The Cleveland Browns picked up their first win of the season last week against the previously unbeaten Green Bay Packers.
It was another impressive day for the defense, which sacked Green Bay quarterback
Jordan Love five times and broke running back Josh Jacobs’ streak of 11 consecutive games with a touchdown.
Speaking of streaks, Cleveland’s defense continued to dominate in the run game, holding the Packers to just 81 rushing yards. The Browns are first in the NFL in run defense, allowing just 57.3 yards per game.
Next up is the Detroit Lions, who have scored 90 points in their last two games, and have a run game that is No. 2 in DVOA, fourth in yards per game (149), and seventh in yards per carry (5.0).
On Thursday, Cleveland’s coordinators held their weekly meeting with the press, and here are the key takeaways from what they had to say about the upcoming game against the Lions.
Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz
Detroit’s running game is fueled by David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, who have combined for 137.7 rushing yards per game and six rushing touchdowns.
Going up against a two-back offense is nothing the Browns have not seen this season, but what may set the Lions apart is the work of the wide receivers in the run game, according to Schwartz:
“Green Bay ran a lot of duo. Baltimore runs a lot of duo. You know, the base runs that Lions run are duo, which, you know, they’re not unique plays. They just have really good players. They have good blockers up front. The tight ends are good. The running backs are good.
“And one of the things that’s impressed me with the Lions is how tough their wide receivers are as blockers. You know, all their guys are known as sort of key wide receivers. And a lot of times, you know, those guys will sort of accentuate the route running and things like that. All these guys will go dig out safeties; they’ll block the backside. They’re really good blocking corners and all that other stuff. So, you know, we gotta do a good job getting off those blocks too. But that’s really impressed me with the Lions.”
The Lions have gone for it on fourth down eight times this season and converted seven of those attempts. Knowing that the Lions may go for it when teams may generally not can change the way Schwartz will call plays:
“It definitely plays into it. Just because, you know… make it third-and-10, you know, usually you give up eight yards and the punt team is coming on the field, right? These guys, it’s not the case. And it’s not just in the plus territory. I mean, the NFL is trending toward a lot of teams going for it on fourth down in plus territory. These guys will go for it in their own territory. They’ll go for it midfield, they’ll go for a little bit longer for it, fourth downs.
“So just knowing that going in, it layers your calls just a little bit differently, you know, really doesn’t change. It really doesn’t change our attitude with the play. But, you know, maybe what you’re willing to give up on a third down might not be the same this week as in other weeks.”
Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees
The Browns are averaging just 15.3 points per game, and while they know the Lions have the potential to put up a lot of points, the offense has to focus on what it can control, according to Rees:
“I think offensively, you’re conscious of what’s going on, on the other side, but we know, regardless of who we’re playing offensively, we still have to execute and do our job. We have a tremendous amount of trust in our defense, obviously, but really, the focus still holds on us. You know, less about, ‘Hey, we got to keep up’ or ‘we got to be in a track meet.’ We just are more focused on doing our part, making sure that we can have success play in and play out, and you hope that if you do those things, results will come.”
Injuries at both tackle positions have forced the Browns to rely on backups KT Leveston and Cornelius Lucas more than expected, which has also led to utilizing the running backs and tight ends to help block.
But Rees said that is not an excuse for some of the struggles the Browns have had in the passing game:
“You look across the league, guys have success throwing the ball and chip. You don’t want to use any of those crutches to say that we’re limiting ourselves there. There are great pass rushers in this league. We’re going to play against another one this week, and you look at our schedule, we play against a handful of the very best across the NFL. So, it’s a commonality in the NFL to see guys helping on the perimeter, just with how talented some of those guys are. So, as coaches, we have to do a better job of finding ways to get our guys open and be efficient in the passing game while also starting with protection.”
Special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone
The special teams righted the ship against the Green Bay Packers after a rough start to the season. No punt blocks, a field goal block by Denzel Ward, and Andre Szmyt converting the game-winning field goal.
It was a nice game, but the unit needs to keep improving, according to Ventrone:
“I think it’s just good to get back on track a little bit. We’re still not even remotely close to where we need to be. We’re just trying to get better each week. We need to see more improvement from week to week. We’re going against a really good team this week. So, our focus is all in on Detroit and trying to win this game.”
The Browns elevated Kaden Davis from the practice squad for the game against the Packers, and used Davis as a return man on kickoffs, where he had one return for 28 yards.
Davis may see more action in the return game depending on each week’s opponent:
“We saw some good things out of Kaden in the preseason. He’s got really good speed, so we thought his skill set suited us for that matchup. I think that it’s an option (against the Lions). Honestly, I think that depending on what our need is going into that week…the practice squad’s an extension of the roster. So, all those guys are preparing every week, like, they’re playing in the game.”
The Browns and the Lions kick off on Sunday at 1 p.m. Stay tuned to Dawgs By Nature for coverage throughout the weekend and all day on Sunday.
