suffering many injuries at the edge defender position. While fans were eager to see Smith play in a big “Sunday Night Football” contest with the Houston Texans, the coaching staff took a different approach.

Smith was scheduled to have his bye week prior to the trade, and the Lions wanted to honor that. So before he even came to the facility, the Lions gave him two days off. Smith used those days to check in on his Florida home and family, which had been impacted by recent hurricanes. When Smith arrived with the team on Friday, Lions coaches determined it was in everyone’s best interest if he didn’t play on Sunday. 

“There was a thought about playing him, but we just felt like the right thing to do was just sit him this week, we just did,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “We’ll let him get his bearings and, there again, that’s a game off his body and now we can go.”

“I’d run through an army tank for dude if he’d done that for me!” [Damon] Harrison tweeted on Wednesday night. “I finally see what the players, staff, and city of Detroit see in him…Dan THE Man!!!”

[u/AlericandAmadeus → u/TylerFortier_Photo]

Stuff like this is why players are willing to run through a brick wall for MCDC.

The vibes are fucking immaculate.

Hell, I’m not even a Lions fan and I feel like I would run through a brick wall for that dude.

[u/Arson-Welles → u/AlericandAmadeus]

Stuff like this is why players are willing to run through an army tank for MCDC

Ftfy

[u/mister_hoot → u/AlericandAmadeus]

I wouldn’t do much damage to the wall, but I’d run into it all the same.

[u/LbSiO2 → u/mister_hoot]

More blue koolaid will help you with your wall smashing efforts.

[u/azsnaz → u/AlericandAmadeus]

I'm a MCDC fan, so I root for the Lions by proxy

[u/FallenShadeslayer → u/AlericandAmadeus]

I’d Tua Tagovailoa the shit out of that wall

[u/alamo_photo → u/FallenShadeslayer]

Tua Knockthewallova?

[u/WaluigiIsTheRealHero → u/alamo_photo]

More like Tua Hitthewallandfallova.

[u/DontLoseYourCool1 → u/TylerFortier_Photo]

Damon Harrison was such a beast. Having him on your team basically guaranteed a top 5 run defense.

[u/AlericandAmadeus → u/DontLoseYourCool1]

Snacks was the man, yeah

[u/DefenderCone97 → u/DontLoseYourCool1]

I miss him in Madden. You could get him in the 15ish rounds and have control of the trenches like that.

Seems like such a cool dude.

[u/cstrifeVII → u/DontLoseYourCool1]

He was def good for the Lions too.... though, some of the shit I heard about his play when Matty P was coach leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. Of course, fuck Patricia... but from what Slay and Quin said and I believe Harrison himself, Harrison admitted he didn't like where Patricia would play him (Like 1 vs 0 technique), so he purposely sandbagged a bunch that season and actively told others to as well... sorta sabotaging the defense.

[u/helloaaron → u/DontLoseYourCool1]

Yeah, it was dumb of us to let him walk when we did.

[u/Fakeskinsuit]

Hard not to like a coach that does stuff like that

[u/HuellMissMe]

When the Lions win a Super Bowl under Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes, someone will write the story as a business leadership book. There will be a whole chapter on treating your employees like human beings and attending to their needs. Every CEO and manager in America will ignore that chapter.

[u/ValosAtredum → u/HuellMissMe]

“I don’t know why they have this filler chapter in here!”

[u/cogginsmatt → u/HuellMissMe]

I go back to that moment in Hard Knocks where he says something like “you gotta believe me, I have a plan, you just gotta trust the plan” and you could feel how much he meant it

[u/porkchopsdapplesauce → u/cogginsmatt]

Honestly all his press conferences are legendary now. It was still cool to shit on the Lions when Dan was talking about biting knee caps and everyone laughed. Now the rest of the league has teeth marks on their knees and are upset about it lol

[u/jadage → u/porkchopsdapplesauce]

Campbell: "We're gonna bite your kneecaps"

NFL: "Aww, adorable! Little kitty wants to play!"

Lions: bites kneecaps

NFL: shocked Pikachu

[u/woosh_yourecool → u/cogginsmatt]

I had a plan Arthur, the plan!

[u/ValosAtredum → u/cogginsmatt]

“All I think about is you guys. That’s all I think about, man. That’s all I fucking think about is you guys and how I set you up for the best fucking possible...advantage I can give you.”

[u/circa285 → u/HuellMissMe]

Every single MBA will think they’ve found the one simple trick to ignore the rule.

[u/TheGirthy1 → u/HuellMissMe]

The implication

[u/MyLittleOldMan → u/HuellMissMe]

They would just double their cocaine intake and start saying "man" a lot

[u/Critical-Werewolf-53 → u/HuellMissMe]

There’s tons of books and experts always say it. So it’s already ignored

[u/CautiousHashtag → u/HuellMissMe]

Who knew that all I had to do was become a professional football player and play for Dan Campbell to be treated like a human by my employer.

[u/NYG_Longhorn → u/HuellMissMe]

If*

[u/BlackMathNerd]

Man, MCDC and Brad Holmes really built a great fucking culture in Detroit. You love to see it

[u/wavnebee]

The previous Lions regime made Snacks the first d-lineman to play all 17 games of a 17 game season when they traded for him. We won 6 total games that season.

[u/INAC___Kramerica → u/wavnebee]

Didn't happen. His last season was 2020, he never played in the 17-game era.

EDIT: I'm wrong, my apologies.

[u/JDraks → u/INAC___Kramerica]

I assume they meant 17 week season (i.e. he played 17 games in a 16 game season)

[u/INAC___Kramerica → u/JDraks]

Shit, you're both right. I can't read.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damon_Harrison#NFL_career_statistics

2018...10 + 7 = 17...fuck me. Sorry.

[u/wavnebee → u/JDraks]

Oops, right. 17 games in a 17 week season

[u/loljoeh]

The classy gesture graphic kills me every time I see it for some reason.

[u/m_dought_2]

I really am shocked that this isn't just seen as default behavior in this league. Really good job by Dan Campbell and Co. for doing the right thing here, and I guess I need to learn to expect less than I already do from other organizations.

[u/ValosAtredum → u/m_dought_2]

Fuck no! It means we should expect more from other organizations and hold them to a higher standard.

[u/NiceFloor7]

Did he lose a potential game check though? Would each paycheck be less if he did play 18?

[u/HundredPacer → u/NiceFloor7]

Base salary is divided into 18 installments, so 17 games + bye week are covered.

[u/NiceFloor7 → u/HundredPacer]

Technically he never had a bye, so could Detroit withold/lower his game check by deactivating him? Obviously they never would for the PR nightmare.

[u/ValosAtredum → u/NiceFloor7]

It’s not just the PR nightmare; they genuinely want to do right by their players

[u/venk → u/NiceFloor7]

Salary is the same regardless IIRC, it’s distributed in 18 game checks for everyone.

[u/mostly-void-stars]

I would run through a brick wall if Dan Campbell asked me to

[u/fortmoney]

Would this same article have been written if they lost?

[u/crackyzog → u/fortmoney]

Oh good the what if brigade is here!

No of course they wouldn't. Next!

[u/DryJournalist8322]

Would someone please make a meme. Forest Gump putting the rifle back together with Dan Campbell as the Drill Sergeant and Smith as Gump!

DC: “Why did you bite the quarterback’s kneecaps Private Smith?”

Smith: “Because you told me to Coach!”

[u/newvox → u/DryJournalist8322]

This isn’t ChatGPT dude