Dan Campbell's Message to Lions If Caleb Williams Faked Sideline Move: 'Hit His Ass'

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell made it clear he didn't want his defenders to pull up if Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was running toward the sideline but remained in bounds.

Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown said on his podcast that Campbell pointed out examples of Williams appearing to go out of bounds before turning up and gaining a few more yards. The coach told his defense to "hit his ass" in those situations with the rookie quarterback.

The revelation provides a little more context behind a contentious moment in the Lions' 23-20 victory over the Bears on Thanksgiving Day.

In the third quarter, Williams scrambled out of the pocket and was running toward the sideline when he got hit low by Detroit linebacker Jack Campbell. It was a clean tackle well within the field of play.

But the way Williams went down didn't look great and plenty of fans in Chicago thought pushing him out of bounds would've sufficed.

The No. 1 overall pick told reporters after the game he "didn't really appreciate the play."

"He just kind of dove straight at my knee," Williams said. "So I didn't really get that. Definitely kind of frustrated about that one, just 'cause you know, whatever. Yeah, knee's good. Nothing wrong with it. Think I just got a bruise. But the play was—the play was funky."

To the point Dan Campbell raised during his team meetings, though, Williams pulled up before got to the sideline, so he may have had designs on cutting to his left before that path closed.

Young quarterbacks, particularly those who tend to tuck the ball and run, always face adjustments in the NFL. The league has instituted plenty of rules in order to protect passers, but the players themselves have to take care of themselves too.

In the case of Williams, his apparent propensity to feign running out of bounds might need to be curtailed.