Two dominant defences, an ageing gunslinger saddling up for perhaps his last rodeo, and a brash, young quarterback. It’s the old school versus the new age.
It is the top scoring offence in the NFL versus the top defence.
And two number one overall picks, selected 13 years apart, will have the biggest say in who lifts the Lombardi Trophy in Santa Clara on February 8 (AEST).
After an epic conference championship round, the stage is set for Super Bowl 50.
The Panthers and Broncos will go head-to-head after Denver held off rivals New England and Carolina dismantled Arizona.
But until then we’ve got two weeks of dissecting every part of this match-up. So let’s get the ball rolling with a few storylines ahead of the Carolina Panthers versus Denver Broncos.
Manning’s last game?
Will this be Peyton Manning’s last game regardless of the result? Or, if the Broncos fail, will Manning be back again?
Manning will turn 40 this year and after his play regressed at an accelerated rate through season 2015 this will surely be his last season. We’ve talked about Father Time’s undefeated record before. But Manning will likely delay any answers on his future until after the season.
This may be his best chance to win a Super Bowl since the Colts fell to the Saints in 2010. Ironically, in the past Manning was able to win despite his defence. But this year he has had the benefit of the best defensive unit during his career.
Full credit to John Elway and management for amassing talent on that side of the ball. They were able to hold off the Patriots late in the Conference Championship. Let’s see if they can do the same against the Panthers.
Defence wins championships
Speaking of defences, there isn’t a team in the NFL that can match it with the Panthers defence when they are rolling. They start fast on both sides of the ball and have jumped out to big leads in both playoff games this season.
Luke Kuechly is playing like the defensive MVP, Carolina’s defensive front is getting pressure and stopping the run and even the Carolina defensive backs not named Josh Norman are playing lights out.
Meanwhile, it’s going to be a real treat for NFL fans to see Von Miller on the biggest stage. The Broncos outside linebacker combines silky smooth footwork with power and speed off the edge.
Miller and veteran DeMarcus Ware, who is playing in his first Super Bowl, lead a stellar Broncos defence that is excellent at all levels. It’s going to be hard for offensive coordinators to find any weaknesses in the game film. But they’ve got two weeks to do it.
Back to Carolina, it could be the absence of one of their defensive stars that plays a pivotal role in the game in two weeks…
Thomas Davis’s arm injury
We got a chance to see just how valuable Davis is to the Panthers during one play against the Cardinals on Monday (AEST).
Down 17-0 at the start of the second quarter, Arizona managed to hold the Panthers to a three-and-out for the first time in the game. But then Davis set the tone for the rest of the half, when he read a pitch play to Cardinals running back David Johnson, shot the gap and lit up the rookie for a six-yard loss in the backfield.
Seven plays later, Cardinals tight end Darren Fells tried to hurdle Davis on a pass play and ran his knee right into Davis’s forearm. Davis pulled out of the play immediately, clutching his arm, and came to the sideline. Later on he told US media his arm was broken, but he intended to play in the Super Bowl.
“I believe in our training staff,” Davis said. “I’ll do everything in my power to be ready to go.”
The linebacker also told Terry Bradshaw after the game, “I wouldn’t miss the Super Bowl for the world. We’ve worked too hard to get to this point.”
It’s a significant loss for the Panthers, with Davis serving as the heart and soul of Carolina’s defence after recovering from three major knee injuries during his stellar 11-year NFL career.
There are heaps more storylines in this Super Bowl match-up. Can you think of any?
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