Throwback Thursday is here and for this edition we look at the Super Bowl matchup between the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos, more specifically, the battle between Peyton Manning and Cam Newton.
The Panthers are into the Super Bowl after Newton led the team through a great regular season that saw Carolina start 14-0 before finishing at 15-1. The Panthers were the top seed in the NFC and now they have opened as favorites against the Broncos in the Super Bowl. Newton has put together a fantastic season and likely will win MVP, but things have not always been this easy for the Panthers quarterback.
For Throwback Thursday we'll take a look at how some scouts perceived Newton when he was coming out of college, with some bashing his work ethic and potential to be a winner. Clearly those scouts are eating their words now. For Peyton Manning and the Broncos we'll take a look at the last time the two were in the Super Bowl, which ended up as a bashing by the Seattle Seahawks in New Jersey.
Throwback Thursday: Remember when Peyton Manning and the Broncos were killed by the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII?
The Denver Broncos came into Super Bowl XLVIII as the favorites over the Seahawks after putting up record numbers on offense during the season. The team was 13-3 and looked like they would have a great chance to win the Super Bowl, but things did not turn out that way. The game was a great matchup coming in, as the Seahawks went 13-3 during the regular season and it marked the first time since 2010 that both number one seeds made it to the Super Bowl.
The Broncos offense was stifled at every turn by the Seahawks, falling back 22-0 at halftime and then 36-0 before the Broncos scored for the first time. Manning had two interceptions in the first half and the Seahawks started the game with a safety against Denver, which was the fastest score in Super Bowl history. The Broncos got blown out 43-8 in the Super Bowl and now Manning and the team will have the chance to bounce back against the Panthers.
Throwback Thursday: Remember when Cam Newton was ripped by NFL scouts heading into the draft?
Newton has put together an amazing season for the Panthers, combining to score 45 total touchdowns this season with over 4500 total yards. Newton is the favorite to win the MVP award and he already won the Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year awards from the Pro Football Writers of America. Newton has established himself as one of the best players in the league since entering the NFL, but some scouts did not see the quarterback developing that way.
Newton did have an incident at Florida and of course there was the "pay for play" stuff at Auburn, but Newton pushed that aside and won a title at Auburn. Through the draft process some scouts had questions about Newton's maturity and his ability to win at the NFL level. Mel Kiper at ESPN said that: "Things came easy to Cam Newton (at Auburn). I hope he doesn't think they'll come easy in the NFL."
There were a lot of critics out there, but the worst one was from Pro Football Weekly's Nolan Nawrocki, who wrote: "Very disingenuous - has a fake smile, comes off as very scripted and has a selfish, me-first makeup. Always knows where the cameras are and plays to them. Has an enormous ego with a sense of entitlement that continually invites trouble and makes him believe he is above the law - does not command respect from teammates and will always struggle to win a locker room . . . Lacks accountability, focus and trustworthiness - is not punctual, seeks shortcuts and sets a bad example. Immature and has had issues with authority. Not dependable."
Clearly Newton has had the last laugh on all of this.