Barry Sanders expresses “disappointment” with Lions, opens up about losing Ben Johnson

Detroit Lions legend Barry Sanders is disappointed with the organization losing core pieces of its coaching staff. Especially offensive coordinator Ben Johnson.

Johnson became head coach of the Chicago Bears back in January. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn joined the New York Jets as head coach that same month. With that, Detroit loses two key pieces of its coaching staff, instrumental in the team's 15-2 record last season.

On Tuesday, Sanders joined "Good Morning Football" and was asked about his thoughts on the Lions' offseason losses. He was also asked about Detroit's early departure from the playoffs, being eliminated by the Washington Commanders in the Divisional Round after earning a first-round bye being the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

"Yeah. I mean, the early departure was a disappointment, you know." Sanders said. "And we certainly feel like, if you have home field advantage, and they and they bye, you know, you've earned something like that, then that's a great advantage. But it didn't turn out that way this year. You look at what this team has done over the last few years, you look at the nucleus of players."

"You mentioned the coaches, we losing Ben Johnson, losing Aaron Glenn, I feel like coach, Coach Campbell has understood over the last several years that those guys are highly sought after, that their days are probably numbered in Detroit."

Detroit Lions assemble new-looking coaching staff ahead of 2025 season

Syndication: Detroit Free Press - Source: Imagn

With Johnson now with Chicago, the Lions have hired John Morton as their next offensive coordinator. Morton served as the passing game coordinator for the Denver Broncos since February of 2023. He will be returning to the Lions organization for his second stint with the team after previously serving as a senior offensive assistant in 2022.

The Lions also decided to promote Kelvin Sheppard to defensive coordinator after he served as Detroit's linebackers coach since 2021. He'll now lead the team's defense in the 2025 season. It remains to be seen if the Lions can replicate last season's success, with new leadership on both the offensive and defensive coaching fronts.

With most key players retained and a fully healthy roster to kick off their 2025 campaign, Detroit's odds of winning the NFC North yet again are looking very good at the moment.