The Denver Broncos have ownership ties to the Los Angeles Rams, and that's just one angle as the teams meet.
The Denver Broncos play the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night, and they’re calling it the Walmar Bowl II in Denver, according to columnist Troy Renck of the Denver Post.
The last time the Walton-Penner Broncos played the Rams, LA beat Denver as brother-in-law Stan Kroenke’s Rams “punched the Broncos in the nose” back during what Renck described as a Christmas Day beatdown in 2022.
That was a while ago, but it doesn’t mean things aren’t still feisty between the two teams. Coaches Sean Payton and Sean McVay are friends, but McVay is 3-1 against Payton to date, so the revenge factor is lurking.
Payton, meanwhile, comes into this game with a nine-game win streak against NFC opponents, with McVay countering with an 8-1 record in road openers, although Renck did note that the Rams were technically the home team when they traveled to Australia in Week 1.
Strategy will be everywhere in this one. Per Renck, Payton like to ask the question of play or players when he watches film, and there are all kinds of variables there.
Start with the injuries. The Rams probably won’t have star receiver Puka Nacua, while the Broncos will come into this one with two wounded running backs and rookie Jonah Coleman hitting the IR for at least four games.
That may or may not change Denver’s stated goal of committing to the run game, which is something McVay and company will have to figure out on the opposite sideline.
Then there’s the quarterbacks. Matthew Stafford shredded the New York Giants to the tune of 327 yards and four touchdown passes as he went 22-for-31, while Bo Nix is just now waking up from a deep slumber as he finally came alive in the fourth quarter of the Broncos 20-13 over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
McVay also loves to feature tight ends in his offense, and the Broncos struggled against them in the middle of last season, so there’s another chess match that will happen there.
The Broncos got pounded by running back Kenneth Walker III during their Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Rams averaged over six yards a carry against the Giants last week, so there will be plenty of strategy on the table there in that one, too. There’s a lot on the line for Denver given their brutal early schedule, and this is one of the more compelling matchups they have.
