The 49ers have the most lethal passing attack in the NFL. But Dan Campbell didn't hesitate this week when asked where the Lions will focus their defense on Sunday.
"You stop the run," he said. "You’ve got to stop the run because if you don’t, they’ll rush for 250 on you and then they won’t even worry about passing."
The Lions, to their credit, have stopped the run all season. After allowing the third most yards per carry in the NFL last year, they allowed the third fewest this year, without any significant additions up front. (You want to know why Aaron Glenn is a legitimate head coaching candidate, start there.) Forget 100-yard rushers. Glenn's unit hasn't given up 70 yards to a single running back all season. And the Lions have faced some good ones.
They're about to face the best in the game. Christian McCaffrey is fresh off the first rushing title of his career. He also led the league in yards per carry. He had more 100-yard games this season than sub-70-yard games. In fact, he's been held under 70 just once since November. We're closing in on February.
"He’s got vision and he’s patient," said Lions defensive tackle Alim McNeill. "But once he sees something, he puts his foot in the ground and he’s north-south straight to the end zone. He doesn’t do too much dancing and stuff. He likes to get downhill."
McCaffrey is as good as it gets, and the beneficiary of the best run-blocking offensive line in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. He can bend a defense to his liking by pulling a linebacker one way and then cutting back the other. He creates his own creases. On top of all that, 49ers head coach and offensive play-caller Kyle Shanahan does "an unbelievable job of setting you up," said Campbell, by forcing you to stop one concept "and then once you feel like you’re about to stop it, he counters." San Francisco's rushing attack rivals Detroit's as one of the most diverse in the NFL.
"Any front you get into, they adjust on the fly," said Campbell.
Rachaad White of the Bucs hit a couple long runs on the Lions last week, but was still held to 55 yards. The week before that, the Lions held Kyren Williams of the Rams to 61 yards, his worst output in eight games. The most productive running back against Detroit this year was Tyson Chandler of the Vikings who ran for 69 yards in the regular season finale, two weeks after the Lions had held him to 17 yards. They are strong and stout, with McNeill setting the tone in the middle.
"Violent," he said.
"Listen, we know exactly who we are," said Glenn. "Are we the fastest? Are we the most talented? No, but we’ll bite somebody’s face off when we go play them.”
(No kneecaps? "We’ll bite a kneecap, too, if we have to," he grinned.)
"That’s what we do," said McNeill. "I’ve been saying that all year, all offseason, too, that’s just our brand of football. That’s how we play. That’s how you have to play. The only thing we have now on defense is fear, so you have to be violent, you have to be aggressive. You have to bite people's faces off, you have to."
McCaffrey ran for 98 yards and two touchdowns against the Packers last week, adding 30 yards on seven catches. He's put up over 100 scrimmage yards in all but two games this season. He's averaged a ridiculous 6.4 yards per carry over his last seven. If the Lions can just keep the lid on him Sunday, maybe they can limit Brock Purdy and San Francisco's passing attack, which led the NFL this season in yards per attempt, yards per completion, 20-plus-yard plays and 40-plus-yard plays. Purdy led the NFL in passer rating (113.0), throwing to a cast of stars featuring Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and tight end George Kittle.
See what the Lions are up against?
"Look, you’ve got your hands full in both regards," said Campbell. "And Purdy does a hell of a job. They throw a lot of daggers middle of the field, and he does a hell of a job with touch, timing, rhythm. But we have to stop this run game. It just has to start there."
"If you can’t stop the run game," said McNeill, "a lot of things start to bleed."
If you at least limit it, you can start to get after the quarterback. And that's the key to stopping Purdy, who's smaller than most quarterbacks and prone to making mistakes under pressure. McNeill put it simply: "He can’t throw the ball if he can’t see."
"If there’s pressure in his face and it’s constant pressure, constantly getting hit, constantly getting hit, constantly getting hit, he’s not gonna want to keep taking those type of hits. As D-linemen, we have to go apply that pressure and get in his face."
The 49ers offense is scary. It's on Detroit's defense, said McNeill, "to instill fear."
"Biting people's faces off and being violent, that’s scary to look at on film," he said. "You don’t want to have to engage in that."