Best Bets of NFL Week 10: Why You Should Consider Lions, Eagles and Bills
Lorenzo Reyes is back with his three best bets ahead of Sunday’s matches.
Ben Johnson has been one of the most sought-after coaching candidates in the league over the past two seasons, and it’s easy to see why.
Johnson has been in charge Detroit Lions to great offensive success in each of his two seasons as the team’s offensive coordinator. Detroit has one of the best running attacks in the NFL, headlined by David Montgomery And Jahmyr Gibbsbut Johnson’s work turned around Jared Goff to one of the league’s most accurate quarterbacks has received equal praise.
At just 38 years old, Johnson has the makings of being the next offensive prodigy to take the NFL coaching ranks by storm.
He also finds himself in a rare position of power among coaching candidates. He can be selective in assessing which job to take on, as most teams in the NFL believe they have interest in him, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter detailed in a Wednesday, Nov. 7 appearance on “Get Up.”
“I think when Ben Johnson interviews someone this year, he interviews with the intention that he’s going to take that job,” Schefter said.
With that in mind, which teams could be of interest to Johnson? A few potential openings come to mind as strong landing spots if he decides to take the Lions by 2025.
If the Bears If he parts ways with Matt Eberflus after the 2024 season, Chicago could ultimately be the best fit for Johnson. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated said in a recent radio interview that Johnson was “linked to the Chicago job” last season before the Bears decided to keep Eberflus around.
“There were people who thought this was the one he wanted,” Breer said.
It makes sense that Johnson would be interested in the Bears. Chicago has a well-built defense and spent the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft Caleb Williamswho was viewed as a top-tier quarterback prospect. Johnson could work to develop Williams into a pro-style passer while figuring out the best way to utilize Chicago’s plethora of offensive weapons, including DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet And D’Andre Swift.
Either way, Chicago appears poised to win, which could allow Johnson to enjoy immediate success during his time in the NFC North.
Mike McCarthy led the Cowboys to three consecutive 12-5 seasons, but started the 2024 season on thin ice with Jerry Jones. Unless there is a major improvement, the loyal owner may be willing to make a coaching change and try to revive his team, which hasn’t won a Super Bowl since 1996.
The Cowboys have talent on their roster and their passing game looks good Dak Prescott And CeeDee Lam on long-term agreements. Those two could be of interest to Johnson, though he would certainly want to add talent to the team’s solid but unspectacular offensive line and desolate backroom.
Although Dallas’ 2024 defense has taken a step back under Mike Zimmer, with a change Johnson could be sold to the improving unit. After all, the Cowboys routinely had one of the league’s best defenses under Dan Quinn.
If Johnson wants to go to New York, he could ultimately make his choice Giants or the Jets from New York. Schefter referred in his reporting to the fact that Johnson wants to avoid dysfunction wherever possible so he could turn to a Jets organization that has been more circus than stable franchise since long before its founding. Aaron Rodgers era.
The Giants have also had a lot of coaching turnover in recent seasons, but Johnson could take solace in the fact that owner John Mara is in the hunt for coaching stability. Johnson may also be interested in working with him Malik Nabers And Wan’Dale Robinsontwo strong receivers he could use as the focal point of his offense.
The upside to joining the Giants is that Johnson could also, in all likelihood, pick his next starting quarterback. New York is expected to replace it Daniel Jones during the 2025 offseason, so if Johnson really likes one of the quarterbacks available in the 2025 NFL draft, he could sell the Giants on the vision of drafting him as the team’s next starter.
Todd Bowles has led the Buccaneers to back-to-back playoff appearances, so his seat is certainly far from scorching. That said, Tampa Bay’s defense enters Week 10 ranked in the bottom five in yards and points allowed, so that could make general manager Jason Licht think about making a change.
If so, the Buccaneers could look to promote offensive coordinator Liam Coen, who has helped Baker Mayfield as their new head coach throwing a league-best 23 touchdowns through nine weeks. If not, it would make sense to hire an offensive-minded coach who can continue to get the most out of Mayfield, just as Coen and Dave Canales have done in recent seasons.
The Buccaneers are three-deep with cost-controlled running backs, have a decent offensive line and also have a plethora of weapons in Mike Evans, Chris Godwin And Cade Otton. Johnson could quickly turn Tampa Bay’s offense into one similar to Detroit’s, while bringing another assistant on board to improve the team’s leaky defense.
As such, this landing spot can’t be ruled out, even if it’s not certain that Bowles will be canned.
Could the Bengal say goodbye to Zac Taylor after the 2024 NFL season? That doesn’t seem likely, but it’s at least possible.
The Bengals missed the playoffs in 2023 and got off to a notoriously slow start under Taylor. This year they went 1-4 in their first five games, so if Mike Brown gets tired of that trend and believes a change is needed to keep Cincinnati’s Super Bowl window open, that could prompt him to make a change to feed and focus on another youngster. attacking mind like Johnson.
It’s fun to imagine what Johnson could do with it Joe Burrow And Ja’Marr Chase tandem. Cincinnati’s running game is also taking steps behind Chase Brownso Johnson could keep the Bengals at a high level and perhaps improve Taylor’s tendency for slow starts.
Still, this fit seems like the longest shot among Johnson’s top options. But if the Bengals falter in the long run, that can’t be ruled out as a possibility.
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