At first, Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell wasn’t as popular across the country as he is today. In fact, after his introductory press conference, some people were already wondering whether the Lions had made another mistake by signing the former player. After all, he wasn’t a play-caller like so many other trendy prospects in the league.

Then, as time went on, more and more people began to see Campbell as the true leader that he is at his core. Yes, he’s a 6-foot-2 former blocking tight end who came up under the legendary coaching tree of Bill Parcells. Still, it was clear early on to most people in the organization that Campbell was the one different in the best way.

Now the rest of the world has caught up over the last two years, so much so that even a conference rival like San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle appreciates what Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes have built in Detroit .

“I think when you have a head coach who played and the way he played,” Kittle said when asked about Campbell’s coaching style. “He was a very dark player, a pretty bad player, but was loved by all his teammates. I think it’s really easy to play for people like that.”

You can check out Kittle’s entire soundbyte below. I personally loved the entire video until the end. Sorry, George. These are the old days. The 49ers are in the way and besides, you’re all just a few weeks away from vacation anyway.

And now for the rest of today’s notes:

• “Can the Lions model be duplicated?” What a time to be alive.

• Another great recap from NFL Matchup on ESPN – this time it’s about how it’s a nightmare for opposing defenses to slow down Lions receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams.

• Birkett also wrote about how it was always “Lions or bust” for Lions quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

• I love these ideas that the Lions have. Please move on.