Tag: John Morton

Five things to watch as the Lions face the Browns and their top-rated defense

Coach Dan Campbell thinks the Cleveland Browns’ defense is the best the Lions have faced so far this season.

The Browns (1-2) are coming off a big comeback win against the Packers, while the Lions (2-1) decidedly beat the Ravens on Monday night. The two teams meet at 1 p.m. on Sunday at Ford Field.

Both must guard against a letdown after big wins.

“What we talk about is our standards. We have to play to what we – the way we practice, the way we prepare, the way we play, it’s about our standards. Nothing else matters,’’ Campbell said.”And we’re very aware of what’s coming in here. That’s a big win those guys got. They had to fight their way back to get that W and they did everything right at the end of the game to get it done. And they willed that to happen, so they’ve got the fight in them.’’

The Browns overall defense and rushing defense are both rated tops in the NFL.

“This defense, I’ve already mentioned, I think is the best that we will have faced. Green Bay was damn good, but this defense is really good,’’ Campbell said. “So, we’ve got our hands full over there. And offensively, they’re going to ball control, (AB Joe) Flacco’s seen every look you could see, they’re going to lean on (RB Quinshon Judkins) the rookie. And so, we know what’s coming in here.”

Five things to watch:

ONE: Cutting through DE Myles Garrett and the Browns defense has allowed just 290 yards per game. Cleveland is also top ranked in rushing defense giving up just 57.3 yards per game. Impressive numbers but something will have to give since the Lions have the League’s third-best total offense with 394.3 yards per game and tied for second with 34.3 points per game. Detroit’s numbers might be higher if they had issues in  the opening loss at Green Bay. “They’re sound, they play hard, they rush hard. Obviously Myles (Garrett) is a big part of that,’’ Goff said about the Browns defense. “They’re good in the backend too, they’re really good in the backend. They’re good at every spot and that’s what these good defenses typically are. And they’re no different.”

TWO: As always, winning in the trenches will be key. Detroit’s offensive line has improved each week with rookie right guard Tate Ratledge coming on strong. “Yeah, it’s been great. And it’s just reps, it really is. For any of these young guys, it’s just more reps he gets, the better he’s going to be. And I think he’s played great,’’ Goff said of Ratledge. Last week the defense sacked Lamar Jackson seven times. Seven. Something for Joe Flacco and the Browns’ offensive line to think about.

THREE:  The Lions offensive versatility can’t be underrated. “With the personnel that we have we can pretty much do anything we want. There’s a lot of weapons, you saw the different personnel grouping and all the different formations,’’ offensive coordinator John Morton said. “We’re all trying to create mismatches, that’s the way I was taught.’’

FOUR: Look for Amik Robertson to take more snaps at corner instead of Terrion Arnold. Defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said he’s not down on Arnold, calling him a very young player (he’s 22) who is going through growing pains. “Amik has always earned his keep with me,’’ defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said. Joe Flacco has thrown just two touchdowns against four interceptions. 

FIVE: Good starts are key on both sides of the ball. The Lions scored on their opening drive in Baltimore but the defense gave up a touchdown on the Ravens’ opening drive. That’s not good enough for Sheppard. “I want to start the game with a 3-and-out,’’ he said.

PREDICTION: Lions 27, Browns 17

UP NEXT: Lions at Cincinnati Bengals, 4:25 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 5.

Browns’ defense is stellar, but they haven’t faced a run game like the Lions

RBs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs provide 1-2 punch

ALLEN PARK — Running against the Cleveland Browns defense has been problematic for the first three opponents. It’s why the Browns are rated tops in the NFL in rushing defense allowing just 57.3 rushing yards per game.

It should be interesting when the Lions (2-1) host the Browns (1-2) at Ford Field on Sunday.

“I don’t think they’ve seen a run game like ours yet,’’ Lions offensive coordinator John Morton said on Thursday.

Something will have to give because the Lions own the NFL’s fourth best rushing offense, averaging 149 yards per game. The Browns have given up an average of 57.3 rushing yards per game.

Running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs combined for 218 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns.

 “They feed off each other, they’re both obviously incredibly hard-working and good players,’’ Lions quarterback Jared Goff said. “But I think the energy, they kind of feed off each other. One of them’s running well, the other guy wants to run well too and they’re as good as it gets.”

In his first season as Lions offensive coordinator, Morton is no stranger to Montgomery and Gibbs. He said he’s known they were special since the day they arrived in Detroit. 

“Really, I mean both of them. I saw D-Mo from across the field for years in Chicago and I was shocked when they let him walk. And then shoot, when we landed him it was like, ‘Holy smokes, we just got one of the best backs in the League,’’’ Morton said. “And then you draft Gibbs, it’s like, ‘Wow, we’ve got two of the best backs in the League.’’’

He agrees with Goff that they feed off each other. Of course, they do not do it alone.

In the Week 1 loss, the offensive line had communication issues. Gibbs and Montgomery combined for just 44 yards in the loss. Since the O-line has meshed and improved communication, the pair combined for 151 rushing yards and two rushing TDs in a win over Bears and 218 yards and 4 rushing touchdowns  in Baltimore.

They also benefit from blocking by the wide receivers and tight ends.

“It’s the best I’ve ever seen in my 28 years of coaching, the way these WRs block, the way Scottie (Montgomery, running backs coach) gets these guys to play. I don’t think there’s too many teams — the Rams with Cooper Kupp and those guys — they do the same thing,’’ Morton said.

“I always tell the wideouts, man, when the tight ends and the O-line and backs block for us, when the time comes our turn to block for them, we have to do the same thing,’’ Morton said. “That’s the beauty about this team. It’s so team oriented nobody cares about how many balls, this and that, it’s just about winning. When we do that we’re pretty good.’’

SUNDAY: Browns (1-2) at Lions (2-1), 1 p.m. at Ford Field. The game will be televised on FOX with Kenny Albert and Jonathan Vilma on the call.

Five reasons the Lions beat the Ravens, 38-30, at Baltimore

Seems like sometimes outsiders lose track of the fact that the Detroit Lions are built with plenty of fight. You might call it grit.

They showed it again on Monday night with a 38-30 win over the Ravens at Baltimore where the Lions have never previously found success. It was the second straight win for the Lions (2-1). The Ravens fell to 1-2.

Coach Dan Campbell loves complementary football and that’s exactly what he saw against QB Lamar Jackson and RB Derrick Henry. The Lions defense sacked Jackson seven times and the offense scored on drives of 96 and 98 yards. The run game was amazing, when they needed a big pass Jared Goff came through. 

“We did exactly what we wanted to do,” Jared Goff said.

ESPN analysts prior to the game all picked the Ravens to win. Not sure if the Lions  knew that but it didn’t matter. They had all the motivation they needed.

Five reasons the Lions won:

ONE: Lions defense made a statement with a huge goal-line stop with 2 minutes left in half. The Ravens had first-and-goal at Detroit’s 3 and gained 2 yards. Then they were stopped on second and third downs. Then on fourth down Lions’ Jack Campbell strip-sacked Lamar Jackson, giving the Lions possession. 

TWO: It was the 11th game in which Lions RBs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery both rushed for TDs. In fact, they each had two. It established a new NFL record for the most games in which each member of an RB duo have rushed for TDs. Montgomery’s 72-yard break-through run late in the third, set up a 4-yard trick play touchdown with ball going from Goff to Amon-Ra St. Brown who tossed it to Gibbs for the score. Oh, and it happened on fourth-and-1. Then to wrap up the win, Montgomery ran in for a 31-yard touchdown. Credit the offensive line for their part in the run game and protecting Goff who was never sacked.

THREE: There’s running down the clock and then there is the Lions offense running an 18-play, 98-yard touchdown series taking up 10:48 in the second quarter. Montgomery’s TD gave Detroit a 14-7 lead.  But the Ravens drove and scored on a Jackson pass to Rashod Bateman with 1:23 left to tie it at 14-14 at the half. The Lions also scored on a 96-yard drive. 

FOUR: Lamar Jackson was sacked five times in the Ravens’ first two games. The Lions defense sacked him seven times including twice in the fourth quarter. The Lions defense came up big AGAIN midway through the fourth quarter when Aidan Hutchinson knocked the ball out of Derrick Henry’s arms and D.J. Read recovered it at Baltimore’s 16. The Lions settled for a 45-yard field goal which gave them a 31-24 lead with 6:35 left.

FIVE: Time of possession was an emphasis for the Lions. In the first half they had the ball 19:48 to 10:12. Offensive coordinator John Morton stuck with the run game even when at times they weren’t picking up many yards. Smart move. They finished with 225 rushing yards and four rushing TDs. The best defense was keeping the Ravens offense on the sidelines.  And to keep it interesting, Morton reached into his bag of trick plays.

UP NEXT: Cleveland Browns at Lions, 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 28.