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| The Seattle Seahawks will face the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII, only on FOX. |
Sunday February 2, 2014 6:30pm
MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ
FOX -- Joe Buck, Troy Aikman
The #1 offense will go up against the #1 defense. The last notable time we heard of this matchup, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the league's best defense, were stomping on the Oakland Raiders, the league's best offense, in Super Bowl XXXVII. This game happened to have an interesting twist. The Buccaneers' head coach that year was Jon Gruden. Gruden was the head coach of the Raiders just the year before, and he was in charge of the Raiders' offense during his head coaching tenure. Therefore, the Buccaneers knew all of the Raiders plays and signals, making it one of the easiest Super Bowl games in recent memory.
This game does not have that interesting twist, so it will be very interesting to see which strong unit wins the battle. Weather reports seem to be getting better by the day, but if there are any elements involved, as Richard Sherman stated in one of his pieces in Sports Illustrated, that will benefit the Seahawks because they have a strong defense and run game. The Broncos aren't shy in running the football either despite Peyton Manning's record numbers in passing yards and passing touchdowns. Knowshon Moreno once got 37 carries for over 200 yards in a game against the Patriots in the regular season.
If the elements dictate the flow of the game, Manning and Broncos' offensive coordinator Adam Gase will take note and go to the run more often. The only problem with going to the run often is going up against the front seven of the Seahawks' defense. They are pretty good, so there may not be many holes to run through. Avoiding third and long situations will be key for the Broncos because it could affect field position. The Broncos must avoid three-and-out situations also because the Broncos' defense will need rest in order to chase Russell Wilson around and tackle Marshawn Lynch.
It seems as if it's been a long two weeks since both teams took care of business in their respective conference championship games two weeks ago. However, when considering Sherman's rant on Michael Crabtree, it doesn't seem like that long ago. Sherman has been talking all week, so he's now become of the interesting characters in the league in addition to being a great defensive back.
Peyton Manning is a smart quarterback, and will always look to exploit certain matchups. Sherman lines up exclusively on the left side, so Manning may not throw it to that side often. Manning will instead look to target the other members of the secondary. That won't be too easy though because Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas can fly to the football over the top.
This will be the perfect time for the Seahawks' offense to re-emerge, as they've been in a funk that could've cost them the NFC Championship Game. Granted, the defense of the 49ers is very good, but to be a championship team, you have to execute on offense. The defense of the Broncos may not be as good as the 49ers, but they are capable of making plays and shutting down offenses like they did to the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.
The talk for the past two weeks will now end. It is time for both teams to strap on their helmets and give everything they have. May the best team win!
Seattle Seahawks 24 Denver Broncos 21
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