By Sunday 
A Historic Low Point in Detroit Football
If you’re a Detroit Lions fan, chances are you’ve blocked out a few memories over the years. But there’s one name that still haunts highlight reels and message boards like a ghost in Honolulu blue: Marty Mornhinweg.
Yes, that Marty. The man who coached the Lions from 2001 to 2002 and managed to go 5-27 over two seasons. Not only is that a brutal win-loss record, it’s a masterclass in how not to run a football team. In fact, some fans argue he made Matt Patricia look like Bill Belichick by comparison.
Let that one sink in.
“We Want the Wind!”: A Moment That Defined a Mess
There are bad coaching decisions, and then there’s Marty’s infamous overtime blunder.
It’s 2002. The Lions win the coin toss in sudden death overtime—a golden opportunity. But instead of choosing to receive the ball, Mornhinweg chooses… the wind. He literally gave the ball to the other team in sudden death. His justification?
“It was the right call then, it’s the right call now, and it’s the right call 10 years from now.”
The football gods—and the scoreboard—disagreed.
To this day, Lions fans refer to that call as the moment Marty became Marty Moron-weg.
From Marty to Moxy: Dan Campbell’s Total Turnaround
Fast forward two decades and Detroit is living in a different timeline.
Head coach Dan Campbell inherited a franchise stuck in quicksand and has since engineered a remarkable turnaround:
- From 3-13-1 in his debut season
- To 9-8 the next
- Then 12-5
- And most recently, 15-2 with a playoff run that brought real hope to the Motor City
Campbell blends grit with guts—willing to take risks, yes, but with purpose. And unlike Mornhinweg, when Campbell rolls the dice, he’s got a gameplan (and Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, and Jahmyr Gibbs) to back it up.
Lessons from the Past, Eyes on the Future
Mornhinweg may never get another shot at head coaching in the NFL—and in Detroit, he’ll forever be a punchline. But maybe that’s what makes the Lions’ current rise under Campbell so satisfying. You can’t fully appreciate sunshine until you’ve weathered some brutal storms.
And boy, did Lions fans earn this forecast.