NFC WEST GRUDGE MATCH - CARDINALS VS. RAMS

 

        Los Angeles heads into a home game in week 17 with a ten-point win after a road trip to the East Coast.  Last week the Rams beat Aaron Rodgers and his New York Jets in a game that saw very little offense.  There was a total of 563 yards between both teams.  Now the Rams have two regular season games remaining, both divisional games.  This is the healthiest the Rams have been all season, and it comes at the best possible time.  The Cardinals are coming into town this week, they last played one another in week two.  Next week however will be the most important week for L.A. regardless of whether they win or lose on Saturday Night.

 

        I guess I’ll go ahead and address the elephant in the room before I go any further.  Everyone who’s read my articles knows I have been backing one NFC West team since the beginning of the season.  This team had a rollercoaster of a season, and it seemed they had turned the corner this time.  I really thought this would be their year though we’ll have to wait until next year to see if the Arizona Cardinals can achieve what I had hoped to see this season.  However, the Cardinals still showed a lot of perseverance, resilience, and strength as a team through their ups and downs.  I believe their play this year will only coarsen the entire unit on both sides of the ball for the following year.  Kyler’s back to his rookie form, this being his first full season since his injury two years ago.  James Conner is still running hard, plus this was the best O-line play I’ve seen out of a Cardinals team in a while.  Arizona’s second-year head coach Jonathan Gannon is the right fit for this franchise, and I fully expect him to be there for the next several seasons. 

       

         They say good things will come to those who wait.  Patience is a virtue; this is certainly the case for the fanbase of these Arizona Cardinals who haven’t seen a single playoff win in the past nine years.  Gannon’s team may not be eligible to make the postseason, but they can play spoiler to one of the other two teams in their division.  If the Cardinals beat the Rams on Saturday night it will be a season sweep for the Cards, although it would also help the Seahawks in a winner-take-all scenario between them and the Rams in their week 18 matchup.  The other side of this would be if the Cards came up short in a loss, causing the Seattle Seahawks ultimately, to become all but eliminated from playoff contention. 

        Next year should end with better results for Kyler Murray's statistics and the Cardinals' overall record.  Further expectations for this club lie in the Murray to Harrison Jr. connection, which I firmly believe to become quite a perilous one.  A building block in tight end Tre McBride has been put in place and they must continue to build around him. They may draft a younger running back to help keep Conner fresh thus slightly lessening his workload.  For those that may not remember, in their first meeting in week two the Cardinals steamrolled the Rams in Arizona 41-10.  Though, in all fairness, Mike LaFleur’s (Los Angeles OC) offense was struggling to start the year with several key injuries to the O-line, Puka Nacua, and Cooper Kupp (Kupp was injured in that week two game).  Arizona had a leaky defense for a lot of this season, it looked as though they were starting to turn it around but that is the side of the ball that is keeping them from making the playoffs.

          

CARDINALS OFFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 22.9 (12^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 353.4 (11^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 145.8 (5^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 207.6 (20^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 26 (5^TH)

 

CARDINALS DEFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 22.8 (15^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 342.0 (20^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 129.5 (22^ND)

PASS YARDS P/G- 212.5 (15^TH)

TOTAL SACKS – 39 (11^TH)

 

 

        Just when you think the Los Angeles Rams are down and out, they come back in a major way, bouncing back after overcoming a season in which they were plagued by injuries.  How do you fight when your top two wideouts are lost for a lengthy amount of the season?  How about when three starters on your O-line go down?  Maybe add in the fact that the Rams' all-time best defensive player in the history of their team retires leaving your defense with a bunch of young players with little to no experience, while you also lose your defensive coordinator of the previous three seasons.  It’s seemingly all a part of the Sean McVay system.  They were continuously able to weather the storm no matter how powerful it became.  Sports Illustrated says that only 11.5% of NFL teams that have started the season with a 0-2 record from 1990-2023 have been able to make the postseason.  While that is an impressive statistic, I think you’ll like this one better; of that 11.5% of teams (32 teams) that were able to make the playoffs, just 17 of those 32 were able to win their divisions (6.1%).  If you want to know if any of them have won a Super Bowl, the answer is yes.  Three of those such teams (1.1%) were able to come away with a Lombardi Trophy.  However, the Rams started this season 1-4.  The Statistics for teams that have started 1-4, yet still made the playoffs are far fewer, with just 6 teams being able to overcome such a tragic start to their seasons.  Four of those six teams were even able to win a playoff game.  The bad news for the Rams is, upon finding such a comparable team to them in the Tennessee Titans, they did make it out of the first round of the playoffs, but they did not make it past the Conference Championship round.

        Los Angeles did not make it back to fall short though and I expect them to win the NFC West whether they win or lose tomorrow night.  I don’t want to start any rumors here, but I do remember a few weeks ago when a member of the media had asked head coach Sean McVay about a possible Aaron Donald return if the Rams were able to make a playoff run.  McVay responded in the best possible way, saying that he respects that man entirely too much to even speculate on such a matter and that he would never reach out to the retiree, but that if Donald ever were to reach out to him, he would then and only then take him back for one last run.  It was very puzzling to witness some of the Rams home games this season and see that there appeared to be almost as many if not more visiting fans, than Rams fans in Sofi.  Maybe they don’t have as many fans as I once thought, maybe more of the L.A. fanbase belongs to the Chargers, or is it because they seemed like a doomed and gloomy team early on?  Whatever the case maybe I need all Los Angeles Rams fans to start showing admiration for this compelling story of a team!

RAMS OFFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 21.9 (15^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 331.5 (15^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 107.5 (19^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 224.0 (13^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 28 (7^TH)

 

RAMS DEFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 23.1 (18^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 351.1 (24^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 131.4 (25^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 219.7 (18^TH)

TOTAL SACKS – 25 (32^ND)

        It may pain me to say this because I have been rooting for Arizona since last August, but I believe that with the Rams' offense fully healthy they will torch the Cardinals.  Stafford is still one of the best football QBs.  Arizona may have the edge when it comes to the tight end position and maybe even a slight edge with their offensive line, but the Rams have one of the very best wideout tandems in the league.  They also possess a younger, more versatile runner in Kyren Williams.  The Cardinals' defense has also averaged slightly better numbers than the Rams.  However, L.A. has been on the upswing as of late, while Arizona has faltered the past few weeks.  I previously pointed out this game will take place on Saturday Night at Sofi Stadium and the rallying Rams are being favored by -6.5.

CHRISTMAS DAY SPECIAL PART II- RAVENS VS. TEXANS

            In the second time slot for the Christmas Day special that has been brought to Netflix by the NFL, we will see another matchup with two more AFC playoff teams.  The Houston Texans are still a fun team to watch, though they are not the same explosive Texans that were blowing up the league last season.  Last year we witnessed this exact game played in the postseason.  The Baltimore Ravens bulldozed this team in the Divisional Round, winning 34-10 at home.  Baltimore has beaten Houston in five straight meetings, currently leading the all-time series 12-2-0.  The last time the Texans captured a win over John Harbaugh was in 2014 at Houston (25-13).

 

         What can I say about the Purple and Black?  Well, it’s no secret that all their successes this season have been surrounded by what Lamar and Henry have been able to do this year.  Lamar is coming off an MVP season and is making a stalwart case to hoist that award in back-to-back years.  Action Jackson is one of the most amazingly gifted talents the NFL has ever seen and what he can do as both a passer and runner never ceases to amaze.  Baltimore’s QB is ranked 5^th in passing yards (3,787), 1^st in average yards per pass (8.9), and 5^th in yards per game (252.5).  The only quarterback with more touchdown passes this season is Joe Burrow with 39, Lamar has thrown 37.  There is also only one QB better than Jackson in interceptions thrown (4 INTs).  When it comes to QBR (75.5) he’s second to Josh Allen while pacing all quarterbacks in passer rating (120.6).  This offense with Todd Monken has often appeared to be a match made in heaven.  Their play-caller has looked like a genius for much of the season, though we also know how good the talent on the field is.

        Derrick Henry has also been on a statistical tear all season.  They call him “King” Henry for a reason!  Henry has given way to Saquon Barkley for the leading rusher this season and it appears as though he may very well take the title by the end of the next two weeks.  Anyhow, Henry has already amassed 1,600 rushing yards this year and is less than 400 yards from a 2,000-yard season.  He is tied with Barkley for the most yards per carry and ties Barkley with the second-most rushing TDs (13).  Henry’s 78 rushing first downs place second, while his 87-yard run is the longest run from scrimmage this season.  While the Texans have had a decent defense this year, their weakness has been their run defense.  There is no doubt that Moken will dial up a bunch of runs for Henry to remind everyone yet again why he is notoriously known as the King of rushing.

 

RAVENS OFFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 30.1 (3^RD)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 423.7 (1^ST)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 181.2 (2^ND)

PASS YARDS P/G- 242.5 (5^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 23 (4^TH)

 

RAVENS DEFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 23.3 (19^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 338.0 (16^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 83.1 (1^ST)

PASS YARDS P/G- 254.9 (31^ST)

TOTAL SACKS- 47 (2^ND)

 

         Houston has been a good team this season, though not the same formidable bunch that they showed us a year ago.  The offense has regressed, while also banged up for vastly most of the year.  The O-line play has been very bad this time around, especially in pass protection.  Houston’s big men have allowed the sixth most sacks this season, C.J. has been sacked the second most (47 times) of any quarterback this year.  Between the line not being able to hold up for Stroud in addition to him having to play without each of his three best targets at different times this season, it has been frustrating for both C.J. and the Texans to say the least.  They have continued to fight throughout everything they’ve had to deal with.  Let’s not forget, even though they didn’t come away with the victory they played the Detroit Lions better than most teams in the league had this year.  They are now coming off a game in which they lost to the Chiefs on Saturday in a tough battle.  The hardest part of that game was when Tank Dell caught a touchdown early in the third quarter for what should’ve been the tying score (missed PAT) but as Dell caught said score his teammate went to the ground and fell into his knee causing engrossed concern for the wideout.  Tank ended up with a torn ACL and dislocated kneecap.  It was a lamentable situation for the young receiver who came back earlier this season from another injury and is now lost for the second straight year to a season-ending injury. 

 

TEXANS OFFENSE:

TOTAL POINTS P/G- 23.1 (13^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 323.3 (20^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 109.6 (18^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 213.7 (18^TH)

SACK ALLOWED- 48 (27^TH)

 

TEXANS DEFENSE:

TOTAL POINTS P/G- 21.8 (9^TH)

TOTAL YARDS P/G-307.3 (4^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 106.8 (11^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 200.5 (6^TH)

TOTAL SACKS- 46 (T-3^RD)

 

         The Texans may have played KC tight last week though I don’t know if they will be able to do the same here against Baltimore.  If you want to take down the Lamar-led Ravens, they will need to figure out a way to score way more than 19 points.  This will be an even harder task without Dell when they’ve already been without Diggs.  If they are going to do it, they will have to keep a clean pocket for Stroud.  This will also prove to be quite difficult as the Ravens are second in the NFL with 47 sacks.  Texans OC Bobby Slowik will need to find ways to have C.J. get the ball out quickly to tight end Dalton Schultz, running back Joe Mixon, or his top target on the outside, Nico Collins.  The biggest weakness of the Ravens' defense has been their ability to engage in pass defense.  They are allowing the second most passing yards per contest and if they can somehow pass protect that will be their best chance to rain on Baltimore’s Christmas Day parade.  The game plan for Baltimore should provide a simpler plan to be crowned with another win and possibly the AFC North title barring a win from the Steelers.  As I briefly mentioned above, Todd Monken will need a run-heavy approach which will be no problem for this team.  Houston’s offense hasn’t been great, though their defense is ranked inside the top ten in every statistical classification other than against the run.  They cede 106.8 yards per game (11^th) and the Ravens should be able to widen that amount to about 160-190 yards if I should be so bold.  Baltimore is going into this game as the -4 point favorite and I like them to win outright on a short week.   

CHRISTMAS DAY SPECIAL- KANSAS CITY @ PITTSBURGH

 

        After an awesome week 16, the NFL will be back with only two days in between.  That’s right, week 17 is already geared up with two Christmas Day specials.  After the Chiefs, Texans, Steelers, & Ravens played this past Saturday, all four teams will be back to play their week 17 matchups with swapped opponents for an added jolly bonus to our day of gifts and cheer.  The Ravens will suit up to take on the Houston Texans on the road at 4:30 PM, while the first game will feature a contest between the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers at 1 PM.  To go from playing on a Saturday to playing again on Wednesday does seem a bit odd at first, but when you think about it the same thing happens when a team plays on Sunday followed by a Thursday Night game the next week. 

 

        Kansas City is coming off yet another win which isn’t all that surprising, though the Houston Texans had played them very close.  Next up for the Champs is their toughest test of the season.  The Chiefs have played some good teams this season, eight of which are playoff-bound.  That said, they’ve only played two teams with defenses of the same level of difficulty (Chargers & Broncos).  Pittsburgh has one of the best defensive units in the league and ranks within the top ten in multiple categories.  The Steelers own the Chiefs in their all-time series 23-14-0, though since Mahomes has been in the league Kansas City is a perfect 3-0 against them.  A lot has been left to be desired by this squad, yet Andy Reid has his team atop the entire NFL and a two-game lead in the AFC with a 14-1 record this year.  That one blemish came from Buffalo, but it seems like it will almost be impossible for the Bills to take the AFC’s top spot away from last year's defending Champs.  I know it is like having a song on repeat to hear this same old message, though the reality of this team has been the strength of their defense.  

Steve Spagnuolo’s coaching of this defensive unit is the main reason the Chiefs have been coming away with a bunch of wins they had no business walking out with.  They have been victorious in ten one-score games, five have been by three points or less, while four games were won by two or fewer points.  After researching KC’s wins with such point differentials, Statmuse.com shows they are currently ranked as 7^th all-time in games won by less than three points (four teams tied with 6, two teams tied with 7) and presently placing second in victories of two or fewer points (Packers had 5 such wins in 1989).  Here’s where I'm going to blow your mind, the total amount of games they’ve won by a touchdown or less this season may not seem like a huge deal, right?  Well, it is because the Chiefs are ranked first all-time in NFL history with this statistic.  How this team is consistently able to do this is just plain and simply crazy.  I still don’t think that they will be able to win a third consecutive Super Bowl, however, they did just welcome back two of the biggest pieces of their offense back into the lineup.  Mahomes must be thrilled to have his starting running back Isiah Pacheco (first game back was in week 13) alongside offseason addition receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. 

 

CHIEFS OFFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 23.7 (11^th)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 338.9 (13^th)
RUSH YARDS P/G- 112.9 (15^th)

PASS YARDS P/G- 225.9 (12^th)

SACKS ALLOWED- 36 (17^th)

 

CHIEFS DEFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 18.5 (3^rd)

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 307.2 (3^rd)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 91.4 (3^rd)

PASS YARDS P/G- 215.8 (17^th)

TOTAL SACKS- 34 (22^nd)

 

        Mike Tomlin is walking into a home game on Christmas Day with a whole lot on his mind.  The Steelers just lost their second straight game this time to their storied rivals, the Baltimore Ravens.  It is very hard to see this Pittsburgh team dropping three straight even if their next opponent is the Chiefs.  They are still in first place in the AFC North and by the end of Christmas Day, with a loss to KC they could very well give the North title away to Baltimore if the Ravens can gain a victory over Houston.  Russell Wilson has played very strong for Pittsburgh this season leaving a lot of his previous doubters in his dust.  The Steelers are seemingly always top defense, with great play out of Watt, Heyward, and Fitzpatrick they certainly pose a serious threat to the Kansas City Chiefs that they haven’t seen this year.  If they can get a healthy George Pickens back into the lineup he can cause some mismatches for Kansas City’s pass defense.  The Chiefs' pass defense is currently the 17th-ranked unit in the league and is honestly the only weakness that they have had so far this season. 

The Steelers have been struggling on offense without Pickens and may not be much of a threat to the Chiefs if he is unable to go on Wednesday.  He has been their best offensive weapon to stretch the field this year.  In their last three games, the top-receiving production came through wideout Calvin Austin III catching 4 passes for 65 yards, and 5 receptions for 65 yards in week 15.  In week 14 tight end Pat Freiermuth led them in receiving with 3 catches for 48 yards.  I can’t stress enough what he has meant to this offense and their team in general.  Pickens is starting to look like he will become the type of player he was advertised to be.  He still hasn’t reached his ceiling in his third year as a pro out of Georgia and is only 8 receptions along with 290 receiving yards away from surpassing his career highs.   

        Defensively as I already mentioned Watt has been widely in the talks for DPOTY for weeks now.  Their DC Teryl Austin has them playing elite-style football, only allowing 299 points total this year to opposing offenses (T-7^th).  Steelers have also only yielded 4,851 total yards through 16 weeks of the season which ranks 11^th among the rest of the league.  They are ready to show the rest of the NFL that they can surprise some teams.  They have a huge opportunity to make a strong case for that if they can get a win on Christmas Day against Patrick Mahomes, and Andy Reid alongside the rest of the Chiefs. 

 

STEELERS OFFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 23.5 (12^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 324.9 (19^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 126.0 (11^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 198.9 (25^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 40 (21^ST)

 

STEELERS DEFENSE:

POINTS PER GAME- 19.9 (6^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 323.4 (11^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 102.7 (7^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 220.7 (20^TH)

TOTAL SACKS- 36 (16^TH)

 

        This game should not disappoint as the NFL has given us a game with two top-ten teams, both of which possess top defensive units.  This has all the makings for some great holiday football with two of the smartest NFL head coaches of all time.  On one side of the field will be the two-time Super Bowl Champion Andy Reid while coaching adjacent to him will be another Super Bowl-winning coach, Mike Tomlin.  By no surprise, the Chiefs are the early favorites for this game -2.5 on the road.  In Tomlin’s 18-year career as the Steelers head coach, he has only had a three-game plus losing streaks ten times within nine seasons (Steelers had 2 such losing streaks in 2019).  Call me crazy but I am leaning towards the Steelers in an upset on Christmas Day.

NFC EAST WEEK16 REVIEW

 

       DALLAS COWBOYS- 7-8

The Cowboys have already been eliminated from playoff contention however, they have continued to fight even without key players that are pivotal to the structure of their team.  They’ve been decimated all year long on defense with half their starters missing time.  They lost their starting quarterback, Dak Prescott, and were down the tight end Jason Ferguson to injuries.  DaRon Bland was hurt through the first 11 games of the season.  Tonight, he reminded everyone just how special a player he is.  Bland showed up in a massive way taking his opponents to the turf for 8 tackles, 7 solo, 1 pass defended, plus the game-winning play, stripping the ball away from Buccaneers running back Rachaad White.  There was only 1:40 left on the clock when the fumble took place.  Tampa Bay was attempting to complete their fourth-quarter comeback but unluckily it came while being down only two points and without enough timeouts to help them get the ball back.  With the 26-24 loss Tampa no longer holds their own fate for the postseason.  Dallas has now won four of their last five games, are now 7-8, and appear a little more like the team we thought they would be this season, at least from a defense perspective.  They would undoubtedly be better on offense too had Dak and Zack Martin played.

 

        NEW YORK GIANTS- 2-13

It has been a rough season for the G-men to say the least.  Nothing had seemed to go right from the offseason losses, most notable being Saquon Barkley and Xavier McKinney.  They finally gave up on their quarterback Daniel Jones, and not to pile onto all the criticism about Jones but I’ve been saying ever since the Giants replaced Eli Manning in favor of D.J. that he didn’t seem like he would be a great starting QB in this league.  Maybe he was just in the wrong environment, and maybe he’ll eventually get another chance to lead another team.  Either way, the Giants have moved on and have something to look forward to next season.  One thing that New York fans should be excited about is this rookie wideout Malik Nabers.  He is the real deal and will only get better as he matures and develops chemistry with whoever their new starting quarterback will be next year.

The Giants lost their tenth straight game likely locking up the number one pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.  They need a passer and luckily for them, they will be able to grab a pretty good one with a few of them at the top of any QB-needy team’s draft boards.  It looks as though the two favorites for New York to draft with the first pick will be either Cam Ward out of Miami or Shedeur Sanders from Colorado.

 

        PHILADELPHIA EAGLES- 12-3

The Philadelphia Eagles came into their week 16 matchup red-hot.  They had been rolling on all cylinders, winners of their last ten straight.  The Birds came out with grit and determination to beat down this Commanders group in all facets.  They started the game off with an 8-play drive that led to a rushing TD by Barkley.   Upon Washington’s first possession, more specifically on their first offensive play, they fumbled the ball right back to Philly.  Then the Eagles jumped out to an early 14-0 lead, though on their third possession, they did have a turnover of their own.  Kenny Pickett threw an interception into the chest of linebacker Frankie Luvu.  Yep, that’s right Kenny Pickett threw an INT, he was brought into the game after quarterback Jalen Hurts had to leave the game.  At first, it seemed as though it would just be a quick visit to the medical tent, then it proved to be more serious upon the side reporter making it known that Hurts had been brought back to the looker room and after a further evaluation he had been downgraded to out with a concussion.  It did feel slightly peculiar how it went down, Jalen got up on the initial play and gave the sideline a thumbs up and he didn’t seem to show any signs that would make you think anything was wrong.  Though once the offense left the field Hurts never came back.  It was a tough loss for the Eagles this past week, losing to the Washington Commanders in the final moments of the game.  However, the bigger loss was Jalen Hurts, hopefully, he will be able to play next week when the Birds host the Dallas Cowboys who just shocked the Tampa Bay Bucs on Sunday Night.

 

        WASHINGTON COMMANDERS- 10-5

The expected winner of the Rookie of The Year award, quarterback Jayden Daniels displayed the biggest showing of his inaugural NFL season on Sunday afternoon.  Jayden completed a monstrous game passing for 258 yards on 24/39 passes, threw 5 TDs, and sprinkled in 9 carries on the ground adding up to another 81 yards.  This was the most impressive game from his rookie campaign to date.   With 339 all-purpose yards while scoring five times; yea I think we just crowned our ROTY.  Though it wasn’t pretty at times, losing the turnover game; 5-2 (Washington lost 3 fumbles, Daniels threw 2 interceptions) while also ceding 13 more minutes of offense to Philly in the time of possession battle will usually end in a loss.  Daniels led the Commanders on the final drive of the game with 1:58 seconds left, burning up too much time for Philly to even have another chance to do anything.  The rookie took his team 57 yards on nine plays and ended the drive on a 2^nd & goal from Philly’s 9-yard line when he found veteran receiver Jamison Crowder between multiple defenders and made a beautiful throw for the touchdown with only six seconds remaining in the game.  That score put Quinn’s boys up by one point, so they decided to go for the two-point conversion.  It was a massive win for the Commanders and with another win next Sunday Night at home when they take on the Atlanta Falcons, they can clinch themselves a playoff berth.  

PHILLY @ WASHINGTON – QUINN & IN FOR COMMANDERS

 

                The NFC playoff picture is still fully loaded with only two weeks left in the regular season. Usually, this would have been the AFC’s situation in years past, but this year, as of the start of week 16, the NFC still has six teams on the bubble. Green Bay seems likely safe as the sixth seed, though Washington, which currently holds seventh place, should be worried.  Under the 9-5 Commanders there are still five teams licking their chops awaiting an opportunity in hopes that Washington will accrue a few more losses, allowing one of them to jump into a playoff spot.  From the body of work the Commanders have accomplished this season I believe it is a rather easy assumption to say they will make the playoffs and seal up the final spot for the NFC.  The only three teams currently on the outside looking in that I think could still possibly make it in would be the Seahawks, Falcons, or Cardinals, however, I could only see that if they were to overtake the leaders of their divisions.             

 

                The Philadelphia Eagles are firmly placed in the discussions as one of the NFL’s top five teams.  They are presently riding a ten-game win streak, coming off a heck of a performance in which they exploded for over 400 yards of offense on the 9th-ranked defense running 77 plays.  Philly beat the Commanders at home in week 10 when they ran their way to a victory (228 yards) over one of the worst run defenses in the league.  This time shouldn’t be much different as they still pose the best-rushing offense (186.2 yards) alongside the league-leading rusher Saquon Barkley (1,688 yards).  Nick Sirianni has been constantly proving doubters wrong all year long.  He has kept the Eagles winning games people said they couldn’t, held the team together when the media was trying to break up a coach and his QB, and kept the locker room calm and level-headed when one of their players had misspoken to the media, prevailing through it all.  Barkley has also proven a whole lot of doubters wrong as well.  Barkley looks likely to surpass 2,000 rushing yards within the next two games and has been the biggest piece to the puzzle for their success this season.  Jalen Hurts hasn’t been too shabby himself and leads the NFL in rushing touchdowns with 14 while also maintaining the 5^th best passer rating (104.5).  Philly boasts one of the top O-lines this year in both pass and run protection.  Predominantly known as a run-first offense though don’t get it twisted because Hurts can beat you with his arm if push comes to shove.  Philly still employs a top receiver duo in Smith and Brown plus they have one of the best-kept secrets from the tight end position in Dallas Goedert, when healthy.  To repeat the sentiments of my previous article on the Steelers, and Ravens game, this Philadelphia Eagles defense is also a very big part of why the Eagles are continuing their great success and momentum that has provided them with a ten-game win streak.  Vic Fangio is an architect at designing supreme defenses leaguewide.  It leaves one to ponder how it didn’t work out for the Miami Dolphins with coach Fangio.  My thoughts are that some of the veteran players just didn’t understand his coaching methods or maybe they hadn’t been exposed to an old-school coach’s beliefs in how to turn around a unit and make it a great one.  I don’t exactly know, but what I do know is as a Broncos fan I saw Denver’s defense become the best in the league with a bunch of young guys outside of Von Miller and Justin Simmons.  The man just knows how to bring the best out of players, and it shows! 

 

EAGLES OFFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 26.4 (8^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 373.2 (6^TH)

 RUSH YARDS P/G- 186.2 (1^ST)

PASS YARDS P/G- 187.0 (28^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 39 (22^ND)

 

EAGLES DEFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 17.6 (1^ST)

TOT YARDS P/G- 275.6 (1^ST)

RUSH YARDS P/G-102.2 (7^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 173.4 (1^ST)

TOTAL SACKS- 39 (T-9^TH)

 

                The Washington Commanders have been very impressive this season.  They have accomplished the unthinkable within one season after performing as a bottom-barrel team for the past handful of seasons.  What their first-year head coach Dan Quinn has done for Washington has not gone unnoticed.  They drafted a rookie QB, who was thought to be the second or third-best of his draft class, and with the help of the coaching staff in addition to Jayden Daniels’ pure athleticism and abilities has turned into one of the best quarterbacks in the league.  Let's not take that for granted or sweep under the bed.  Jayden and the Commanders have been one of the biggest headlines of this NFL season, if you don’t know you better ask somebody!  Not to sound like a broken record but Daniels has broken both franchise and NFL rookie records this year and may continue to do that throughout his career.  Kliff Kingsbury may be in the discussion for head coaching jobs as soon as next season.  Dan Quinn, a defensive-minded coach, has helped his DC Joe Whitt Jr. by turning this defense around throughout the season.  They were at the back end of every statistical category to start the season yet have steadily brought them towards the front of the list.  With brand new ownership along with a new General Manager, the Commanders brought a lot of veteran talents into their locker room to help bring along the youngsters with both their experience and guidance.  Bobby Wagner has been a monumental part of what Quinn wants his defense to look like, hard-working smart players, who will lay it all out on the line for their teammates every single week.  Frankie Luvu, Dante Fowler Jr., and Marshon Lattimore are all the epitome of the type of players that Dan Quinn wants on his team.  I have no doubts that this team is going to wind up being a frequent playoff team for the foreseeable future with the player personnel alongside the coaching staff that they have in the building.

                Kliff Kingsbury has also had a lot to do with this team's good fortunes.  If they can keep him in Washington, then they will be a dominant scary offense that nobody will want to play.  Just this season as a rookie Daniels has been amazing in his rapport with star wideout Terry McLaurin.  One of the best moves they had made in the off-season was signing seasoned tight end Zach Ertz.  Ertz has been one of Jayden's main go-to targets outside of scary Terry.  Adam Peters also got a deal done with one of the better running backs of the last 5 seasons, signing ex-Charger Austin Ekeler.  They brought in more experience upfront to bolster their line while also bringing back receiver Jamison Crowder for his third stint in Washington.  They even drafted rookie Luke McCaffrey, which I have a feeling will wind up as another big playmaker for them in the next few seasons.  So go ahead and count them out if you want to but they are ascending at the right time with the Giants and Cowboys plummeting.  The NFC may be the Eagles' division right now, but it is big enough for both teams to make the playoffs for years to come.  Technically Washington has not yet clinched a playoff berth, however, with a win tomorrow afternoon, they can pretty much lock up the 7^th spot.  Full disclosure, they would also need a little help in addition to a victory over Philly.  They would also need the Seahawks to lose to prevent one from overtaking their wildcard while also needing the Falcons to get a loss for the same reason.  I don’t think that either of those teams will realistically take the Commanders' spot but instead could potentially wind up winning their respective divisions.  With that said, it was reported earlier this morning that the Atlanta Falcons are considering releasing quarterback Kirk Cousins, so I don’t believe that the rookie Penix Jr. will be able to win out and overtake the Buccaneers as the winners of the NFC South.  That’s one less thing the Commanders will need to worry about.

 

COMMANDERS OFFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 28.3 (6^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 373.9 (5^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 155.5 (3^RD)

PASS YARDS P/G- 218.4 (16^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 38 (21^ST)

 

COMMANDERS DEFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 22.5 (16^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 321.8 (11^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 132.1 (25^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 189.6 (4^TH)

TOTAL SACKS- 35 (T-14^TH)

 

 

                The Philadelphia Eagles have been on a roll, but I don’t think we can completely rule out a possible upset here.  Two division rivals, one looking to take ownership of the number one seed, the other trying to make their first playoff appearance in the last four years.  While it is likely that both situations will play out for these two franchises regardless of the outcome of this game, I like Washington in this game in an upset.  My thinking here is strictly that with Philly running hot for so long they will eventually have a down game.  That’s where I believe the Commanders, +3.5 underdogs will sneak in and come away with a win at home.

STEELERS VS. RAVENS PART II - FOR ALL THE MARBLES

 

        The regular season is almost over, meaning the holidays are just about here.  Christmas is less than a week away.  This is the time of year when the NFL starts preparing us for the playoffs, scheduling a few games on Saturdays to coincide with College Football which also begins a brand new 12-team College Football Playoff format.  This week we will have both College and NFL games on Saturday.  Pittsburgh Steelers will face off against division-rival Baltimore Ravens in the 4:30 PM slot.  This is the second meeting between these two teams this season.  In week 11 this exact matchup pretty much played out as we had anticipated.  It was a low-scoring, defensive stalemate between two teams who’ve long had a history with these types of battles.  When competitors consistently compete twice or more a year for many years, after some time they will pick up on a lot of each other's chemical and physical makeup through their style of play.  This is why when two divisional teams spar it isn’t irregular to see close-knit games.  Whether it is a high-scoring or low-scoring game, it’ll frequently wind up coming down to the last minute of regulation, often ending with a one-score margin of victory.

 

        Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles after winning 7 of their previous 9 games.  The Steelers went into Philly coming off a two-game win streak.  They had been averaging 35.5 points on offense in that span, accounting for about 29 points during their last 9 games.  What Pittsburgh’s offense did last Sunday was a far cry from that!  Though I probably shouldn’t be too harsh on the Steelers, after all, they were playing the Eagles' number one-ranked scoring defense.  Russell Wilson could only muster 128 passing yards, and their run game only produced a total of 56 yards.  Credit the Philadelphia Eagles for limiting this Arthur Smith-coached offense.  Don’t forget about Vic Fangio either!  I can’t say enough great things about Philly’s defensive coordinator with what he has been able to do this season turning them around.  However, this is about the Steelers' inefficiencies and a lack of help surrounding Pittsburgh’s quarterback.  I understand their number one weapon couldn’t suit up, but they also need more outside of George Pickens.  Where were Van Jefferson and Pat Freiermuth?  Why didn’t Arthur Smith attempt to get Jaylen Warren more involved in the passing game?  Whatever happened to Mike Williams?  I at least saw him on the field during his time with the Jets.  Since being traded to the Steelers I barely even see him out there.  Wasn’t he supposed to be a reliable set of hands for Russ in the intermediate game even if he can’t stretch the field anymore?  I’m just a little bit perplexed at exactly what his role is for the black and gold.  According to the box score, he was only targeted twice in this game while only one player had more than three catches for Pittsburgh (Calvin Austin III).  Freiermuth was one of only two men that was targeted more than twice.

        This week the Steelers will be on the road for the second consecutive week, this time playing the Ravens and their terrible pass defense (31^st).  They will be without top wideout George Pickens again!  I think now is the time to try and unleash Mike Williams for Arthur Smith.  Baltimore is the best team at stopping the run, allowing under 81 yards a game.  Pittsburgh is tenth in the league at running the ball but look how that worked out for them last week.  Russell Wilson will need to have a great game through the air, or the Steelers will ultimately have no shot.  Yes, they beat Baltimore already this season, the circumstances were also a little bit different.  If Baltimore wins this time around, then they will probably walk into the playoffs as the AFC North Champs.  Neither team has an easy two wins coming to them after Saturday's game, but I do think we can agree that the Ravens' final games (@ Hou, vs. Cle) are easier than Pittsburgh's (vs. KC, vs. Cin).

 

STEELERS OFFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 24.0 (10^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 325.6 (18^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 126.6 (10^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 198.9 (24^TH)

SACKS ALLOWED- 37 (20^TH)

 

STEELERS DEFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 18.9 (6^TH)

TOT YARDS P/G- 316.6 (9^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 94.4 (4^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 222.3 (22^ND)

TOTAL SACKS- 35 (14^TH)

 

        Baltimore must feel pretty good about their chances on Saturday afternoon.  Lamar has been playing the best ball of his career this season.   He has only thrown 3 interceptions, passed for 34 touchdowns (2^nd), and compiled over 3500 passing yards (5^th), plus has a QBR of 76.0 (2^nd).  He also hasn’t thrown a pick since he played the Steelers in their first matchup.  Jackson has been on a heater since that game throwing 9 TDs, scoring 10 total, and has only turned the ball over once, by way of a fumble last week.  I believe the most important matchup for the Ravens offense to be successful this week is their 2^nd ranked ground game against Teryl Austin’s 4^th ranked run defense.  Sure, the Ravens can and will pass on them and should be fine in doing so with a slightly banged-up T.J. Watt.  Steelers’ veteran edge rusher Larry Ogunjobi, and cornerback Donte Jackson are also battling injuries plus starting strong safety DeShon Elliott will not be available. 

Here’s the thing, when we think back to maybe six weeks ago who was the only player outside of the top four or five quarterbacks who was in everyone's MVP discussion?  It was Derrick Henry!  What happened to the league's most dominant runner?  We are now kicking off week 16 and have not heard a peep from Henry in about a month now.  He hasn’t had 100 or more rushing yards since week 12, which says a lot given the fact that Baltimore played the New York Giants last week.  Now, as much as I feel they need to get Henry back involved to account for a large portion of their yardage, they also can’t become one-dimensional.  When these two teams met the first time the Ravens only ran the ball 19 times while electing to pass 33 times.  I think they must run the ball between 25-30 times, allowing the King more attempts to do some damage.  Henry only had 13 carries in week 11 for 65 yards.  Philly exposed the Steelers last week while laying out the blueprint for them, rushing 42 times for 131 yards.  I understand it's easier said than done.  However, what I cannot understand is that the Baltimore Ravens don’t just have one of the most dominant running backs of the past decade-plus, but they also possess the most talented running quarterback the lead has ever seen.  We have all witnessed how dangerous Lamar can be when he pulls the ball down takes off downfield, juking, spinning dodging defenders by any means possible.  Yet, they are not utilizing Jackson as such.  Why is Todd Monken not mapping out game plans for them to have fake handoffs for QB runs?  Why not use Lamar's talents as a runner now that the opposition will be assuming Henry gets the ball more frequently?  It is understood that you must feed one of the NFL’s top runners, no debate there, though we are not seeing the Ravens attempt to go back to doing what had worked best for them in the past.  Quarterback runs for Jackson should be implemented back into the offense, seemingly with ease.

 

RAVENS OFFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 29.9 (3^RD)

TOT YARDS P/G- 424.1 (1^ST)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 178.4 (2^ND)

PASS YARDS P/G- 245.6 (3^RD)

SACKS ALLOWED- 22 (4^TH)

 

RAVENS DEFENSE:

POINTS P/G- 23.7 (22^ND)

TOT YARDS P/G- 339.6 (17^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 80.7 (1^ST)

PASS YARDS P/G- 258.9 (31^ST)

TOTAL SACKS- 44 (3^RD)

   

        These Ravens vs. Steelers games are truly one of a kind and are always special to watch.  No matter how good or bad these teams are they always deliver while are always one of the closely contested football games of any given week they are scheduled for.  I am excited about Saturday's NFL football games and will be meticulously watching especially this AFC North duel.  This game, with only two weeks remaining in the regular season, seems to be for all the marbles.  The winner will more than likely take the division and will either place third or fourth in the AFC playoff picture, hosting at least one post-season game, while the other will have to deliver on the road to make the second round.  The Steelers may have a game up on the Ravens, yet they are big underdogs (+7) for this game.  I would be inclined to bet the Ravens win this one, keeping in mind that Baltimore has lost 8 of the last 9 games in this rivalry series.   

ATLANTA TURNS TO ROOKIE PENIX JR.

 

            Atlanta Falcons haven’t had the season they thought they would’ve had coming into the season.  Many pegged Atlanta as a possible quick fix for the first-year head coach Raheem Morris.  Their roster was ably built with a savvy mixture of veterans plus a lot of young talent to complement them.  They had moved on from their previous QB Desmond Ridder after more than a season of failed gameplay.   Then they signed the Minnesota Vikings' previous QB of the past six seasons Kirk Cousins.  Atlanta started the season with a 6-3 record and Cousins was playing very sound football.  Throughout the first nine weeks of the season, Cousins had thrown for 2,328 yards with a 17-7 TD: INT ratio.  During that span, Kirk helped the Falcons achieve a 4-1 divisional record in the NFC South, holding a two-game lead from the rest of the division.  From that point onward, the Falcons started to stumble.  The focal point of their descent was the quarterback play of Cousins.  During the four-game losing streak, he tallied 1,068 yards passing, 8 interceptions, and hadn’t thrown a single touchdown.  This past Monday night in week 15 the Falcons played the Las Vegas Raiders.  While just barely beating them, the veteran QB finally threw a touchdown.  However, his stat line was that of a problematic passer.  Kirk was 11/17, completing 64.7% of his passes, throwing 1 TD and 1 interception with a total of 112 yards.  This was indubitably the straw that broke the camel's back.

            Raheem Morris and the Atlanta Falcons may have won on Monday night, but a 15-9 win over the lousy Raiders was a cry for help.  After just about 24 hours removed from that horrific offensive performance, the team decided something drastic had to be done.  What they came up with to fix the struggles was not necessarily a surprise by any means.  ESPN announced earlier today that the Falcons will be starting rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. next week in a home game against the New York Giants.  Penix Jr. was drafted out of Washington 8^th overall in the first round of the draft.  He played for the Huskies, starting 28 games as a second-year junior and senior.  Viewed as a top prospect in the nation he passed for 9,544 total yards, completing 65.4% of his passes, tossing 67 touchdowns opposed to just 19 interceptions.  Penix was a transfer from Indiana after his first four years, playing for the Hoosiers in only 20 games.  In his time there he accumulated 4,197 yards, 29 TDs, and 15 INTs.  With 48 career games under his belt, you can only imagine the Falcons offensive attack will strive to become a much better team very soon with Penix under center.  His senior year, the Huskies made a National Championship appearance for only the third time in program history but ultimately lost to Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines.  I don’t know if Penix will be able to rattle off three wins in a row to push Atlanta into the playoffs, nor is it expected.  Even if they did win out Atlanta would still need Tampa Bay to lose a game to end the season at least tied with them to win the South.  Kirk Cousins's fate isn’t entirely entrenched as their backup for good, though if the rookie has an incredible outing in his first start it will start to look gloomy real fast for the vet.               

THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL - WILD CARD HEAT - DENVER AT LOS ANGELES

 

Last Sunday the Denver Broncos beat the Indianapolis Colts to improve their record to 9-5 this season.  By no means was this a start-to-finish blowout win.  The Broncos started this game very slowly, playing lackluster ball on offense for most of the game.  During the first three quarters, Joe Lombardi’s play-calling wasn’t that effective against a good Gus Bradley-coached Colts defensive unit.  It also didn’t help matters that Bo Nix threw three interceptions.  Indy’s linebacker (Zaire Franklin) picked off Nix early on about halfway through the first quarter.  Then around 4 minutes before the half, Broncos starting safety Brandon Jones retaliated with an interception of his own as Colts QB Anthony Richardson slightly overthrew his target (Alec Pierce).  This in-conference AFC matchup was full of turnovers (8), which was the game's biggest story.  The big play that had turned this game on its head was in the third quarter when Colts running back, Jonathon Taylor eclipsed a 41-yard touchdown run.  However, after a second look, Taylor dropped the ball before crossing the goal line.  Upon Taylor dropping the ball it rolled out of the back of the endzone thus Denver gaining possession, erasing what would have been a 20-7 lead.  Denver ended up benefiting from a total of five turnovers, including intercepting Colt’s receiver Adonai Mitchell on a play that Richardson initially threw a lateral pass to the rookie wideout; upon catching the ball he looked to throw it back to Richardson.  However, Denver’s top edge rusher and DPOTY candidate, Nick Bonitto was there to catch the pass and brought it back for six points. 

Los Angeles comes into this AFC West showdown against their divisional rivals with a dreadful loss.  There is no other way to say it, they straight up got man-handled on Sunday.  Jesse Minter’s defense, for the first time this year, was dismantled.  The Chargers allowed over 500 yards of offense to Baker and the Bucs, while also surrendering 40 points.  It was very ugly to watch as the Chargers had been very parsimonious in scoring defense before week 15.  They are still at the top of the league in average defensive scoring, only giving up 17.6 points (T-1^st).  Harbaugh and Minter are going to have a lot to figure out, they took a beaten both in the air and on the ground.  Tampa’s running back Bucky Irving averaged 7.8 yards per carry and ended the game with 117, but the strength of this defense all year had been against the pass (allowed 283 yards to Mayfield).  Meanwhile, the Chargers’ offense was also miserable, only putting up 206 total yards.  With J.K Dobbins out, (still dealing with an injury) they couldn’t find any room to run.  Chargers only rushed for a woeful 32 yards while also passing for just 174 yards.  Greg Roman will also be back at the drawing board to come up with a better game plan as his offense is preparing to face one of the elite defensive units this year in the Denver Broncos. 

The Chargers must be very careful in their last three games having not yet locked up a playoff spot.  Chances are even with a loss here they would more than likely retain the 7^th seed with the three teams looking in (Miami, Indy, Cincy- all 6-8) needing a whole lot to overtake L.A. and slide into the super wildcard slot.  Their defense is going to have to bring a lot of pressure to rattle Broncos’ rookie QB Bo Nix, who hasn’t played great in his last two starts but has still come away with two wins.  The Chargers did beat them earlier in the year at Denver, though their number one defensive player got hurt at the start of the game, never returning.  That same player, Pat Surtain II did get banged up on Sunday during a play in which he came up with an interception.  Either way, the Chargers need to limit their negative plays, try to push the ball downfield while also pass-protecting as if their lives depend on it. 

 

CHARGERS OFFENSE:

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 302.1 (27^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 105.8 (22^ND)

PASS YARDS P/G- 211.6 (9^TH)

POINTS PER GAME- 17.6 (T-1^ST)

TOT SKS ALLOWED- 41 (23^RD)

 

CHARGERS DEFENSE:

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 336.7 (14^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 125.1 (19^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 211.6 (9^TH)

POINTS PER GAME- 21.0 (21^ST)

TOTAL SACKS – 40 (T-6^TH)   

 

        Denver is looking to win 4 divisional games for the first time since winning the Super Bowl back in 2015.  First things first, Payton must have his boys ready to play Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers for the second time this season.  This time they are playing on the road where the Broncos have allowed less production out of their adversary's offenses than at home (Denver allows 104 rush yards at home & 94 yards away, 232 pass yards at home & 173 away).  Vance Joseph’s name surprisingly has not come up a whole lot in discussions for a head coaching spot next season.  I’m not exactly sure why, but one thing is for certain.  The Broncos will seemingly have an elite defense for the next handful of years and Joseph is the reason why.  Patrick Surtain II has been recognized as a DPOTY nominee, while their edge rusher Nik Bonitto has also popped up as such.  Bonitto is second in the league in sacks while he has also made house calls in each of his last two games.  Sean Payton could also be considered one of the stronger COTY candidates, though in all fairness I’d like to see him win out and win a playoff game or two before we can strongly place him at the head of that award.

 

BRONCOS OFFENSE:

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 311.1 (22^ND)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 108.4 (20^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 202.7 (23^RD)

POINTS PER GAME- 24.0 (10^TH)

TOT SKS ALLOWED- 20 (3^RD)

 

BRONCOS DEFENSE:

TOTAL YARDS P/G- 315.3 (8^TH)

RUSH YARDS P/G- 98.6 (5^TH)

PASS YARDS P/G- 216.7 (T-15^TH)

POINTS PER GAME- 17.6 (T-1^ST)

TOTAL SACKS – 49 (1^ST)

 

        Huge game with even bigger playoff implications.  The chargers seem to be safe as of now.  They have two road games to end the season after tomorrow's home divisional game on Thursday Night Football.  Their next two will be against a bad New England Patriots team, while the Chargers' last regular season game will be another division rival, the Las Vegas Raiders.

If they want to beat a red-hot Broncos team, they will need to be strong in passing protection against the number one defense in sacks.  They will also need to consistently matriculate the ball downfield, winning the time of possession battle.  They will not be able to run on this 5th-ranked rush defense, so their best shot is to have Herbert take shots down the field.  Quick passes will be beneficial for Greg Roman to call, the longer you hold it the more sacks the Broncos will have. 

        Denver will have to limit Los Angeles in the passing game.  Pat Surtain II is a little banged up after a slight ankle sprain that he sustained on Sunday afternoon.  Their other starting corner Riley Moss has been hurt the past few games and still has not practiced as of Tuesday, according to the Broncos injury report.

The other way for Payton to come away with his 3^rd division win on the season will be for Nix and the offense to play turnover-free football.  Denver was pretty good at limiting offensive turnovers for much of the season, however, this has been a problem for them in their last two games.  Joe Brady should be game-planning to cook up a unique way to hit the Chargers where they are hurting most and take advantage of their pass defense after what the Buccaneers were able to do against them last week.  It is no secret that the Broncos have struggled running the rock, so it makes even more sense to air it out.  Javonte Williams has been vastly inefficient this season, while the rookie runner Audric Estime seems as though he will need some more time in this offense.  Their best running back this season, second-year player Jaleel McLaughlin (5.3 ypc) was a limited participant in Tuesday’s walkthrough.  If he is one hundred percent, I’d like Denver to let him get the bulk of their carries as he has started to gain a lot of traction in that backfield as their best runner.  Denver is currently +2.5 underdogs on the road for tomorrow night which will take place in Los Angeles at Sofi Stadium on Thursday Night Football.