How the Lions Developed the League's Best Run Defense
One of the biggest reasons the Detroit Lions are 6-2 and in first place in the NFC North is the smothering run defense. Detroit ranks near the top across the board in run defense metrics found on TeamRankings.com:
- Second in yards per attempt
- Second in yards per game
- Fourth in rushing yard percentage
- Fifth in first down percentage
The consistency of the run defense really stands out. Only one opponent has topped 80 yards rushing, and the New York Jets accomplished nearly two-thirds of their output on just two successful drives.
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| Opponent | Carries | Yards | YPA | 1st downs | Season avg. per game |
| Giants | 22 | 53 | 2.4 | 4 | 110.5 |
| Panthers | 24 | 62 | 2.6 | 3 | 94.7 |
| Packers | 22 | 76 | 3.5 | 3 | 97.5 |
| Jets | 27 | 132 | 4.9 | 8 | 139.9 |
| Bills | 22 | 49 | 2.2 | 2 | 98.9 |
| Vikings | 18 | 69 | 3.8 | 5 | 119.3 |
| Saints | 21 | 73 | 3.5 | 5 | 129.5 |
| Falcons | 26 | 78 | 3.0 | 4 | 95.6 |
Detroit has allowed just 16 runs of 10 yards or more, tied for third-fewest in the league, according to Sporting Charts. It's worth noting the Saints and Jets—both in the top five in yards per attempt on the season—account for nine of those, too.
Perhaps the most impressive facet is that all three levels of the defense are responsible for the outstanding outcome. The front line, linebackers and secondary have all played key roles in shooting Detroit to the top of the league.
While they work incredibly well in concert, there are standout times for each layer. Put all those layers together, and it's a finely tuned orchestra of run defense.
Defensive Line
Everything starts with the front four, and Nick Fairley, Ndamukong Suh, Ezekiel Ansah and Jason Jones have made a formidable first line of defense.
Starting tackles Suh and Fairley are consistently disruptive. They routinely overmatch the opposing guard-center-guard combination with a package of speed, power and leverage.
Jones has been quite effective at playing on the strong-side flank, typically dealing with a tackle and a tight end or fullback on runs to his side.
Ansah is the relative weak link, still a better pass-rusher than run-stuffer at this point. That doesn't mean he's not a valuable instrument, however; he's become quite adept at back-side containment and holding the edge of the formation to push stretch runs farther outside.
Here's a play from Detroit's win over Green Bay which illustrates how well the line works together. The D-line even does this from what is typically a pass-rushing alignment.
The Packers are trying to spring Eddie Lacy around right tackle, where Bryan Bulaga is charged with getting outside of Jones and walling him off to the inside.
A couple of things happen right off the snap. First, Jones immediately gets his inside shoulder past Bulaga's effort to turn him. He's beaten the right tackle badly...but not as egregiously as Suh whips right guard T.J. Lang.
Suh explodes into Lang and immediately rocks him backward. In the span of three steps, Suh has pushed Lang three yards behind the line of scrimmage. If Lacy harbored any visions of trying to turn this run back inside, No. 90 has eliminated it.
Jones gets a heavy paw on Lacy, who comes to a near stop as he sees the Lions converging around him. Suh continues to drive deeper behind the play; he's moving the poor guard backward almost as fast as Lacy is running forward.
Fairley and Ansah both controlled their men as well, gaining penetration in case Lacy somehow escapes around the back side.
In that last picture, both linebacker DeAndre Levy and safety Isa Abdul-Quddus are in ideal position as well. They have unblocked angles directly at Lacy. If these were actual lions and Lacy was an antelope, the pride would eat well.
Linebackers
This unit has continued to thrive even after the loss of Stephen Tulloch, the team's leading tackler in each of the last three seasons.
The lion's share of the credit goes to Levy, but Tahir Whitehead and Ashlee Palmer have also been stout versus the run, as noted by Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
| Run Plays | Run Grade | |
| Levy | 199 | 10.2 |
| Whitehead | 150 | 1.9 |
| Palmer | 65 | 3.1 |
| Tulloch | 53 | 3.5 |
One of the keys is playing behind such a good line. Even when it's not making plays, the front soaks up blockers, leaving Levy and Co. free to range without encumbrance.
In this play from the Vikings game, it's easy to see how quickly the linebackers (circled in yellow) flow to the ball and terminate the ball-carrier.
Immediately after the snap, the line aggressively engages the blockers. Levy, Whitehead and Palmer all quickly read the running play and move in coordination to triangulate the runner.
Considering Whitehead is getting his first extended NFL action and Palmer is typically a reserve, their cohesion is quite impressive.
Whitehead has a clean lane right at Jerick McKinnon. The back-side containment is in perfect position, as is the disciplined outside containment if the shifty McKinnon tries to bounce outside. This is beautiful, well-coached football.
It's great having the players in position to make the plays, but they have to finish, too. All the linebackers have proven to be good tacklers.
Levy does have a rather alarming 12 missed tackles per PFF, but several of those have come in the passing game. In watching six of Detroit's games in researching this article, I saw him miss just one tackle in run support.
Secondary
With the front seven doing so much in front of them, the Lions cornerbacks and safeties really haven't had a lot of opportunities to roar against the run. That doesn't mean the backs aren't capable of making an impact, however.
One of the intricacies that showed up time and again in watching the run defense is how well cornerback Rashean Mathis leverages his position. The cagey veteran is outstanding at holding the line, forcing the ball-carrier back to the inside or stretching the outside run to the sideline.
This allows safety Glover Quin to swoop in and clean up any runs where the ball somehow eludes the front seven. Quin has been quite good as the last line of defense, save for one terrible gaffe against Chris Johnson of the Jets on his 35-yard touchdown scamper.
Quin's value as a safety really shines on this play from the New Orleans game.
Cassius Vaughn is circled in the slot. Quin is lined up deeper behind him. Note how they have not tipped their hands on the coverage scheme, or Vaughn's blitzing intentions.
Vaughn tears around the edge, ignoring the fake quick screen to the slot. He is confident Quin will carry out that assignment, and the safety is indeed closing ground quickly. Because he trusts Quin behind him, Vaughn keeps pressing unblocked toward the ball.
The nickelback arrives at the ball almost at the handoff. So does Suh, who once again destroys his blocker and bulls his way into the backfield. This is an easy tackle for loss in the red zone.
With all three levels playing smart and together, there is no reason to think Detroit's strong run defense so far this season will regress. Losing Nick Fairley hurts a little, but reserve C.J. Mosley graded out as the best run-stuffer on the line a year ago.
Add in linebacker Kyle Van Noy, whose run prowess is profiled here, and Lions fans should feel quite confident that the outstanding play against the run will persist.
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