What we're left with provides for some fairly compelling storylines. On one side is the umpteenth chapter of the Brady-Manning era, and probably the game I'm least excited for—partly because of the "been there, done that" feel to having either one of these quarterbacks get to the Super Bowl and partly because I'm still bitter that I thought both teams were going to falter before getting to the big game. Now one will move on. There's much discussion about this possibly being Peyton's last game, but forgive me for not buying it. Hell, I might as well make Patriots-whoever Manning is playing for my AFC Championship pick next year.
On the other side of the bracket are two teams from cities (or states, I guess) that have yet to taste championship glory. Cam Newton and Carson Palmer have both had stellar seasons, and there's very good reason to believe that both of these teams have the potential to be making regular appearances in this game over the coming seasons. Of course, the last time I remember saying that was when we had a Thunder-Heat NBA Finals—the only such meeting we've had since. So maybe I should cool my jets a bit.
The bottom line is that we've gone from playoffs that began with fairly obvious outcomes to now having any one of the four remaining Super Bowl possibilities seem quite realistic.
I won't be surprised if all the other picks for this round essentially break 50/50, with maybe a slight edge to the home teams. I wouldn't exactly say I'm confident in either one of the following picks, and I'm tempted not to type too much about either since I could see myself changing my mind on both games before Sunday:
Newton and Palmer both had terrific season, and both quarterbacks are capable of making very big plays for their respective teams. I'm convinced that Cam is more capable of dealing with increased pressure than Carson though. Newton not only makes plays with his feet but seemingly finds targets among that receiving corps so many of us had doubts about coming into this season. Palmer probably has the more dangerous group of potential targets, but the defenses are probably going to determine the winning team in this one. Carolina led the league in turnovers forced this season, and Jonathan Stewart had over 100 yards last weekend against the league's top run defense. Seeing as the Cardinals have allowed almost 400 rushing yards over their last three games, it just seems like the Panthers are going to have more ways to score than Arizona.
Yes, Tom Brady and Payton Manning will get a bulk of the attention surrounding the game, but so many other elements are going to factor into the outcome. Denver had the league's best defense, but it is important to remember that the Broncos Week 12 overtime victory over the Pats did not involve Julian Edelman or Danny Amendola. I'm inclined to believe that Manning refuses to let his career end here with a loss to Brady and that New England cannot make repeat visits to the Super Bowl, but we just had the Seahawks make a return visit one year after winning a title last year. In the end, the disturbing number of Denver drops this year have me believing that we're destined to see the Patriots collecting another Lamar Hunt Trophy.
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