Santa Clara, Calif. will play host to the 50th annual Super Bowl game this coming Sunday at the newly-built Levi’s Stadium. Being the home of the supremely successful 49ers, San Francisco is an appropriate setting for this historic anniversary of the NFL’s biggest game. This year’s game will feature the American Football Conference champion Denver Broncos and the NFL champion Carolina Panthers.
As it is every year, the Super Bowl will be defined by its storylines. This year’s game features possibly the last “rodeo” for Denver quarterback Peyton Manning. The 18-year veteran has spent much of his NFL career smashing league passing records and building an almost unparalleled resume at his position. After many years, and one Super Bowl title leading the Indianapolis Colts, Manning made his move to Denver in 2011 and will be playing in his second championship game since the switch.
The Broncos are without a doubt hoping that Super Bowl 50 will play out better in their favour than Super Bowl 48 did. Denver, as well as Manning, were handled with ease 43-8 by the Seattle Seahawks in 2014. Despite coming in with the highest scoring offence in NFL history, they were corralled by a physical Seattle defence that used intimidation to its advantage from the opening snap.
Following the game, the Broncos made it their mission to get tougher on the defensive side and added defensive standouts TJ Ward, Demarcus Ware, and Aqib Talib. Fielding the league’s top-scoring defence, Manning now has a Seattle-level supporting cast this time around as he shoots for his second championship ring in possibly his last NFL game.
Peyton’s opponent this year will be no slouch though. The Panthers have put together one of the best seasons in league history, finishing the regular season with a 15-1 record. Superstar quarterback Cam Newton has passed, rushed, and smiled his way to his first career MVP award this season, and the Panthers to the league’s best record. The dual-threat phenom’s on-field brilliance and off field personality have rapidly put him in position to become the new face of the NFL.
Newton is consistently a treat to watch, always looking like he is having a blast playing the game while using his unmatched athleticism in ways the game of football has really never seen before. He is the key to the outcome of this game. If Newton has his way, which has been the case for virtually the entire 2015 season, then the Panthers will take home the Lombardi trophy. The Denver defence will need to apply the type of pressure to Newton as they did to Tom Brady in the AFC championship game a week ago. The Panthers are currently 5.5 point favourites.
The contrasts between the two teams are obvious: old versus new. An established Denver Broncos team led by a legend facing the last chance he will ever get, and an upstart Carolina Panthers team led by a rising star and a bright future for years to come. Super Bowl 50 will either be remembered as Cam Newton’s coronation as the best player in football, or as Peyton Manning riding off into the sunset with a second ring. Either way, history will be made this Super Bowl Sunday.
