The Denver Broncos were able to outlast the Buffalo Bills in a wild overtime classic in the divisional round of the playoffs. Looking back at how things unfolded, the Broncos were able to get away with something they likely won't get away with against the New England Patriots, who they will face in the AFC Championship Game.
Against the Bills, the Broncos were completely one-dimensional in this game. Sean Payton called only 10 designed run plays to running backs in the entire game.
More concerning than that, there were only five run plays called in the second half and the last handoff to a running back came with 3:30 left to play in the third quarter. After that, every single play was a pass or a run by Bo Nix.
The Broncos didn't even look like they were trying to run the ball. At the line of scrimmage, everything looked and felt like a pass play was coming and it was. If someone sitting at home can figure that out, a coach like Mike Vrabel, with a week to prepare, will figure it out.
Broncos must run the football against Patriots
Payton must be more unpredictable in this game.
The trouble with that is that the Patriots ranked No. 5 in the league against the run this season, allowing only 75 yards per game on the ground. In comparison, the Bills gave up 112 yards per game on the ground and Payton all but refused to try and run the ball against them.
It was a huge concern for the Broncos when they lost J.K. Dobbins to a foot injury in Week 12, but there is an outside chance he could return for this game. That would be huge for the Broncos, but it's not something they can rely on. Instead, they need to figure out a way to establish the run in this game against the Patriots without him.
RJ Harvey and Jaleel McLaughlin must combine for more than the 10 carries they had against Buffalo. If Payton plans to have Jarrett Stidham drop back and throw the ball 80 percent of the time against New England, the Patriots' defense is going to feast on the Broncos, particularly with the injuries the Broncos may have at the wide receiver position going into this game.
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For Stidham to find his best chance of success in this game, Payton should use a balanced attack to keep the New England defense guessing.
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