Three lessons Payton and the Broncos can take from Super Bowl LVII

The Denver Broncos want to get back to the Super Bowl. They have a lot of work to do, and it’s going to take time before we see them compete for another championship.

On Sunday, their division rival the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles for their second championship in the Patrick Mahomes/Andy Reid era. Mahomes and Reid are going to continue being a force in the AFC, and the Broncos have a ton of work to do in order to earn a Wild Card spot from the AFC West.

New Broncos head coach Sean Payton has his work cut out for him. He’s one of the brightest minds in coaching, and I have faith that Payton will make the most out of the players on the Broncos roster. I hope general manager George Paton does a much better job selecting players I free agency and the draft than he has over the last two years. If Paton does his job, Payton will crush it on the field – perhaps enough to make a playoff run faster than expected. So, what can Payton take from the game we saw on Super Bowl Sunday?

Here are three lessons the Broncos can learn from Super Bowl LVII.

***

Balance is Important

The Chiefs won it all because they had balance on offense. In addition to balance, the Chiefs had patience with their rushing attack after barely possessing the ball in the first half. Down by 10 points at the half (24-14), the Chiefs barely had over eight minutes (8:06) of possession while the Eagles had almost 22 minutes (21:54) of controlling the ball. In the past, the Chiefs would get impatient and try to catch up quickly on every play. This wasn’t a formula for success, even though they have one of the best passing games in the NFL.

In the second half, the Chiefs ran the ball with great intent. Their starter, rookie RB Isiah Pacheco (ever heard of him?) led the way with some tough running. He was getting beat up out there, but Pacheco responded with a toughness the Chiefs didn’t used to have with other backs. Yes, Mahomes and the passing game still made plays, but it was Pacheco’s tough running that helped get the offense into a rhythm.

Mahomes entered the game with a high-ankle sprain suffered earlier in the playoffs. During the second quarter, Mahomes was tackled and was writhing in pain as the injury was reaggravated. With bad turf that caused most players to slip, the Chiefs decided to hand the ball off to Pacheco to get things on track. The rookie finished the game as the leading rusher (for both teams) with 15 carries for 76 yards and one touchdown.

Every single day of training camp I heard @CecilLammey shout “Isiah Pacheco, seventh round!”

I was annoyed by it for weeks!

But man, Cecil was right and Broncos fans will be annoyed about them missing him for years.

— Jake Shapiro (@Shapalicious) February 13, 2023

I feel under Payton, the Broncos will run the ball more than some think. Broncos QB Russell Wilson needs two best friends in 2023; the ground game and the defense. The good news is that Payton knows how Wilson must win, and the formula includes a lot of heavy lifting done by other players. Mahomes didn’t have to do it all for the Chiefs, but when they needed him to make a play he came through. Having Pacheco take some of the pressure off Mahomes worked wonders for the Chiefs on Sunday.

***

Adjustments are Important

There’s nothing like having your back against the wall. As aforementioned, the Chiefs were down by 10 points with a banged-up quarterback. In the playoffs, and especially in the Super Bowl, you must be ready for anything. You also must be ready to do things the other team is not expecting. This means going away from bread-and-butter plays, but instead breaking further into the playbook to find what works.

The Chiefs did that with second-half adjustments. You’ve got to think on your toes during a game, but during the extended halftime for the Super Bowl you must have a plan that works. The Chiefs plan did work as they spread the ball around to players that don’t normally get the ball in the passing game. Yes, they could continue to force things to superstar TE Travis Kelce but the Eagles would be expecting that. Of the 81 yards receiving Kelce had in the Super Bowl, only 21 of those yards came in the second half.

In the first half, WR JuJu Smith-Schuster had one catch for five yards on three targets. In the second half, Smith-Schuster made plays to move the chains. He finished the Super Bowl with seven catches for 53 yards on nine targets. WR Kadarius Toney has been a gadget player for the Chiefs, but he didn’t have a single target in the first half yet had a touchdown in the second half. Rookie WR Skyy Moore, like Toney, was not targeted in the first or second quarter but in the final half of the game he had a touchdown – like Toney as well.

The #Chiefs in the 2nd half:
—0 penalties
—0 turnovers
—0 punts
—0 sacks allowed
—1 incompletion (throw-away)

— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) February 13, 2023

Payton is known as one of the best coaches in the league when it comes to in-game decisions and play-calling. If down by 10 points at the half like the Chiefs were against the Eagles, I don’t think Payton would panic. Instead, I have full confidence that he would make the adjustments necessary to play better football and compete for the win. The Chiefs adjusted well, and it led to another championship.

***

Protection a Priority

The Chiefs did a great job of protecting their quarterback. Again, I’m going to highlight the work they did in the second half. During the first two quarters, Mahomes was under duress and he reaggravated his high-ankle sprain. During the second half, the Eagles didn’t get much pressure on Mahomes. For the game overall, the Eagles pass rush had zero sacks. This is a phenomenal stat against a regular defense, but the Eagles put up historical numbers in the 2022 season.

In 17 games, the Eagles had a whopping 70.0 sacks on the season. This was 2.0 short of the all-time record (72.0) held by the 1984 Chicago Bears. Yes, THAT Bears defense that dominated the league from 1984-1986 and included the historic 1985 Bears – largely considered the greatest defense of all time. The Eagles’ mark ranked no.3 in the NFL behind the 1984 Bears and the 1989 Minnesota Vikings at 71.0 (and both of those teams posted their sacks in just 16 games).

The Chiefs protected a banged-up Mahomes with great offensive line play against a formidable foe. However, it was the play design that also helped protect the Chiefs’ superstar passer. The Chiefs were utilizing short passes to strike the Eagles’ defense. They were also moving Mahomes around to keep the rush away from him. Also, Mahomes had the direction to take off and run quickly (like he did for 26 yards to help seal the game) when nothing was open. Add in the tough running of Pacheco to wear down the Eagles, and you can see why this vaunted group had no sacks on Sunday.

Things to talk about other than the holding call, Part I: The Chiefs OL held the Eagles' pass rush to ZERO sacks. Wow.

— Aaron Schatz 🏈 (@FO_ASchatz) February 13, 2023

There is so much work to do on the Broncos’ offensive line. It’s the top priority for Paton this offseason, and hopefully he doesn’t screw it up. I think Paton is drafting for his job this year, but his work in free agency is going to be heavily weighed against him as well. It’s time for Paton to have an outstanding offseason, and fixing this offensive line (as much as possible) this offseason would greatly benefit his job security and the future performance of the team.

***

Follow @CecilLammey