Photo Credit: Jason Getz/ USA TODAY Sports
Does a team who went 15-1 and dominated in the playoffs really need an explanation as to why they will win? The Carolina Panthers have been the best team since the start of the season, plain and simple. Nobody expected this team to make any noise this year in the playoffs after finishing 7-8-1 and losing their young wideout Kelvin Benjamin. With the odds stacked against them, the Panthers never acted like a team who was not supposed to win and after starting the season 14-0, it appeared everyone else started to accept that this team was the real deal.
Enough cannot be said about quarterback and MVP candidate Cam Newton’s impact this season. Newton has always been one of the top athletic quarterbacks in the league, however, this year he became a smarter quarterback who did not try to force plays that were not there. Broncos defensive end Antonio Smith had high praise for the quarterback telling FOX Sports, “He’s like a combination of two quarterbacks that were great quarterbacks in this league. He’s got the escape ability of a Michael Vick and a body frame like Ben Roethlisberger where people are bouncing off of you left and right.” Newton, who threw for 35 touchdowns and rushed for ten, has excelled in the red zone. He has not thrown a single interception in the red zone all season. Stopping Newton seems like an obvious strategy to beating the Panthers, but it is much easier said than done. The Panthers are a run-first offense and they are a good one at that. This team has rushed for over 100 yards in 31 straight games. The Broncos will have to stop Newton as well as Jonathan Stewart and Mike Tolbert; clearly not an easy task even for the best defense in the league.
A lot of attention has been given to the Broncos defense, however, the Panthers defense is quite impressive. Outspoken cornerback Josh Norman has been able to shut down some of the top receivers all season and he will get the task of following Demaryius Thomas around all game. Norman, along with the other Carolina defensive backs, are more than up for the challenge of defending Thomas and the rest of the Broncos’ receivers. Carolina led the league in takeaways, including 24 interceptions. Not only are the Panthers forcing opponents to turn the ball over, but they are making opponents pay for those mistakes, scoring a league-leading 148 points off turnovers. The Panthers are getting a major boost on Sunday with the news that both linebacker Thomas Davis and defensive end Jared Allen would be available and would likely start in Super Bowl 50. Good luck Peyton.
