Week 14 NFL Preview

LOS ANGELES — Another week in the NFL generated some great games and some results that were quite unexpected. Speaking of those results, the Los Angeles Rams fell to the Carolina Panthers 31-28 in a very competitive game, and the Los Angeles Chargers downed the Las Vegas Raiders 31-14 after a dominant second half. 

Starting with the Rams, this was a game that they should have won; they had three turnovers, which cost them in the end. The LA offense started the game off hot with a Davante Adams touchdown out of the gate, but following that, a pass was tipped for a Matthew Stafford, which turned into a pick, and then Stafford threw a pick-six. However, throughout the game, the offense was able to come through at times through running the ball well with Kyren Williams and Puka Nacua making some great catches. On the last drive, the Rams were moving the ball, but then Stafford was strip-sacked and lost the fumble, and LA never got the ball back.

The defense, on the other hand, was not able to force any turnovers, and the Panther offense was able to do pretty much anything they wanted. They ran the ball for 164 yards for a 4.1-yard average per carry, and Bryce Young was dealing the whole game, especially on the key third and fourth downs. LA did get to Young twice, but it was not enough to slow down the Panther offense. 

The Arizona Cardinals are coming off a tough loss as well to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They also had missed opportunities in two turnovers on downs, one interception, one fumble, and a missed field goal in a three-point loss. Jacoby Brisett played alright, but unfortunately, the offensive output was not enough. They ran the ball for 5.0 yards per carry, but just didn’t run it enough to make Tampa Bay pay. The defense played well for the most part, holding the Buccaneers under 100 yards rushing and under 200 yards passing as well as sacking Baker Mayfield twice.

In this game, one of the keys will be whether the Rams can bounce back and play clean against a team that is very opportunistic with turnovers. The Cardinals average 1.4 takeaways per game, ranking sixth, and after a three-turnover game, LA must be careful. If Arizona can force takeaways, it could jump to a fast start and put some pressure on the Rams. Additionally, the Cardinals must establish the run; otherwise, their suspect offensive line could be put in some tough spots in obvious passing downs. Arizona allows a 39.0 pressure rate, which is the seventh highest against a Los Angeles defensive line that gets home 13th most at 38.2%.

A way to do that is if the Rams can jump on them early and establish their elite passing game with weapons like Nacua and Adams. LA has the fourth-best passing offense at 246.6 yards per game against a Cardinals team that struggles to defend the pass, ranking 21st, and allowing 219.6 yards per game. This game will come down to the pace, and after last week, I believe that the Rams will bounce back, play clean, and the game will be at their pace, which the Cardinals cannot keep up with. 

The Chargers are coming off a dominant win over the Raiders, but need to clean up some things, and one of those involves their quarterback’s status going forward. Justin Herbert went down during the game but was able to come back in; however, he has a broken hand and will need surgery, and his future for Monday’s game is uncertain. 

The Chargers have some things to clean up, and one of those is red zone efficiency. LA went 1/3 in the red zone in the first half, coming away with 7 points on three trips. That cannot happen; you have to come away with points every red zone trip, even if it means settling for a field goal. Herbert’s injury will dictate how the Chargers can run their red zone offense in terms of under-center or shotgun.

Los Angeles started off the game hot with a very methodical drive and a touchdown to Quentin Johsnton. After that, Herbert went out, and Trey Lance stepped in for most of the series and did a serviceable job. Herbert then came back in and threw a red zone interception. After that, the defense got a turnover, but then the Chargers turned it over on downs. In the second half, LA got its run game going with a 59-yard touchdown from Kimani Vidal, and fellow back Jaret Patterson punched one in as well. The Chargers leaned on their identity, and even with a banged-up quarterback, they established the run and put away their division rival. 

The defense played very well, also holding Ashton Jeanty and Las Vegas to just 31 total rushing yards and 125 net passing yards, in addition to sacking Geno Smith five times. They made it a long day for Smith and were able to force him to throw his 14th interception of the season. Brock Bowers hauled in the two touchdowns, and the second one was one of the greatest catches this season. LA needed a bounce-back defensive performance, and they got just that.

Their upcoming opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles, is coming off a disappointing primetime loss to the Chicago Bears. Offensively, the Eagles never got the ground game going, and even the tush push got stopped; and Jalen Hurts took too long to get in sync with his receivers, but his connection with AJ brown for two scores was one positive. On defense, the only takeaway was that they got manhandled in the run game, and the Bears dominated up front. They forced one interception and sacked Caleb Williams twice, but the trench dominance from Chicago was too much.

Clearly, Herbert’s injury will impact this game significantly; however, I think this game really comes down to can the Eagles stop the run and whether they can run the ball on offense. The Chargers are coming off an elite rushing performance on Sunday, and Philadelphia had quite the opposite on defense on Friday. LA is the 12th rushing offense, averaging 122.1 yards per game, and Philadelphia has dropped to the 24th rushing defense, allowing 128.9 yards per game. 

On the other side, with the passing game struggling, the run game with Saquon Barkley needs to get going, so the Eagles can be in more third and manageable situations and allow Hurts to get in a rhythm and then stretch the defense in the vertical passing game later when they come up to stuff the run. On offense, Philadelphia has the 22nd rush offense with an average of 108.5 yards per game, going against a Chargers’ defense that ranks 13th against the run, allowing 106.9 yards per game. If the Eagles want to repeat as champions, they must start to win the line of scrimmage, and against the Chargers, it is a great game to do that with Dallas on their tail for the division.

The Raiders once again come off a disappointing loss and have been officially eliminated from playoff contention. Jeanty had no room to run again, and the Raiders’ offensive line looks worse and worse by the week. Smith was sacked five times, which is 15 for the last two weeks, completely unacceptable. Really, the only positive was Brock Bowers winning his matchups in the red zone to get two scores. Smith turned it right back over after the defense got a red zone turnover in the first half. In the second half, other than the scoring drive, there was no movement, and it never felt like Las Vegas could win this game once the Chargers took the lead. 

Defensively, the Raiders held the Chargers to 1/3 in the red area in the first half, forcing two turnovers, which was massive to keep Vegas in it, but after a while, they ran out of juice. LA started running it, and there was nothing they could do to stop it. Maxx Crosby had two sacks and four TFLs, but it was not enough. He also got a late frustration penalty for shoving Herbert. The defense can only hold up for so long. The run defense has to be better next week. 

The Denver Broncos are coming off a dramatic overtime win, 27-26, over the Washington Commanders. Bo Nix was able to move the ball well throughout the later parts of the game with 321 passing yards and a touchdown, but he did have one interception and was sacked once. When it counted, Denver did come through on offense; however, they did struggle to run the ball. The Denver defense did come through when it counted, but they showed some vulnerability with their corners getting beaten deep for big plays, as well as Washington going 3/5 in the red zone against an elite red zone defense. Denver pulled off the win, but they do need to clean up penalties and the deep passing game. 

In the second matchup of the season, the key matchup is going to be if the Raiders can run the ball or even get a quick passing game going to live in third and short, because against this defense, with their offensive line, they cannot drop back and pass all game. Vegas has the worst rushing offense, averaging 75.4 yards per game, and Denver has the fifth-best rush defense at 93.1 yards per game. In the first matchup, Jeanty had 60 yards, which was one of his best games with this horrible offensive line. If the Raiders can win on early downs, the ability to get the ball to Bowers will be crucial, but Denver is the ninth-best defense against tight ends, giving up 15.5 yards per game to tight ends. 

For the Bronco offense, if they can run the ball and shorten the game, it will play into their defense’s hands and force Smith to go against their pass rush. Denver has the 14th rushing offense at 119.3 yards per game, and the Raiders have the 15th rushing defense, allowing 110.8 yards per game. Denver getting the run game going is key, so Nix can stay in short yardage and not have to force the ball into tight windows, as well as limit Crosby’s impact in the pass game, where he can be a game-wrecker. Also, Denver’s special teams paving the way in the first matchup was essential for their win, so this could be another game where special teams make all the difference. 

This week will be another where standings shift, and the line of scrimmage play becomes even more important. Sit back and take in the physical Winter football.

Source: Sports Yahoo