It’s always interesting at this time of year when several NFL football teams are vying for a chance to enter the playoffs. The 2023 season is presenting an incredibly tight race in both conferences. Sean Payton and the Denver Broncos have executed a miraculous return to prominence winning 6 of their last 7. While it has been evident that Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell is directly responsible for the resurgence of his team, they have struggled since November 23rd, losing 2 of 3. This is a big game for both teams but most critical for the Denver Broncos.
Dan Campbell is a Sean Payton protégé. Cambell spent time with Payton off and on dating back to 1999 both as a player and Payton’s Assistant Head Coach in New Orleans from 2016 to 2020. Both are disciples of Bill Parcels and approach the game in a hard-nosed fashion.
The Lions (9-4) are currently in charge of the NFC North with the Vikings just 2 games back. Their offense has been explosive this season (#3 overall). While QB Jared Goff has exceeded expectations on the whole, his production has dwindled a bit in the last 4 weeks and he’s thrown 5 interceptions across that time-frame. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and TE Sam LaPorta remain Goff’s favorite targets. RB David Montgomery has had a resurgence since singing as a free agent this year. He shares rushing and receiving duties with the mercurial Jahmyr Gibbs. Both have been fantastic this year. Defensively, linebacker Alex Anzalone leads the team in tackles with 96. DE Aiden Hutchinson leads the team in sacks although the defense as a whole is not enjoying the same success rushing the passer as they did earlier in the year.
In the midst of a massive resurgence, and should the Broncos go deep into the playoffs, Sean Payton should be a Coach of the Year candidate. Russell Wilson almost looks like Seattle Russ, running around and making plays both passing and on the ground. Unfortunately, only WR Courtland Sutton has emerged as a consistent playmaker for Wilson. The Broncos are efficient running the ball, gaining 115.0 ypg on the ground. It’s my opinion that DC Vance Joseph should be in the conversation as DCOY. The Denver defense looks like a totally different unit than they were early in the season and they share the league lead (Jax) in takeaways with 24.
The Lions must:
Offense: Establish the run and exploit the Denver defense that is suspect against the run. A game where Jared Goff throws more than 27 times will spell trouble for the Lions.
Defense: Stop Jovonte Williams and Semaje Perine from having success running. Apply quick pressure to Russell Wilson and keep him contained in the pocket.
The Broncos must:
Offense: Trust the running game to set up play-action passes. Continue to be creative in the red-zone.
Defense: Shut down Montgomery and Gibbs. Confuse Jared Goff with different alignments and blitz packages. Communicate on the back end to avoid allowing the big play.
The Broncos and Lions have played 14 times with the Broncos winning 9 of them in the all-time series. In an inter-league exhibition game on August 5th, 1967, the Denver Broncos became the first AFL team to defeat an NFL team by beating the Lions 13-7. The are 4.5 point favorites tonight and I expect them to cover the spread. Sorry Broncos Country. Raincloud out!
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