**Allen Park — Offensive coordinator John Morton doesn’t know what the future holds as the Detroit Lions’ 2025 season nears its end. But if it were up to him, he would be back for the 2026 season.**
Speaking for the last time before the offseason, Morton told reporters Thursday that despite some of the challenges he’s encountered—namely, being stripped of play-calling duties midway through the season—he would like to be back for another year.
The offensive coordinator job, and whether Morton remains in it, is arguably the biggest storyline to watch for the Lions entering the upcoming offseason.
“I’d like to be here. Yeah. I love it here. I love (coach) Dan (Campbell), I love the organization. It’s my home,” Morton said. “All I’m thinking about is Chicago right now, so whatever happens, happens. I’ve been in this business for a while. I’m proud of the things that I’ve done. There’s a lot of things that I’ve got to improve on. Whatever happens, I just march on, just like I always have. That’s my attitude with everything.”
Morton, an Auburn Hills native, had big shoes to fill when taking over for ex-coordinator Ben Johnson, who guided the Lions to elite offensive outputs in three straight seasons before becoming head coach of the Bears last offseason.
Then, before training camp, the offensive line was thrown into turmoil when All-Pro center Frank Ragnow abruptly retired. The troubles that this season would bring were evident in training camp, when the Lions’ defense looked to be ahead of its star-studded offense.
However, Detroit was also operating without offensive tackle Taylor Decker for much of the summer, making it hard to fully grasp what things would look like during the regular season.
After a lifeless performance in the opener against Green Bay, the Lions’ offense rebounded to form one of the most productive units in the league, but things never looked quite right, even as they began racking up yards and points. The offensive line’s woes made the Lions’ run game an inconsistent mess, and the failure to address those issues seemed to create a disconnect between the roster and the staff.
Despite ranking third in points per game (28.9), for example, the Lions’ rushing offense ranked 15th and has had seven games with 100 rushing yards or fewer. From 2022 to 2024, the Lions had just eight total games with fewer than 100 rushing yards.
In addition to having a completely new interior offensive line, the Lions also dealt with a rash of injuries at those positions. Morton said the offensive line struggles produced “part of the problem,” but “it ain’t all the problem.”
“It’s a little bit of everything, it really is. But it does start up front. If you can control the line of scrimmage and do that, it just makes everything a lot easier,” Morton said. “I think it all does start up front, and losing our tight ends and stuff that’s part of the offensive line. But it’s not excuses. It’s not. We all have our hand in this. We have to be creative, just like in everything else, in the passing game and stuff. When a guy goes down, ‘OK, this guy’s got to step up.’”
Coach Dan Campbell took over offensive play-calling duties after Detroit’s 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings coming out of the bye week on November 2. Campbell said the reason he took the play-calling from Morton was because Morton struggled to bring the vision for his offense to life but remained open to the idea that Morton could return to calling plays once he had a better feel for what he wanted.
In Campbell’s first game as the play-caller, the Lions exploded for 44 points in a win against the Washington Commanders. But not long after, Detroit returned to its inconsistent ways, suggesting that Campbell’s play-calling wasn’t the answer, either.
Morton said Thursday that while he’d like to be back as the offensive play-caller or as a play-caller anywhere, calling plays is “absolutely not” a prerequisite for his return.
“Whatever it takes, you know what I mean? I would love to do that, wherever that may be. I love doing it, I love putting the game plan together. I love all that,” Morton said.
Added Morton, “I told you guys before, I’m a team player. I’ll do whatever it takes at this point in my career. Whatever Dan wants, I do. I’m here to help him and help this team win. That’s what I’ve done.”
Morton, 56, has 22 years of NFL coaching experience but is in just his second season as a play-caller. He last called plays during the 2017 season as offensive coordinator of the New York Jets.
In terms of what he’s learned since taking a step back, Morton said he’s gotten a better idea of how Campbell views tendencies and wants to marry the run and pass games.
“Those are kind of the things I’ve got to work on,” Morton said. “We’ll look at the offseason and I’ll just keep going like I’m the coordinator calling plays and try to improve.”
https://www.macombdaily.com/2026/01/01/offensive-coordinator-john-morton-talks-future-with-lions-i-love-it-here/
