Today\u2019s NFL is all about the quarterbacks, so perhaps it\u2019s fitting that the 50th Super Bowl features a matchup between Peyton Manning\u2019s Denver Broncos and Cam Newton\u2019s Carolina Panthers.<\/p>\n
At 39, Manning \u2014 the only five-time MVP in history and one of the faces of the league \u2014 is the oldest starting QB to lead a team to the big game. Most folks figure his fourth Super Sunday will be the last time he dons a helmet.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, wow,\u201d Newton said. \u201cPlaying \u2018The Sheriff.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Newton, meanwhile, is part of the new guard. He is expected to be honored as the MVP for the first time \u2014 fans chanted those three letters during the NFC championship postgame ceremony \u2014 and he\u2019ll be playing in his first Super Bowl.<\/p>\n
Carolina (17-1) ran away with a 49-15 victory over the Arizona Cardinals for the NFC title Sunday night, after Denver (14-4) edged the New England Patriots 20-18 in the AFC.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no question, this is a sweet day, this was a sweet victory,\u201d Manning said. \u201cTo me, this victory sort of is a great example of what this entire season has been like. It hasn\u2019t been easy.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Feb. 7 game at Santa Clara, California, will be the Broncos\u2019 record-tying eighth Super Bowl appearances \u2014 they won twice in the late 1990s \u2014 and the Panthers\u2019 second.<\/p>\n
Carolina opened as a 4-point favorite with most bookmakers.<\/p>\n
Manning, of course, will get so much of the attention over the next two weeks.<\/p>\n
He is 1-2 in past Super Bowls, winning a championship with the Indianapolis Colts in 2007, then losing with the Colts in 2010, before losing with the Broncos in 2014.<\/p>\n
But this is a different version of Manning.<\/p>\n
Yes, he\u2019s still as good as anyone at diagnosing defenses and changing things up \u2014 or appearing to, anyway \u2014 at the line of scrimmage.<\/p>\n
Yes, he\u2019s still out there yelling \u201cOmaha!\u201d But he is not quite as capable as he was, once upon a time, when it comes to putting the football exactly where he wants it, especially on deep routes.<\/p>\n
This has hardly been a record-setting season for Manning \u2014 or, until now, one worth remembering. Overall, the bad far outweighed the good, including one game with a passer rating of 0.0, 17 interceptions to only nine touchdown passes in the regular season, being sidelined for six weeks with a series of injuries, his first NFL game as a backup, and vehemently denying a report linking Manning\u2019s wife to the banned drug HGH.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy role has been different and my contributions are different,\u201d Manning said. \u201cBut I\u2019m fortunate and grateful that I have the opportunity to contribute still, in some way. And it\u2019s a great honor to be going back to the Super Bowl.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019s going to California thanks in large part to the league\u2019s best defense, which led the NFL with 52 sacks and allowed fewer yards than anyone else this season, then made life difficult as can be for Tom Brady and the Patriots on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cDefensively, we were just tremendous,\u201d said Denver\u2019s Gary Kubiak, the seventh coach in NFL history to get to the Super Bowl in his first year with a team.<\/p>\n
Linebacker Von Miller led the way for Denver, with 2\u00bd sacks and an interception.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to do it for Peyton,\u201d Miller said. \u201cTo get him back there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Miller and Co. will have its work cut out for it against Newton and a Carolina team that averaged a league-best 31.2 points during the regular season.<\/p>\n
And Carolina can play some serious \u201cD,\u201d too. The Panthers piled up seven takeaways against the Cardinals \u2014 six on defense, one on special teams \u2014 including an interception returned for a score by linebacker Luke Kuechly.<\/p>\n
The Panthers led 17-0 after the first quarter, 24-7 at halftime.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to start fast,\u201d Newtown said. \u201cWe wanted to keep the pressure on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Should be fun to see how these two talented defenses try to slow down these two talented quarterbacks.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve just got to try to get some pressure on (Manning),\u201d Kuechly said. \u201cThat\u2019s the biggest thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
___<\/p>\n
Online:<\/p>\n
AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http:\/\/twitter.com\/AP_NFL<\/p>\n
___<\/p>\n
Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http:\/\/twitter.com\/HowardFendrich<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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