Matt Campbell turned down an 8-year, $68.5 million contract to coach the Detroit Lions to remain at Iowa State, according to CBS Sports's Dennis Dodd.
The comment came during a roundtable discussion among the CBS Sports staff. The group was discussing its ranking of Power 5 coaches when Dodd said, "Interesting note for Matt Campbell. In the offseason, he turned down an 8-year, $68.5 million offer from the Lions, apparently with full control -- I haven't confirmed that -- to stay at Iowa State. If I'm Matt Campbell's wife, I'm having some questions.
"He sees his upward arc better at Iowa State than the Lions, (who) are annually in disarray."
Campbell was a target of the Lions and other NFL teams. Though he didn't address other teams' interest directly, he did send this tweet on Jan. 10. Iowa State announced an extension for Campbell on Feb. 8. That deal pays him $4 million per year and $250,000 per win beginning with win No. 7, with a reduced buyout of $4 million should he leave for another job. The $68.5 million contract would've placed him among the top quarter of NFL head coaches. That's mega money for anyone, but especially so for a 41-year-old head coach with zero NFL experience as a player or coach.
The Lions agreed to terms with Dan Campbell on Jan. 20. He signed a 6-year contract, whose terms were not disclosed. Dan also does not have personnel control, which was apparently offered to Matt.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.