In 2024, the Detroit Lions had one of the NFL’s best offensive coordinators. But with Ben Johnson accepting a promotion to become head coach of the Chicago Bears, who made it further than the Lions did, Detroit’s offense took a step back under first-year coordinator John Morton.
A year ago, the Lions ranked first in scoring. This season, they dropped to fourth, and Detroit missed the playoffs. Once the season ended, head coach Dan Campbell fired Morton. That kicked off a new coaching search to find their new coordinator and potential play-caller if Campbell doesn’t want the task.
On Monday, the Lions made their decision by hiring former Arizona Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing to the same position. Interestingly enough, Petzing has never crossed paths with Campbell.
However, he is a close confidant of Johnson, the Lions’ former playcaller. So perhaps the Lions are hoping Petzing can bring some of that uber-creative magic back to Motown. Campbell had previously admitted he’s open to relinquishing playcalling duties to someone with experience. Petzing likely secured permission to call plays in Detroit before signing up for the gig.
Petzing, 38, is viewed as a rising star in the coaching industry, just as Johnson once was. He began his coaching career as a volunteer student assistant with Harvard in 2009 at the age of 22. Three years later, he accepted an intern position with the Cleveland Browns.
He then spent six seasons in various roles with the Minnesota Vikings from 2014-19 before joining Kevin Stefanski with the Cleveland Browns in 2020. After three seasons in Cleveland, Petzing accepted his first offensive coordinator position as a member of the Cardinals, where he’s operated for the past three seasons.
Arizona’s offense ranked 24th in points in 2023, 12th in 2024, and 23rd in 2025. Yet, they also haven’t had consistent QB play and have dealt with a great amount of injuries, including to two-time Pro Bowl running back James Conner.
With the Cardinals firing head coach Jonathan Gannon at the end of the regular season, it made Petzing available to make a lateral move. Now he lands on his feet with a potential playoff contender in a job that had to be highly coveted among fellow playcallers.
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