Super Bowl 50 Key Match-ups
By James Loss
The hype for Super Bowl 50 continues to grow as Sunday approaches with football fans waiting anxiously around the world.
The Broncos return to the big stage once again after being throttled by Seattle and the Legion of Boom in Super Bowl 48 and the Panthers look to claim their first championship in franchise history. A vicious Denver defense versus a high-powered Carolina offense is sure to make for an exciting game. In the Super Bowl, every snap, every yard and every match-up matters. I’ll tell you the two major battles that will most likely decide the game.
Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware vs. Cam Newton
In the AFC championship game, Tom Brady was bullied by the Denver defensive front. The Broncos recorded 20 knockdowns on Brady, 11 of those coming from the Miller-Ware combination. But Cam Newton plays a different kind of quarterback.
If they flush Newton out of the pocket with room to run, you can be sure he’ll take it.
Newton stands at 6 feet 5 inches and weighs 245 lbs with the agility and footwork of a running back. Miller and Ware rush from the outside, causing the pocket to collapse inward forcing any pocket-passing quarterback forward into oncoming defensive tackles. If Denver hopes to shut down Cam Newton, they have to force him to stand in the pocket, and not get too eager with their rushes. If they flush Newton out of the pocket with room to run, you can be sure he’ll take it.
Peyton Manning vs. Panthers Secondary
The Broncos have proven their worth on the defensive side of the ball, but being the league’s 25th ranked offense, Denver has some serious ground to cover against the league’s second-ranked defense.
Pass, pass, pass. Luke Kuechly and friends have done an impressive job of stopping the run, allowing only 36 runs of 10 yards or more through the season. The ray of sunshine finding its way through the Carolina defense comes in the secondary. Injuries to Bene Benwikere and Charles Tillman have left the Panthers thin at cornerback. Even though they have Josh Norman covering one side of the field, Robert McClain and Cortland Finnegan will be forced to cover the likes of Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas–not a favorable match up for Carolina.
Manning is a veteran who has seen this kind of stage multiple times and has faced defenses just as difficult as the Panthers. If Manning can stay composed and find the holes in a very thick Carolina defense, the Broncos will be in good shape.
Next: Super Bowl 50: A Seahawks Rooting Guide
In the end, I feel that Carolina has an edge over Denver at this point. A Super Bowl victory would sure put a nice bow on Manning’s Hall of Fame career, but Carolina has all the working parts of a championship team this year. The Broncos can only pass the ball for so long until Carolina adjusts and forces them to start handing the ball off. Lets face it, Denver is one-dimensional and a defense like Carolina loves one dimensional offenses. Carolina wins Super Bowl 50, 38-21.