NFL Playoffs: Breaking Down The Remaining Teams
The NFL playoff field is down to four teams: Carolina, Arizona, New England, and Denver. Each of these teams is capable making a run and lifting the VInce Lombardi Trophy on February 7th. With a trip to the Super Bowl on the line, we can expect to see some intense action this weekend. Here is a breakdown of the four teams and what we can expect to see from each team.
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers have been dominate this season. They have now won 21 of their past 23 games, including the playoffs. The Cardinals are what now stand in their path, a team which has had success against Cam Newton. Throughout his three career games against Arizona, he has faced a blitz on 54% of dropbacks, leading to 12 sacks and four interceptions against the pass rush.
Arizona Cardinals
Carson Palmer has finally got the monkey off his back; he secured his first career playoff win with help of Larry Fitzgerald who has been sensational. Fitzgerald averages 114 receiving yards in his eight career playoff games, along with 10 touchdowns. However the Panthers defense will likely be his biggest test yet. They have allowed the lowest Total QBR (56.7) on passes to wide receivers in the regular season.
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos have had their ups and downs, but their defense has been a rock solid all season long. The Broncos allowed only 18.5 points per game this season and led the NFL in total defense. No Peyton Manning-led team has ever led the league in total defense before, which is extremely encouraging for him this postseason. However, no Manning-led team has scored as few points as he has this season since 2002. The Broncos already took down the Patriots once this season, will they be able to do it again?
New England Patriots
The Patriots have faced a number of injuries this season that have really slowed down the offense. But with Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman both on the field, Tom Brady is a completely different quarterback; he completes 68 percent of his passes with a 79 Total QBR when he has his star receivers, compared to 60% and a 50 Total QBR with either off the field. Although Brady has a 11-5 record against Peyton Manning in head-to-head matchups, the home team has one each of the playoff matchups. Unfortunately for Brady, the Broncos sneaked by the Patriots to secure home-field advantage this year.
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