When we envisioned the league’s best defense playing the league’s highest-scoring offense, we didn’t expect this.
Super Bowl 50 has taken a number of strange turns, with the turnovers preventing it from having any kind of organic flow.
The Panthers and Broncos combined for three turnovers, with Carolina’s 2-1 edge in that category translating to a 13-7 Broncos lead at halftime.
It’s one thing for the Panthers to be nervous in this setting, but the Broncos’ offering was a young player’s mistake by quarterback Peyton Manning, when he was picked off by Panthers defensive end Kony Ealy.
But it wasn’t enough to overcome the sack-fumble-touchdown by the Broncos early, and Mike Tolbert’s attempt to make a statement play but losing the ball.
The Broncos can’t afford to make many more mistakes, as they’re playing clutch-and-grab and hoping defense and special teams is enough to get them by. They have just four first downs in the first half, and Manning’s averaging 4.8 yards per pass attempt.
And that will be fine, as long as the Panthers continue to make mistakes, and waste chances like they did with their end-of-half clock management.
