Nick Chubb & Browns Run Game will Test Green Bay Packers Defense
By Paul Bretl
The good news is that the Green Bay Packers will have Kenny Clark back on Saturday after he missed last week’s game against Baltimore on the reserve/COVID list–and this defense is really going to need him against Cleveland.
Without Clark last week, the play from the Packers’ interior defensive line went about as one would expect. I wouldn’t say that it wasn’t egregious by any means, but there was far from a consistent push as well. As a team, which included 13 rushes from quarterback Tyler Huntley, the Ravens would average 5.5 yards per attempt on the ground.
Entering Week 16, the Browns currently average just shy of 29 rushing attempts per game, which is the eighth-most in football, and their offensive line unit ranks fourth in run-blocking by PFF’s grading system–although, it needs to be mentioned that JC Tretter and Jedrick Willis are both currently on the reserve/COVID list.
Star running back Nick Chubb is fourth in the NFL in rushing yards with 1,017, and he’s averaging 5.4 yards per rush, which is the fifth-highest clip. By the way, do you know who ranks sixth and eighth in that category? D’Ernest Johnson and Kareem Hunt, you guessed it, both of the Cleveland Browns.
Even behind a stout offensive line, Chubb has done a bulk of his damage this season after contact, totaling 770 rushing yards after being hit, which ranks third in the NFL. His 4.05 yards after contact average ranks second, and his 51 missed tackles forced ranks third, according to PFF ($$).
So yeah, the Green Bay Packers run defense is going to be tested.
"“He’s a phenomenal back,” defensive coordinator Joe Barry said via SI. “Got a ton of respect for him. He’s a do-it-all back. He can not only carry the ball, he can receive the ball. They do a great job with him on screens. He’s great in protection. He’s an every-down back. He’s really elite as far as when they just turn around and hand the ball off to him, he’s really good. He’s running behind a great offensive line – he’s got two Pro Bowl guards in front of him. It’s a team that knows how to run the ball and wants to run the ball. He’s one of the elite backs in our league, there’s no doubt about it.”"
For the most part this season, Joe Barry’s game plan has been to take away the opponent’s passing game, and instead, he’s basically been daring opposing offenses’ to run the ball with his heavy usage of lightboxes.
Although the Green Bay Packers run defense numbers aren’t eye-popping by any means, ranking 25th in yards per carry allowed with 4.5, when you consider that there hasn’t been a ton of extra help around the line of scrimmage, they’ve held up well, not allowing a single 100-yard rusher and also not letting opponents control the game on the ground like we’ve seen in the past.
But with all of that said, it will be interesting to see if Barry devotes are few more bodies near the line of scrimmage in an effort to slow Chubb and the Cleveland run game. We saw a similar approach earlier this season against Minnesota and Dalvin Cook.
While the Cleveland tight ends are featured heavily in the passing game, and we all know that Jarvis Landry is certainly capable of making big plays, if it’s Barry’s goal to slow the Browns’ best playmaker, then shifting the game plan to slow Chubb is going to be the prudent move.
Of course, having Clark back will provide the Green Bay run defense with a major boost, but to slow a player like Chubb, it’s going to take a group effort, with a strong push from up the middle, the edge rushers holding contain, and all 11 hats on the ball to limit Chubb’s yards after contact.