Detroit Lions vs. Cleveland Browns: Breaking Down the Lions' Game Plan

The Detroit Lions follow the Lake Erie circle tour and venture to Cleveland on Sunday to face the Browns.

What: Detroit Lions (3-2) at Cleveland Browns (3-2)

Where: FirstEnergy Field, Cleveland, Ohio

When: Sunday, October 13, 1 p.m Eastern

Watch: Fox, check local listings

Both teams are 3-2 and are also tied for the lead in their respective divisions. 

Cleveland comes off an impressive 37-24 win over Buffalo in the Thursday night game in Week 5. It was their third win in a row after starting the season 0-2. 

In the process of the win, they lost starting quarterback Brian Hoyer to a nasty knee injury. That thrust original starter Brandon Weeden back into the lineup, and he will lead the Browns going forward. 

The Lions lost 22-9 at Green Bay in a game most notable for the absence of star receiver Calvin Johnson. As I noted in the game takeaways, the defensive tackles and offensive line turned in subpar performances. 

Detroit really needs a win here to shake off the negativity of the lackluster showing in Green Bay. Here are a couple of ways the Lions can pick up the road win. 

Snuff Out the Run

One of the keys to thwarting the Browns is to shut down the run quickly. Cleveland likes to run a lot of traps and power leads in the running game, setting up a main hole but also a primary cutback option. This play is a good example; I've seen this play and direct variants from it in every Browns game this year.

The right side of the line immediately pulls across the formation as the ball is snapped. Tight end Gary Barnidge (No. 82) motioned into the backfield pre-snap and is serving as the halfback. The remaining tight end, Jordan Cameron (No. 84), throws a kick-out block on the end.

The runner, Willis McGahee, has the option to follow the momentum of the blocking to the left side, but here he sees the cutback lane. Note how clustered the defense is, as well as the gap discipline by outside linebacker Kiko Alonso (No. 50) to force the cutback.

This is where the strength of the Lions defensive line comes into play. Marcell Dareus (No. 98) discards his blocker and attacks McGahee before he can get to the cutback lane. The safety on the play (No. 25) is in excellent position behind him to clean up if needed, as he stayed at home instead of flowing with the blocking.

The Bills defended this play expertly. Did you notice their pre-snap alignment? You should, because it’s nearly identical to the Lions’ base defense. Substitute Ndamukong Suh for Dareus, DeAndre Levy for Alonso and Louis Delmas for Da’Norris Searcy (No. 25), and you're looking into the future at a play that we will likely see on Sunday.

The key to the play was the defensive line not overreacting to the blocking flow. This has been an issue for Suh, but especially Nick Fairley, lately. If the Browns run this play to the other side of the line, and they have a few times this season, Fairley must not take himself out of the play.

Because Suh and Fairley can win individual battles up front, they stand an excellent chance of shutting down this Cleveland running game. The patience by the second-level defenders is critical in case that doesn't happen.

Detroit did that well against Minnesota and Arizona but has seen the run defense progressively decline. If the Lions want to get back into the win column, they must end the trend.

Run, Run, Run

One of the critical issues in the Green Bay game was getting away from running the ball. Even though the passing game was clearly not effective, Detroit abandoned any semblance of offensive balance.

"

Lions pass heaviest game (70%) comes in the one Calvin Johnson sits out. Perfect.

— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) October 7, 2013"

Following that tactical plan in Cleveland would lead to disaster. 

The Browns lead the league in opposing yards per completion and sit second in yards per pass attempt on defense. As this chart from teamrankings.com illustrates, they're way ahead in the yards per completion race. 

This is the impact of having a shutdown cornerback in Joe Haden. Should Calvin Johnson play, Haden will draw the assignment. He is one of the best in the business. Check out how well he handled Bengals star wide receiver A.J. Green, who is about as close as you can get to Calvin Johnson in terms of overall ability. 

Haden loves to play aggressively without necessarily being in press coverage. Look at his stance. He's low, balanced and perfectly square to Green. 

As Green closes the initial cushion, Haden hits him with a heavy arm. That effectively bars Green from getting outside, and it also serves as a way for Haden to leverage himself to the inside. This is a very similar pattern to the one Calvin Johnson took for a 72-yard touchdown against Arizona. 

Even though Green does get some separation on the slant, Haden closes quickly and makes a strong tackle right after the catch. It's impressive that Green holds onto the ball here, as Haden gets a hand on it while he’s making the tackle.

According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required for premium content), Haden has allowed completions on just 18 of the 38 balls thrown in his direction. On those completions, the total yards after catch is just 40 yards, a very impressive figure of just 2.2 YAC yards on each reception.

The Browns have also received very good coverage from their safeties. T.J. Ward and Tashaun Gipson are a big reason why the Browns top the league in yards per completion. They close quickly on the ball and know how to get the receiver to the ground.

Per the Detroit Free Press's Dave Birkett, a decision about Calvin Johnson hasn't been made yet. Even if he plays, it's a real stretch to expect him to be at his best. The other receiver could not get open at all against Green Bay’s lesser secondary.

Joique Bell could be a real key here. Unlike Reggie Bush, who is more dynamic but also more prone to improvisational disaster, Bell can lower the pads and drive the legs for tough yardage. 

Bush struggled against Green Bay because he didn't attack with authority. He wanted to dance and bounce, but the Packers stayed patient and corralled him nicely. Bell had better success then, and he can against a similar defense in Cleveland too.

Let's go back to the Washington game. The Redskins, like the Browns, love to bring extra defenders into the box and shoot the gaps quickly with linebackers and safeties. Here is a play where Bell beats that attack with good, hard running.

Bell takes the handoff from Matt Stafford and immediately charges to where the hole is designed to be. He's hitting the line of scrimmage at full speed.

Two defenders converge, but because Bell is charging hard, he is able to run through their tackling effort. His knees are high, and his shoulders and hips are balanced. 

The next defender approaches Bell, and the running back splatters him to the turf like a Ford F-150 trucking over an armadillo. It takes two more defenders to finally bring him to the ground.

It will take rugged, determined running like that to beat the Browns. Physical, downhill football is the best way to get the offensive line back on the right track.

As I covered earlier, the line struggled against Green Bay. They could use the confidence boost. Sustaining long drives and gashing the defense for powerful chunks of yardage demoralizes and wears down a defense. 

It would also put less pressure on Stafford to have to force throws to receivers who struggled to get any separation against the Packers. With Johnson's status uncertain, the Lions would be wise to lean a lot heavier on the run this week. 

As always, avoiding penalties and winning the turnover battle will be critical as well. The Lions do have an advantage here. Detroit is plus-4 in turnover margin on the season, while the Browns are at plus-1. 

If you're looking for one last bit of optimism, consider this: Detroit holds a better winning percentage (.778) in the regular season against Cleveland than they do against any other active franchise.