DETROIT -- Dan Campbell can feel the love.
Even with the top-seeded Detroit Lions preparing for their NFC divisional-round showdown against the Washington Commanders on Saturday night, it has been hard for Detroit's head coach to miss some of the artistic fan engagement happening around town.
There's a ton of excitement in Detroit surrounding the Lions' first playoff game at Ford Field this postseason, and fans have displayed their enthusiasm in creative ways. There have been Lions-themed restaurant items, life-size cakes and even a celebratory drone show in Windsor, Ontario, that have completely blown Campbell and the Lions away.
"It is unique. It's one of the things that for somebody like me was appealing about playing here, wanting to play here and coach here. This is a sleeping giant for football," Campbell said during Thursday's practice. "The Pistons have had success. Red Wings have had success. But the Lions have never had success and to be able to unlock everything, this is a sports town and for everybody to feel like they're a part of it."
Amon-Ra St. Brown has also felt the fan base's energy. The Lions All-Pro receiver has dyed his hair Honolulu blue again for the playoffs, inspiring others in the city to sport the team's signature color.
.@amonra_stbrown 🤝 @DetroitPistons pic.twitter.com/OcZZcZ8H3A
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) January 15, 2025
"Man, this is our team, and they represent us and what they're about and the way they play, we can stand behind that," Campbell said. "So, every little thing that comes up, the St. Brown with people dying their hair now. It's pretty cool. We feel the love. We appreciate it."
A life-size cake, measuring 6-foot-2, of St. Brown completing a headstand is currently on display in the front window of The Home Bakery shop located in Rochester, Michigan.
St. Brown celebrated his second-quarter toe-tap touchdown against the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 3 with a no-hands headstand. It became so popular among Lions fans that it was the source of inspiration for Christmas ornaments, T-shirts, a 7-foot snow sculpture created by longtime fan Jamison Agnello and now a life-size cake that was completed on the night of Jan. 3.
"It is crazy. My dad keeps texting me, 'You've got to do it again. The next touchdown that you score.' But, I'm like, 'I can't. It was a one-time thing.' Maybe if we get to the Bowl, we'll see, but it's not like a dance, it's just a headstand," St. Brown said. "So, it's a one-time thing, but yeah, it's crazy to see how many people have gravitated toward it."
The Home Bakery in Rochester, Mich. has created this life-sized cake of #Lions star Amon-Ra St, Brown from his headstand celebration against GB on Nov. 3. The St. Brown image has become so popular among Lions fans that it's also been used on t-shirts and even Christmas ornaments. pic.twitter.com/Ps4MZZ0yIq
— Eric Woodyard (@E_Woodyard) January 4, 2025
Michigan native Heather Tocco, owner of The Home Bakery, is planning to keep the cake display up until the end of February -- if it holds up that long. She was one of 11 workers who spent at least 200 hours working on the cake during the Christmas season to see the creation come to life.
"Everybody is rooting for the Lions. Everybody wants to see us do good," Tocco told ESPN. "It's infectious. How can you not be excited about what's going on?"
St. Brown visited the business on Monday to see the creation in person and offered an opportunity to win playoff game tickets against the Commanders for anyone who makes a purchase at the bakery through Jan. 16.
"What he has done for my business in a time where I would normally be laying people off and cutting hours and things like that, his gift for us [and] doing this window has turned our January into another December, which I couldn't have dreamt of," Tocco said. "We were honestly doing something we love to show pride for something that we love. To show the love to the Lions and it's really amazing what this has turned into."
The Detroit Police Department is also showing its support during the playoff run by allowing officers to wear Lions skull caps or baseball caps while in uniform.
In downtown Detroit, Mootz Pizzeria and Bar -- which is less than a mile away from Ford Field -- is also offering Lions-themed items such as the Honolulu Blue Pizza and specialty cocktails such as the Montgomery Manhattan, Amon-Ra Spritz and Kneecap Sour Shot among others.
They are donating $1 for every specialty pizza and cocktail to the Detroit Lions Foundation through the playoff run.
"I haven't seen anything like this going on downtown, which is unique. We decided to jump on it early before anybody else did," said Tyler Westfall, director of operations at Mootz Pizzeria and Bar. "It's exciting times."
The city is starving for a winner and fans are paying top dollar to be in attendance.
According to Vivid Seats, this will be the most expensive Lions ticket in franchise history, with an average selling price of $855. After a record-setting season where Detroit finished 15-2, Detroit has earned the NFC's No. 1 seed for the first time in franchise history with home-field advantage in the postseason.
Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams is fired up for the big stage and anticipates the fan support in Detroit being a true advantage as the Lions eye a championship.
"I feel like it's going to help us a lot. It's going to help us on the defensive side, it'll cause false starts and delay of games. I'm just looking forward to the fans doing what they do," Williams told ESPN. "They come out and they help us every home game we have, and they put pressure on quarterbacks and on offensive linemen, receivers and pressure on the whole opposing team's offense.
"Shoutout to the fans for doing that but I need y'all to do that for the rest of these two games we're having and make y'all way down [to the Super Bowl] and do it again."