Dan Campbell finishes third in coach of year voting; Lions shut out of awards
ALLEN PARK — The Detroit Lions went to the NFL Honors program in Las Vegas on Thursday night with a number of coaches and players nominated for major accolades, but they came away empty-handed.
Head coach Dan Campbell came in a distant third for coach of the year, while offensive rookies Sam LaPorta and Jahmyr Gibbs placed third and fourth, assistant coach of the year Ben Johnson came in third, and man of the year Frank Ragnow came in second to Pittsburgh’s Cameron Heyward.
While leading the Lions to a franchise-high 14 victories, Campbell only received three first-place votes and ended with 33 points total, considerably short of the pace set by Demeco Ryans of Houston and Kevin Stefanski of Cleveland, who both tied for coach of the year with 165 points apiece. Stefanski was entitled to this distinction since he got one more vote in the first place, making it the closest vote ever recorded.
Since Wayne Fontes in 1991—the only previous season the Lions won 12 games—no Lions coach has taken home the trophy.
The overwhelming frontrunner for offensive rookie of the year, quarterback C.J. Stroud of the Texans, easily won that honor. He received 48 of the 50 first-place votes that could be cast, good for an overall total of 246 points. Puka Nacua, a Rams receiver, earned
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