The Browns’ reward for an upset win against the Packers will be a trip to Detroit to face the Lions. And a mild dispute has emerged between the two coordinators who’ll be matching wits when the Lions have the ball.
Lions offensive coordinator John Morton said of the Cleveland defense, “I don’t think they’ve seen a running game like ours yet.”
Asked about that remark on Thursday, Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz disagreed.
“I mean, we’ve faced some good running offenses,” Schwartz told reporters. “I mean, Green Bay was running the ball really well, so was Baltimore. Cincinnati was more of a pass-game offense. So, you know, it’s one of the major things we have to do is stop the run. Two different running backs, you got to protect your edges. You got to defend all 53 and [a] third [yards], particularly with [Jahmyr] Gibbs. And then there’s a lot of passes that are just extensions of the run game. A lot of screen game, a lot of quicks. Even the checkdowns are sort of an extension of the run game. So, our ability to play run defense, our ability to tackle in the open field, you know, that’s a major part of this game plan going forward.”
The Lions are currently fourth in the league, with 149.0 rushing yards per game. Cleveland allows a league-best 57.3 yards per game.
The Browns limited the Packers to 81 rushing yards, holding Josh Jacobs to 30 yards on 16 carries, an average of 1.9 yards per attempt. The Ravens, despite winning 41-10, gained 45 rushing yards on 21 attempts.
