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The Detroit Lions fired defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant this week, just one day after Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins, their fifth straight loss of the season.
Head coach Dan Campbell confirmed news of Pleasant’s firing on Monday, just a season and half after he first joined the Lions in January 2021.
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell and Detroit Lions defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant during Detroit Lions Training Camp on August 10, 2021 at Lions Practice Facility in Allen Park, MI. (Allan Dranberg/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
"I think Aubrey is a hell of a coach," Campbell told reporters. "I've got a ton of respect for him. It was a tough decision, but we're in a production-based business and after seven weeks I felt like this change needed to be made."
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"I still believe in the guys that we have," he added of the Lions’ secondary. "I know what we have on the backend and I think they are good enough to help us compete and win. We'll just see if we can get them going a little better."
Head coach Dan Campbell of the Detroit Lions looks on against the Miami Dolphins at Ford Field on October 30, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan. (Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
Pleasant’s departure marks the second time in Cambell’s brief tenure as head coach that he’s made a significant change to the coaching staff.
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Around the same time last year, Campbell stripped play-calling duties away from offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn before ultimately firing him at the end of the season.
Campbell said that safeties coach Brian Duker will take over for Pleasant in hopes that a different "messenger" will be able to make a much-needed change. Entering Monday, the Lions defense is ranked last in the NFL in points and yards allowed.
Defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant of the Detroit Lions looks on during the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field on August 21, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
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"I wish him the best of luck and I appreciate everything he’s put into it – he put his heart and soul into everything he did," Campbell said of Pleasant.
The Lions were active before the trade deadline on Tuesday, sending Pro Bowl tight end T.J. Hockenson to division rival Minnesota Vikings in exchange for a 2023 fourth-round draft pick and a conditional 2024 fourth-round draft pick.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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