MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - AUGUST 26: Offensive coordinator Drew Petzing of the Arizona Cardinals looks on against the Minnesota Vikings in the first half of a preseason game at U.S. Bank Stadium on August 26, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Cardinals defeated the Vikings 18-17. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
Drew Petzing stood out from the other nine applicants interviewed, according to Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes.
The choice to include the former Arizona Cardinals coordinator to the coaching staff was discussed by the two-time former Executive of the Year in an interview with the Detroit Free Press at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.
Ten candidates were interviewed in all for the position of offensive coordinator.
What I enjoyed about him is that it’s not a system, which makes up a large part of it. Holmes stated, “What you do is what you have, what’s the people that you have. ” For instance, what can we do? As a result, I believe he demonstrated through that procedure that he can make the most of the resources at hand. And that’s quite thrilling.
Holmes later said, “It was just a ton of impressive candidates, but by the end of the week, we kind of went back to like, who’s the guy that we all collectively felt like he checked all the boxes for us? ” We chose to follow our instincts and go along with it, which led us to make the transfer.
Detroit chose to look outside the company for the following offensive leader, only interviewing one internal applicant.
David Shaw, the passing game coordinator, was the only applicant who was already a member of Dan Campbell’s coaching staff.
Prior to settling on John Morton, the former passing game coordinator for the Denver Broncos, Detroit only conducted three interviews with internal candidates last year.
But (Petzing) is simply extremely astute and brilliant, and I truly appreciated his attention to detail. He was highly recommended by all of our vetting. In fact, Holmes claimed that every source praised him without reservation. I also simply enjoyed the reasoning behind his offensive football and the manner in which he made use of his players. Consequently, he simply ticked all the boxes, dude. As a result, we were thrilled about him.
Additionally, Holmes said that the group was ecstatic to have a coach with Mike Kafka’s background.
Since becoming head coach in 2021, Campbell has employed four offensive coordinators, including Petzing.
Additionally, Anthony Lynn, a former NFL running back, was fired after only one season. Ben Johnson used his accomplishments to get the chance to become the Chicago Bears’ head coach.
