ALLEN PARK -- Detroit Lions training camp is a unique experience -- not just for the fans, but for the beat writers posted up on the sideline, often just feet from the action.
That proximity allows for a sharper view of player development and position battles. But it also comes with a bonus: hearing the nonstop, often hilarious trash talk between players and coaches.
Per NFL rules, reporters can’t share verbatim what’s said, but they can describe it. And the back-and-forth between defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard and running backs coach Tashard Choice, along with Sheppard’s spirited rivalry with offensive coordinator John Morton, has been loud, intense, and frequent.
All three are in their first year in these roles -- and they’ve wasted no time making their presence known.
And for Lions head coach Dan Campbell, it’s nothing new.
“I mean, it’s been good. It’s kind of business as usual for us,” Campbell said Monday. “It’s a competitive environment, everybody wants to win, and then let them know when they win. So, it’s pretty good. It’s the right kind of spirit. I don’t think we take it too far, but it’s a great mix because it’s the same thing -- it’s no different than the players.
“The emotions run high, but you’re trying to win, you’re trying to do it the right way. And then when you walk off the field, they’re buddies arm-in-arm and jabbing at each other about the way that they argue with the other person. So, it’s good.”
Campbell’s tenure in Allen Park has long featured this kind of competitive energy on the coaching staff.
Before Sheppard was jawing with Choice or Morton, former defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn -- now with the New York Jets -- was regularly in verbal sparring matches with ex-running backs coaches Duce Staley and Scottie Montgomery, who is now the wide receivers coach.
So the exchanges between Sheppard and Choice? They’re not only normal -- they were expected.
The two coaches, best friends off the field, predicted the fireworks back in the spring.
“Oh, I’m going to talk trash. We don’t like each other. I may fight him,” Choice joked during his May introductory press conference. “It’s funny -- when you’re in them lines, I hate him as a player on the team, but I love him at the same time. You know what I mean?
“You’ll see, that’s how we are. That’s the pushing part. Because we know when they’re going against him, they’re going to need that. My players are going to want to feed off of me. I’m going to feed off of them, and he’s the same way. So, characteristics on how we are with our players are pretty similar.”
Sheppard agreed.
“Oh, it’s gonna be great,” the defensive coordinator said in May. “Not only with him, Scottie (Montgomery), the whole gang. I know they’re gonna be waiting on me. I’m gonna be waiting on them. But that’s what drives this place, is that right there. And that’s why he has fit in so well. It’s like he’s been here all along.
“...Scottie told me the other day, ‘(Choice) is out of his mind,’” Sheppard added. “I’m telling you, I don’t think he’s ever had a bad day. And if he has, he’s never let that show when he walks into a building or when he walks into a locker room. He’s always going to be the energetic guy, the motivating guy. I tell everybody, he’s a better human being than he is a football player or a coach, and that’s why the players gravitate to him.”
Whether that chemistry translates into wins remains to be seen. But one thing’s for sure -- there’s no shortage of competitive fire in Allen Park after the Lions’ offseason coaching overhaul.
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