Carolina Panthers vs Denver Broncos

Super Bowl Sunday is nearing and let’s hope that the Broncos don’t suffer the same fate that they did in Super Bowl XLVIII where they were blown out 43-7 by the Seahawks. This Sunday they will have a chance at redemption in their matchup against the Panthers.

In their Conference Championship matchup with the Patriots, the Denver defense played lights out and held the Pats under 20 points. Outside linebackers DeMarcus Ware and Von Miller reeked havoc on Tom Brady, visibly making him anxious to get rid of the ball. Miller had 2.5 sacks and was named the game’s MVP. They will need to bring the same pass rush to force Cam Newton to make mistakes.

Despite lacking a lot of big name playmakers, the Panthers offense has been firing on all cylinders in their past two postseason matchups. Their attack revolves around Cam Newton making plays both on the ground and through the air. His duel threat ability forces the defense to peek into the backfield thus opening up passing lanes down the field.

Newton’s favorite target has consistently been Greg Olson who has had no difficulty in finding openings in their opponent’s defense. Against the Cardinal’s, Olson reeled in 6 catches for 113 yards through the air. Look for Olson to cause problems for Denver’s beat up safeties.

Throughout the season, the Panther defense has struggled to find consistency, however in their last game they were red hot. Led by their middle linebacker Luke Kuechly and cornerback Josh Norman the Panthers defense held Arizona to only 15 points. Carolina’s effectiveness in jumping out to an early lead has been largely due to their ability to cause turnovers. That was clearly demonstrated in their last game in which they caused seven turnovers.

It will be interesting to see how the ball hawking Carolina defense does against a Bronco offense that takes care of the ball very well. Peyton Manning will have to continue his streak of being patient in the pocket and not forcing throws. The 39 year old veteran has not thrown an interception in their past two playoff games and has done a great job of spreading the ball around to his different weapons.

Prediction: Carolina by 7

Picking a team that is so hot and cold like the Panthers can go either way (as I found out last week) so this game will depend on what Carolina team shows up on Sunday. If they play like they did last week, there is not a team in the NFL that could beat them. The Broncos better hang on to the ball and hope the Panthers run into some offensive difficulties.