On Sunday, the likely league MVP led his team to a 49-15 rout of the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Championship Game in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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Peyton Manning and a nasty Denver Broncos defense await the Panthers in Super Bowl 50, but don’t expect head coach Ron Rivera’s team to be intimidated.
The Feb. 7 game at Santa Clara, Calif., will be the Broncos’ record-tying eighth Super Bowl appearances – they won twice in the late 1990s – and the Panthers’ second.
Carolina’s D was destructive.
At one point, the Cardinals had turnovers on three consecutive plays: the muff, Palmer’s fumble and Coleman’s first of two picks.
“Philly” found the end zone himself on Carolina’s next possession.
But Panthers offensive coordinator Mike Shula has developed a series of deceptive running plays to confuse defenses and exploit the abilities of Newton while also cobbling together a respectable receiving corps out of tight end Greg Olsen and wideouts Ted Ginn Jr., journeyman Jerricho Cotchery and youngsters Corey Brown and Devin Funchess.
The scoring started quickly as it did for the Panthers against the Seahawks.
Newton was every bit as good as the NFL Most Valuable Player award he is expected to get soon, rushing for two touchdowns and throwing for two more in a boffo performance in front of 74,294 delirious, black-clad fans.
He caught just 14 passes for 190 yards and no touchdowns. He had 52 yards in receptions, and he tracked down All-Pro cornerback Patrick Peterson to prevent a touchdown on an interception return. “We are trying to finish this thing off”.
“I just kept digging us in a hole that we just couldn’t come out of”, said Palmer, who denied that his injured right finger was a factor. Jonathan Stewart returned from a three-game injury absence to rush for 106 yards and a pair of touchdowns, alleviating the pressure on Newton, who threw for only 161 yards and a score.
The Panthers forced Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer into six turnovers – two fumbles and four interceptions. “So we have to continue just to do our job, take it one at a time”. The Cardinals gave him $9.75 million and he used a little of that to thank them with a permanent mark on his body.
The Panthers opened as 3.5-point favorites over the Broncos for Super Bowl 50, and that number is climbing.
He’s going to California thanks in large part to the league’s best defense, which led the NFL with 52 sacks and allowed fewer yards than anyone else this season, then made life hard as can be for Tom Brady and the Patriots on Sunday.
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Ginn’s 32-yard punt return set up the Panthers at the Arizona 49. Newton went 19/28 for 335 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception, while he also ran for 47 yards and two touchdowns.
