The Cleveland Browns’ defense has been the NFL’s stone wall against the run through three weeks. But Detroit Lions offensive coordinator John Morton isn’t backing down. In fact, he seems to be embracing the challenge.

“I don’t believe they’ve faced a rushing attack like ours yet,” Morton told the Detroit Free Press. “And we’re patient. We stay committed. That’s the key thing.”

Detroit’s Rushing Attack Rolling

The Lions enter Week 4 ranked fourth in the NFL in rushing at 149 yards per contest. With the one-two punch of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit has been punishing defenses on the ground.

Just look at Monday’s road win in Baltimore:

38 rushing attempts

224 rushing yards

4 rushing touchdowns

That’s more than production, that’s complete domination, and Morton is fully aware of it.

Cleveland’s Dominant Run Defense

Meanwhile, the Browns are giving up a league-low 57.3 rushing yards per outing. They’ve kept every opponent under 90 yards on the ground, including:

Cincinnati Bengals (46 yards)

Baltimore Ravens (45 yards)

Green Bay Packers (81 yards)

That’s three strong offensive units, all completely shut down by Cleveland’s defensive front.

Strength vs. Strength

This creates a must-watch Week 4 matchup: Detroit’s top-five rushing unit against Cleveland’s No. 1 rushing defense. Morton has made it clear the Lions won’t shy away from the ground game, no matter how difficult it looks.

With Montgomery pounding the middle and Gibbs providing speed and versatility, Detroit believes it has the recipe to finally break through the Browns’ defense.

“We’re patient,” Morton said. “We keep running it.”

On Sunday at Ford Field, we’ll see if Detroit’s rushing attack is as powerful as Morton believes, or if Cleveland proves again that running the ball against them is impossible.