The NFL’s biggest day of the game is almost upon us.
The NFC Champion Carolina Panthers and AFC Champion Denver Broncos, the No. 1 seeds in their respective conferences, are set to battle for the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, Sunday.
NEWTON VS. MANNING
When the Panthers and Broncos take the field, it will be a matchup of former No. 1 overall picks in the NFL Draft.
In Cam Newton, the 2011 first overall pick, is a leading candidate for this year’s Most Valuable Player Award.
In 16 starts during the regular season, Newton completed 296 passes for 3,837 yards and 35 touchdowns against 10 interceptions. Newton added 636 rushing yards to go along with 10 running scores.
During the Panthers’ two postseason games, Newton completed 35 of his 50 throws for 496 yards and three touchdowns against one interception. In the Panthers’ 49-15 win over the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Championship Game, Newton rushed for two touchdowns and threw for two more scores.
“It’s amazing,” Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said. “He’s a special talent, rare talent.
“He’s not only beating people with his arm, but with his feet and his ability to move around. He’s also doing a lot of things at the line of scrimmage, which is very impressive to us as we prepare to play him. They’ve given him a lot of freedom. He’s a tremendous athlete that they’ve molded their offense around, and it’s shown up in how they play.”
In Peyton Manning, the No. 1 pick of the Indianapolis Colts in the 1998 NFL Draft, the Broncos have the big-game experience edge, as he will make his fourth Super Bowl appearance, but does so after an injury-plagued season that actually saw him benched upon returning to the lineup.
Two years removed from a 55-touchdown, 10-interception season, Manning completed only 198 of his 331 attempts for 2,249 yards and nine touchdowns against 17 interceptions in 2015, which was his worst touchdown-to-interception ratio of his career.
However, in the postseason, Manning completed 38 of his 69 throws for 398 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in wins over the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
“I think it’s important to use all of your experience to your advantage,” Manning said. “You can always refer back to prior situations, a two-minute drive or a fourth-and-goal from the two-yard line, and the more experience you have, you can use that to help you.”
PANTHERS’ DEFENSIVE PROWESS
Under the direction of coordinator Sean McDermott, the Panthers (17-1) had the sixth-best overall defense in the regular season, but ranked second in yards allowed per play, tied for fourth in forced fumbles (28), second in recovered fumbles (15) and first in both interceptions (24) and interceptions returned for touchdowns (four).
Free safety Kurt Coleman finished tied for third in the NFL with his seven interceptions, and the former Ohio State Buckeye set the tone for a defense that corralled a league-best 24 interceptions during the regular season, four of which were taken back for touchdowns. In the postseason, the Panthers have returned two of their six interceptions for touchdowns, both of which are NFL bests.
“At the end of the day, it’s not our defense versus their defense, it’s not our offense versus their offense, it’s not one player versus another player; it’s the Panthers versus the Broncos,” Panthers defensive lineman Star Lotulelei said. “They have a great defense. We know that. They have great players on both sides of the ball. We’re coming into this and we’re getting ready to play their offense and we’re preparing for the Broncos.”
EDGE-SETTING BRONCOS
The Broncos’ tough-minded and physical defense pressured quarterbacks at a ferocious rate during the regular season and their two playoff games.
After leading the NFL with 52 sacks and generating 14 interceptions, four of which they returned for touchdowns, the Broncos have registered seven sacks in the postseason, and the players expect to build on that total in Super Bowl 50, despite Newton’s abilities to escape the rush.
“Defense wins championships, and we’re not going to stop being aggressive on whoever we play,” Broncos linebacker DeMarcus Ware said. “We’re going to do what we do, and I think that’s been predicated on a guy like T.J. (Ward), (Aqib) Talib being in the game. The big hits, the league has changed certain things, but you can’t take the edge off because we’re gladiators out there. That’s the way we play, and we bring that grit every week.”
