TV Schedule: Sunday, Feb. 7, 6:30 p.m. ET-CBS
Stadium: Levi’s Stadium-Santa Clara, Calif.
Current Line: Carolina (-6)
Over/Under: 45.5 (via Vegas Insider.com)
The conversation around Super Bowl 50 is centered on the contrast of the quarterbacks, with a young, confident Cam Newton leading the Carolina Panthers and Peyton Manning perhaps playing the final game of his career for the Denver Broncos. But two strong defenses have also been big factors in each team’s success, particularly in Denver with Manning shifting into game manager mode, and Sunday’s result is likely to hinge on which defensive unit can make game-changing (and field position tilting) plays.
The Broncos’ pass rush notably pressured and battered Tom Brady in the AFC Championship Game, but Newton obviously brings a unique challenge with his size and mobility. In Carolina’s only loss this season, Week 16 against the Atlanta Falcons, Newton was only sacked twice but more notably he averaged just 4.7 yards per pass attempt as the Falcons possessed the ball for over 35 minutes. Denver has the ability to follow a similar formula, with the secondary pieces to limit big plays and a back to front talent level defensively which exceeds Atlanta’s.
The bigger question for Denver is how much Manning will be able to do through the air if he’s forced to, which makes the running back duo of C.J. Anderson and Ronnie Hillman a critical element of their offense. Apart from production on the ground, it would not surprise me to see Anderson and Hillman be prominent targets in the Broncos’ passing game on Sunday.
Someone no one sees coming will surely step up on the Super Bowl stage, either with a big game from the start or a critical play in a key moment. But Sunday’s winner is likely to be determined by which quarterback plays better, and more importantly avoids mistakes, in what is sure to be a close, fairly low-scoring game.
Prediction: Panthers 24, Broncos 20
