As head coach of the Denver Broncos, Vance Joseph was 0-4 against Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs. Since Joseph has returned as Broncos defensive coordinator, he’s 3-3 vs. the Chiefs.
The Broncos’ first matchup of the season vs. the Chiefs is coming this Sunday. This time around, the Broncos lead the AFC West at 8-2, while the Chiefs are in third place, at 5-4.
Coming off a bye, Reid has only ever lost four games as a head coach. The Broncos are going to get Kansas City’s best shot.
For Joseph, emerging with a fourth win over Reid’s squad starts with getting after Patrick Mahomes and limiting the Chiefs’ ninth-ranked scoring offense. Suffice it to say, Joseph admires Mahomes’ game, but that doesn’t mean he’s isn’t hankering to send the Chiefs home at .500.
“He’s been the best for a long time. He’s a winner. The plays he can make off-schedule. That makes it tough,” Joseph said. “Going against Patrick, obviously, how you rush him is important, how you cover is important, but the second part is just keep chasing him and keep plastering the back end because those plays they’ve made over the years, him and [Chiefs TE Travis] Kelce especially, have been hard of defenses.”
Adding to Joseph’s challenge this week is the expected continued absence of All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain II, and the fact that Kansas City has a few newer receivers the Broncos have yet to face. And they’re
“It’s a true challenge, and they have these new receivers. It’s a track team,” Joseph said. “You have 4.26 [40-yard dash times], 4.30, so that makes it challenging.”
Over the years, Joseph has learned Reid’s tendencies and vice versa, but the Chiefs have had two full weeks to prepare for the Broncos. Reid has two games’ worth of tape to project what Joseph’s coverage units look like without Surtain locking down one side of the field.
Still, Joseph doesn’t base everything he does as defensive coordinator on his past experiences vs. Reid. Teams are always evolving, and Reid has been one of the consistent coaches always on that cutting edge.
“I take each game by the month at a time. I’m looking at what I’ve done over the last month, also, and he has to do that also. Teams do change,” Joseph said. “Pat hadn’t played in two weeks, so what are we doing without Pat? So that’s Andy’s concern also. It goes both ways. That’s why I don’t go back too much on certain opponents, obviously, because it matters what happened in the last month.”
Joseph strives to self-scout and stay hyper-aware of any tendencies he’s putting on tape, especially going against a savvy and perceptive opponent like Reid. Fortunately, the Broncos had three extra days this week — a mini-bye — to prepare for the Chiefs.
“I’m checking my numbers all the time as far as what I’m doing on certain downs and distances versus what, and versus what formation and personnels, so I’m keeping Andy kind of guessing also,” Joseph said.
The Broncos rank first in the NFL in sacks, red-zone efficiency, and third-down defense, and top-10 in total yards, rushing, and passing. Plus, Denver is only allowing 17.3 points per game, which ranks third.
The one fly in the ointment of Joseph’s ongoing defensive masterpiece this season is the relative lack of takeaways. The Broncos only have eight takeaways this season, which is the only key metric that ranks in the bottom-10 of the league.
Now, the Broncos’ takeaway fortunes have begun to change in recent weeks, but it’s not as if the floodgates have opened. If the Broncos are going to vanquish the Chiefs, Joseph’s defense will have to limit Mahomes and company, which is hard enough, and if they can take the ball away and give Bo Nix and Sean Payton an extra possession or two, that would be the cherry on top of a fourth straight home win over Kansas City.
“There’s a reason this team has won for a long period of time, and it’s talent, it’s coaching, it’s a program, it’s a GM, it’s ownership,” Payton said on Wednesday. “That’s where we’re aspiring to go.”
If the Broncos can defeat the Chiefs, it would make for their eight straight win of the season, giving them a 9-2 record entering their Week 12 bye. This game is more than a measuring stick; the Broncos have a chance to truly seize control of the AFC West, and signal a changing of the guard.
There are not many regular-season games that take place prior to Thanksgiving that usually have a major impact on how the season will play out. Sunday night’s game between the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles is an exception to that line of thinking.
The Eagles are the defending Super Bowl champions and they are in first place in the NFC East with a 7-2 record. The Lions have had a few struggles to this point in the season and have a 6-3 record. They are tied for first place in the NFC North with the Chicago Bears and they are coming off their most explosive offensive performance of the season as they rolled to a 44-22 victory over the Washington Commanders.
That game was significant to the Lions because they were eliminated from last year’s postseason in the divisional playoff round by the Commanders. It also marked a change in their play calling as head coach Dan Campbell took over those chores from offensive coordinator John Morton.
A strong argument can be made that the Eagles and Lions are the two best teams in the NFC. The Lions were the No. 1 seed in last season’s NFC playoff structure and they want to show that they will not let a similar fate stop them again.
The Eagles have won three games in a row but their offense struggled badly in their 10-7 triumph over the Green Bay Packers in Week 10. They will have to play much more effectively against the ravenous Lions.
The Lions have some offensive momentum following their 546-yard effort against the Commanders. Campbell’s team has the firepower to have a very effective game even though they are on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions.
The Lions should have the hungrier team. They were stopped prematurely in last year’s playoffs after earning the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoff structure with a 15-2 record, and this team has already had a couple of bumps in the road.
Goff has had another excellent season but he may still be a bit underrated among top NFL quarterbacks. He has completed 202 of 273 passes for 2,235 yards with 20 touchdowns and just 3 interceptions.
He has a great working relationship with wideouts Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. St. Brown is a dominant receiver who will outfight defenders for the ball. He has already caught 64 passes for 693 yards and 8 touchdowns. Williams is a big-play maker who has caught 27-474-4. Tight end Sam LaPorta is an excellent 3rd down weapon and a dangerous red zone target.
Goff and the Lions will get the best of Philadelphia’s secondary in this matchup.
The Eagles have been winning, but their offense has been struggling recently. They were basically stopped in their tracks in the win over the Packers until Jalen Hurts hit DeVonta Smith with a 36-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter. The Eagles offense did little both before and after that scoring play.
Hurts has thrown for 1,860 yards with a 16-1 TD interception ratio, and that yardage total does not compare with the other leading passers in the NFL. Saquon Barkley dominated the running game a year ago, but he has just 579 yards and 4 TDs this season. The lack of a running game this season is a huge issue for the Eagles.
Smith and A.J. Brown have not been the big-play makers they were in the past. Smith has caught 48 passes for 657 yards and 3 TDs, while Brown has has caught 31-408-3 and he is not happy with the direction of the team’s offense.
While the Eagles have been struggling on offense, the Lions can’t expect them to play a conservative game. Hurts and his teammates will attempt to turn it around and try to match what Goff & Co. can do when the Lions have the ball.
The Lions are going to count on edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson to make sure that the Eagles don’t get untracked. Hutchinson leads the Lions with 7.0 sacks and he has an array of moves that could allow him to make crucial plays when the game is on the line.
Hutchinson will get plenty of support from Jack Campbell (team-leading 76 tackles) and Brian Branch (46 tackles and 2.5 sacks), but the team’s top pass rusher will need to put consistent pressure on Hurts.