Detroit Lions: How to beat the Cleveland Browns in Week 10
Beating a team that is 0-8 shouldn’t be too difficult for the Detroit Lions. They still can’t underestimate their opponent.
As snake bitten of a franchise the Detroit Lions have been over the years, no team has had it worse than the Cleveland Browns. Having a winless team come into your house and beat you is embarrassing. Although Detroit should win this game, Cleveland still has a chance if the home team can’t execute and gives the game away to the visitors.
Sling the pigskin
It’s uncommon to see teams run the football effectively midway through the season after struggling early on. The Browns more than likely won’t be the opponent you see the Lions get their running game going against. Cleveland ranks third in run defense and 17th in pass defense, better numbers than Detroit (sixth, 23rd).
I’m not ruling out any breakthrough performance, but if the Lions want to run the ball, they need to pass first to open up the ground attack. Oh, a little Zach Zenner isn’t too much to ask for is it? Detroit wouldn’t regret it if they gave him a shot and turned him loose.
If not for a lackluster offense, the Dawg Pound wouldn’t be as chained up and as terrible as their record would indicate. Their major malfunction is at the quarterback position. Luckily for the Lions, Matthew Stafford is just the kind of quarterback you need to win in this league.
This matchup will come down to which quarterback plays better and it will be Stafford who needs to put the team on his back to win this one. Whoever starts for the Browns will be no match nor will they have much help from their below-average skilled players.
Get creative on defense
Getting turnovers and creating pressure on the quarterback are pretty obvious game plans for most teams. For the Lions, a big way to continue creating turnovers is getting sneaky on defense. What that means is disguising what the Browns’ offense thinks the defense is doing.
Anyway they can throw off one of Cleveland’s young quarterbacks, regardless if they sack and/or intercept them or not, makes life easier for the Lions to win. Stunts, hiding blitzes, sending exotic blitzes, zone coverages etc. are all things Detroit can do bring their record above .500 for the first time since Week Five (3-2).
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Give respect to the opposition
Far too often, the Lions find new ways to lose, especially to teams they should beat. In the NFL, any team can win on any given day. Don’t let the Browns’ record of 0-8 fool you, Detroit can lose this game. Each week is a new week, so keeping the effort at a maximum and the cockiness at a minimum will help lead them to victory over Cleveland.