Dan Campbell Says Lions Don't Need Elite QB to Have 'Sustained Success'

The absence of an elite quarterback does not have to hold the team back.

He told reporters that he doesn't think you need that. They can give you a better chance. I don't think you have to have one of those guys to have sustained success.

Campbell might be singing a different tune if the Lions had a different Week 1 starter.

Extolling the necessity of an All-Pro QB would not only undermine Goff but also send a message to the players that their head coach doesn't believe in them.

Campbell had some truth to his comments.

Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers made it to the Super Bowl. The Denver Broncos won the Super Bowl in 2015, despite relying on Brock Osweiler and the shell of what used to be.

Ben Roethlisberger is a two-time champion, but those titles came at a point in his career when he wasn't yet a prolific passer.

There is no question that having a pretty good quarterback can lower your margin for error.

The 49ers might have won the Super Bowl if they had someone better than Garoppolo.

The Los Angeles Rams couldn't get over the hump with the two-time Pro Bowler, who was clearly regressing. They got Matthew Stafford from the Detroit Lions and won it all.

The 10 highest-paid players in the NFL are all quarterbacks.

Campbell's comments should be encouraging for fans.

The Lions had one of the best quarterbacks in the league for a long time.

Stafford would throw for over 4,000 yards and Detroit would either miss the playoffs or fail to win a game. His presence was not enough to compensate for the bad hires and bad draft picks.

Campbell might be able to build the kind of foundation that allows a quarterback to thrive.