The regular season is 13 days away, and there is so much to look forward to for the 2023 NFL season. From the Lions potentially making a playoff push to the Jets being potential Super Bowl contenders, this season has a lot of intriguing storylines. Let us go through what I believe are the most interesting ones:
Lions are good??
The Lions finished the season strong winning 7 out of their final 9 games ending their season with a 9-8 record after starting the season 2-6. They would barely miss the playoffs but were able to make sure the Packers could not advance into the postseason as they beat Rodgers and the Packers in the final game of the year. Despite not making the playoffs, people are excited to see what this team can be this season going into their 3rd year under Dan Campbell who everyone loves including me. Unfortunately, the Lions will have to start the year in KC on opening night to face off against the defending champs. Seems a little cruel if you ask me haha. Nevertheless, the Lions have a golden opportunity to show the NFL world they mean business and get a huge win right off the bat. Unfortunately, Mahomes and the Chiefs are nearly unstoppable in September and the Chiefs have not lost in week 1 since Mahomes was anointed the starter. Though I expect the Lions to lose in week 1, they will have a good chance to make some noise this year especially since Rodgers left the division so it's anyone's for the taking.
2. Russ's Redemption
Of course, this was going to be a storyline that intrigued me. Russ was awful last year throwing just 16 TDs, which was a career low, and 11 interceptions. It would be so nice to see him bounce back silence all the haters and return to the Russ of old. In the 2 preseason games this year, he has looked much quicker and explosive, and it's fair to credit that to him losing 15 pounds. I have full confidence that Sean Payton will use Russ's legs more and use him a lot more on the move and outside the pocket. However, a redemption season is going to be a lot harder done than said because he has lost some key weapons. Tim Patrick is gone for the season along with Jalen Virgil. KJ Hamler has a heart condition so he was waived but fortunately, he believes he will be back at some point this season. Jerry Jeudy a few days ago pulled his hamstring and had to be helped off the field. Initially, it looked a lot worse but looking at a couple of sources, the consensus is that he might be ready for week 1 still. Either way, there will be no excuses for Russ as he still has Court Sutton, Kendall Hinton, draft pick Marvin Mimms, and Greg Dulcich. And of course, the return of Javonte Williams is going to help him a lot but the emergence of Jaleel Mclaughlin has been a godsend and it is only going to make life easier for Russ. So all in all, I expect Russ to bounce back in a major way and expect him to take this team to the tournament for the first time in 8 years.
3. J-E-T-S
The media love the Jets and what they have done with this team. From adding Aaron Rodgers to Dalvin Cook, this team is loaded. Garret Wilson was able to muster up 1,000 yards with the QB situation being a mess last year. I expect him to be a pro bowler this year with Rodgers at the helm. The addition of Cobb, Lazard, and Hackett at OC certainly helped bring a level of familiarity and trust to Rodgers. The Jets defense was their strength last year and there's no reason they can't be just as good even better. The RB duo of Cook and Hall is a deadly one. On paper, they look poised to make a Super Bowl run. However, the game is played on the field and there's a reason why Rodgers has only made 1 Super Bowl his entire career. People can blame the defenses all they want but the fact of the matter is that Rodgers has not performed well in championship games. He has played in 5 championship games and has a 1-4 record tossing just 9 TDs and 8 INTs. If the Jets are going to make the Super Bowl, Rodgers is going to have to put on the cape vs. Mahomes or Burrow or whoever it may be. Expectations are high for this team.
4. Broncos vs Jets
Sean Payton went after the coaching performance of the 2022 Broncos saying it was "one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL." Hackett then responded by saying that it violated the coaching code but still owned up to his struggles from that year. It was a bit odd seeing Payton go after Hackett like that and though he wasn't wrong in his assessment of how the coaching staff did a poor job, it felt unnecessary, and even as a Broncos fan felt a little bad for Hackett because he is a great person. He just wasn't ready to be an NFL HC yet. Rodgers then also responded going full Will Smith telling Payton to keep Hackett's name out of his mouth. A few weeks later, Sean Payton told the media that he didn't want to see his players wear sunglasses with a bucket hat doing interviews during the games. After the Jets beat the Panthers, Garret Wilson did all 3. It's obviously not abnormal to see players dress up like that at all but the timing of the whole thing raised some eyebrows.
5. 49ers' QB Situation
The 49ers announced that Sam Darnold would be their QB2 and I'm a little baffled by it. The 49ers, in 2021, basically moved a lot of pieces to be in a position to draft Lance 3rd overall. Lance has played a very limited number of games. Last year, he only played a game and a half because he suffered a season-ending injury fracturing his ankle in week 2 last year. He has not had a lot of opportunity to display his ability to play QB at the pro level. It's more than understandable that Purdy gets the nod for QB1 after the way he played last year but having Sam Darnold, who has played a lot of games in this league, as number 2 doesn't make much sense to me. Why go with the player who's shown to struggle playing QB consistently at a QB level rather than a guy that you invested so much to get and has high potential because of his physical tools?
There are more storylines to go after once the season starts but these are the main ones I'm paying close attention to before the regular season kicks off.
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