We've got a battle between two of the top teams in the NFL today, with the Green Bay Packers taking on the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver at 3:25 PM CST. The 9-3-1 Packers are coming off their 28-21 victory over the Chicago Bears that handed them the division lead and a bit of bragging rights. The 11-2 Broncos are coming off a 24-17 victory over the Raiders and have been undefeated since week 4. With both teams towards the top of their conference, today's game could be a Super Bowl preview. 

The last time these two teams met was October 22, 2023, where the Broncos came away victorious with a final score of 19-17. This was the third game of a four-game losing streak in Jordan Love's first season as QB1. He went 21/31 for 180 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception, but that was about all the Packers' offense got done that day as the Broncos were able to win the game off of four Will Lutz field goals and only getting into the endzone once on a Russell Wilson to Courtland Sutton touchdown. The Packers will be looking for a much better offensive performance in this year's trip to the Mile High City. 

Last week, the Packers had a repeat performance of their success on Thanksgiving in Detroit, in their victory over the Chicago Bears. Despite throwing an interception early in the game, Jordan Love was able to bounce back and put together a 234-yard, three-touchdown performance against Chicago's defense. Christian Watson saw the endzone twice, and Josh Jacobs had a good day on the ground as well, running for 86 yards and a touchdown. The Packers' defense had a few struggles later in the game, but was able to come up with a big stop at the end with a Keisean Nixon interception to seal the game. 

The Packers have had many big challenges this season, but this one may sit at the top of the list at this point in the season. Let's get into what we can expect to see.

What to See on Offense

Jordan Love has been playing his best football of the season these last few games. It's been a big help that he has the majority of his receiving weapons back, with Jayden Reed returning and Christian Watson seemingly solidifying himself as one of the best in the league right now. They're facing a big challenge today, however, as the Broncos' defense has been the key to their success. In total defense, they're ranked third, against the pass, 10th, against the run, second, and they are top of the league in sacking the quarterback by a considerable margin. 

Rushing the passer, the Broncos have linebackers Nik Bonitto, who leads the team in sacks with 12.5, and Jonathan Cooper at 7.5. As if that's not enough, on the defensive line, Zach Allen has 6, and John Franklin-Myers has 5.5. They are good at making a quarterback's life miserable. The Packers have done a pretty decent job limiting big-time pass rushers this season, but most of those occurrences came when that pass rusher didn't exactly have the best supporting cast. Denver has a good supporting cast behind Nik Bonitto to make up for him getting held in check. Perhaps the biggest key to today's game is keeping Jordan Love upright and giving him enough time to find his plethora of receiving weapons. 

If Love does find his receivers, however, that doesn't mean Denver's secondary is easy-picking. They are led by reigning defensive player of the year, Patrick Surtain Jr., at corner, alongside Riley Moss, who have both had good seasons so far. Surtain and Moss are very aggressive corners, and while they can certainly do a good job of knocking a receiver off their route, they have also been two of the top-penalized corners in the league. I would look for Jordan Love and the Packers to try taking advantage of that if possible. At safety, the Broncos have Talanoa Hufanga, a former All-Pro, and Brandon Jones. 

The Packers have the receivers to spread the ball around, but the Broncos do have a deep secondary that could hang with them. This could be the match-up of the game, seeing if Jordan Love can find a way to keep his hot streak going. 

Josh Jacobs has looked much better the last few weeks and has put together a few big, well-earned runs. That's going to be tested today. The Broncos' defense ranks second in the league against the run. Alex Singleton leads the team with 103 tackles from the linebacker position, with Talanoa Hufanga close behind with 94. This is one of those games where the Packers' running and passing game is going to need to gel to gain any traction. You can't let the Broncos' pass rushers pin their ears back every play of the game, so you need to run the football to keep them honest.

Josh Jacobs was questionable to play entering this weekend; however, as I was putting the finishing touches on this preview, I received notification from Adam Schefter that Jacobs is expected to play. However, Emanuel Wilson is now questionable due to an illness. Pierre Strong Jr. was activated from the practice squad for today's game just in case. If Wilson is active, I would expect perhaps a steady mix of both Josh Jacobs and Emanuel Wilson to keep legs fresh and chip away at the Broncos' defense. If Wilson does not go, it will be interesting to see how they rotate running backs. You don't want to run Josh Jacobs into the ground, especially with him not 100% healthy, but between Strong and Chris Brooks, there are only 11 carries this season. And that's all from Brooks. Brooks is normally used as a pass blocker or receiving back, but if Emanuel Wilson isn't available, he may be called upon for more. 

What to See on Defense

Denver's second-year quarterback, Bo Nix, has been possibly my biggest surprise of the season around the NFL. Nix was the sixth quarterback selected in the first 12 picks of the first round of the draft, and was the last of the first round. Many thought that Denver reached with Nix, but in his second year, he's showing that perhaps he should've been the fourth QB taken in that round, if not higher. He has 2,954 yards passing this season with 19 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Denver's front five have also done a good job keeping him upright, as he's only been sacked 16 times this season, ranked just below Jordan Love with 18. 

Bo Nix also has a good supporting cast with receivers Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin, as well as tight end Evan Engram. The Packers' secondary did a good job of limiting Chicago's passing game in the first half last Sunday, but they struggled a bit in the second half. Evan Williams has been playing his best football and is well on the way to becoming a star in the league, and Keisean Nixon is coming off a game where things started frustrating, but he got his redemption in the end with a game-sealing pick. The secondary will have a bit of a challenge today, matching up with Denver's pass-catchers, but the key to success against the pass is going to lay with the Packers' pass rushers. 

While Bo Nix has only been sacked 16 times this season, he still doesn't perform well when pressured. Nix is prone to bad passes or even throwing occasional INTs when under pressure, and if the Packers are going to slow down Denver's passing attack, they need to make Bo Nix uncomfortable. 

Running the football, the Broncos have RJ Harvey. After JK Dobbins went down for the season, Harvey took over and so far this season has 354 yards on 91 carries. In the two games following JK Dobbins' injury, Harvey only put up around 35 yards per game on the ground with around 12 carries; however, last week against Las Vegas, Harvey saw an increased workload with 17 carries for 75 yards and a touchdown. 

Last week, the Packers' defense held Chicago's powerful running game in check for the majority of the game. The only times they struggled were in the second half when the offense didn't do them any favors with two three-and-outs and a quick scoring drive putting them back on the field quickly without a lot of rest. Complementary football will be needed today on both sides of the ball, with the offense extending drives to give the defense more time for a breather. 

Extra Notes

The Packers' return game has been MIA the majority of the season. With Savion Williams dealing with a foot injury, Emanuel Wilson and Bo Melton have handled kickoff returns. Melton had a 30-yard return vs Chicago, but outside of that, kickoff returns have been pretty average. Williams is questionable today, with no word yet on his availability. Punts have been handled by Romeo Doubs, where Romeo just seems happy to help. But as I've said before, I'd rather have a sure-handed catch with a minimal return than a muffed catch and fumble. 

Marvin Mims Jr leads Denver's return game and can be dangerous. He averages 26.6 yards per return and is a threat to go all the way if given the chance. It'll be interesting to see how the Packers handle kicking to Mims, as they've developed a bit of a tendency to kick touchbacks, giving the offense the ball at the 35, but when they have put the ball in the field of play, they've done a good job in kick coverage, getting to the return man quickly, minimizing success.  

Speaking of kicking, Brandon McManus has been perfect in the last three games. I will now proceed to knock on wood. Denver's Will Lutz has been a perfect 8/8 in the last three games for field goals and 7/7 for extra points, but before that, he was kicking 50% in the previous two games. 

Punting, Daniel Whelan barely even needs to be mentioned here as he continues to have an outstanding season. Denver's Jeremy Crenshaw, however, ranks in the middle of the pack. Crenshaw has a booming 76-yard punt to his credit this season; however, he has a tendency to out-kick his coverage. Perhaps Romeo Doubs can improve on his return average a little today if given the space.  

In the End

We're coming off a big win against Chicago, and of course, the fans are hyped up after beating a rival. But today is a whole other monster. Denver is a good team looking to solidify itself as the best in the league. A win today for the Packers will go very far to place them high on the list as a Super Bowl contender. 

Next week, guess what, it's the Bears again. This time, in their house. We didn't get a whole lot of rest from that rivalry, did we? Hopefully, the Packers can come out of today's game healthy and with a big win so we can bring our momentum into Chicago. Go Pack Go.