The Detroit Lions had no answer for the New England Patriots defense in Week 5. They totaled only 330 yards of offense as they were shut out at Gillette Stadium, 29-0.
While it was an encouraging performance from the Pats' D, they'll face a slightly tougher test this Sunday when they visit the Browns. That's because they'll have to go up against No. 24 in the Cleveland backfield.
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Nick Chubb enters Week 6 leading the NFL in rushing yards (593), touchdowns (seven) and runs of 20+ yards (seven). He isn't known as a dual threat, but that's where Kareem Hunt comes in to form one of the best running back tandems in the league.
Former Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork knows a thing or two about stopping the run, and he says doing so will be the key to prevailing over the Browns.
"It's going to have to be gang-tackling. Everyone's going to have to stay in their lanes and their gaps, because this guy (Nick Chubb) is a great running back," Wilfork said. "I mean, he's been doing this since he came into the league, and there's a reason he's the league's leading rusher. He's proven every year since he's been in the game.
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"So, as a defense, you've got to be able to gang-tackle and you've got to be able to tackle with a purpose, and understand going into this game your job is to stop the run number one. It is very crucial this week. You have to be able to win first down. If you can win first down, kind of get them in a second-and-long situation, you can kind of manipulate and understand what they do next. But when you have a running back that gets six, seven, eight yards whenever he touches the ball, that's a problem. So it's going to be all on the defense, especially the front seven, to be able to hold him in check and make Cleveland beat them through the air."
The Pats defense limited the Lions' running game to 3.7 yards per carry last week, though Detroit was without its star running back D'Andre Swift. During their Week 4 loss to Green bay, the Packers' RB duo of Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon had a combined 33 carries for 183 yards (5.5 ypc).
Limiting Chubb and Hunt won't be any easier, but it will be the recipe for success on Sunday.
Watch Wilfork's full segment on "The Gameplan" below: