The Broncos may have a surefire Hall of Famer at quarterback, the NFL’s top-ranked defense, and entered the postseason as the No. 1 seed in the AFC, but Denver is a big underdog in Super Bowl 50.
The action on Las Vegas sports books is forcing the oddsmakers to rapidly change the lines, Nick Bogdanovich, director of trading for William Hill US, told ESPN.
Broncos Defender Admits To Rubbing His Privates On Tom Brady's Face
"Over 80 percent of the early money and tickets are on the Panthers -4.5, and we are still writing tickets at that ratio," John Avello, the race and sports operations director at Wynn and Encore, said. "I could see us going higher (possibly to 5.5, but even to 6)."
Is the game really this much of a landslide? Here are the three keys to the Broncos shocking the public, and making lots of grown men and women cry.
Josh Norman Doesn't Fear Any Wide Receivers
Confuse Cam Newton
The Broncos beat the Patriots by harassing and hitting Tom Brady more than any team has hit an opposing quarterback in history. That will be more difficult against the Panthers, who have a better (healthier) offensive line, and one of the most mobile quarterbacks in football. They can get to Cam Newton, but 20 times is not happening.
An underrated facet of Denver’s game plan against the Patriots was confusing Brady. On the rare occasions when he had some semblance of time to throw, Brady was flummoxed. The Broncos were rushing three men at times, and dropping eight into coverage. It led to Brady throwing two picks, only the second time this year he’d been intercepted more than once. Newton has obviously progressed a great deal as a passer, but he’s still not at Brady’s genius level. Wade Phillips has two weeks to study Newton’s game tape, and figure out ways to mess with his mind.
Not Forget About Jonathan Stewart
Another reason the Broncos were able to attack Brady so hard was that New England’s running game posed zero threat. That’s not the case with the Panthers. Jonathan Stewart was one of the most consistent running backs in football this year, so if Denver thinks they can fly upfield and smash Newton, they will be left with gaping wounds from draw plays.
The good news is that Denver had the fourth-best rushing defense in the NFL this year, but the bad news is that they still gave up 100-plus yards on the ground seven times.
Turn Over Cam Newton
Newton has had an incredible season both through the air and on the ground, especially considering he lost his best receiver, Kelvin Benjamin, before the season began. Carolina turned the ball over 19 times this year, the 10th-best number in the NFL. That’s obviously been helpful, seeing as how the Panthers are 17-1, including the postseason.
But Newton hasn’t faced a defense like Denver’s yet. Neither the Seahawks nor Cardinals have as complete a secondary as Denver, thanks to Arizona losing Tyrann Mathieu ahead of the playoffs. Denver has two shutdown CBs – Aqib Talib, Chris Harris – an elite run stuffer (Terrance Knighton), and stud outside linebackers, Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware.
Meanwhile, Denver’s offense has become a popgun operation with Peyton Manning’s severely compromised arm strength. Turnovers will win Denver the field position battle, and increase the odds of Manning’s intelligence winning out over Josh Norman and Luke Kuechly’s physical superiority.
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