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| Denver Broncos’ Von Miller (58) strips the ball from Carolina Panthers’ Cam Newton (1) during the first half of the NFL Super Bowl 50 football game Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif. The Broncos recovered the ball for a touchdown. |
SANTA CLARA,
Calif. (AP) -- Peyton Manning gave himself a chance to have Super
ending to his career, and Von Miller and the Denver defense made the
plays to secure the title for the Broncos.
Manning
and Panthers quarterback Cam Newton were harassed all game Sunday, and
the Broncos made enough big plays for the 24-10 victory, Manning's 200th
and perhaps his last before retirement.
He
wasn't the star - game MVP Miller seemingly was everywhere on every
Carolina play - but Manning really hasn't been the headliner in this
injury-shortened season.
Emulating his Broncos
boss, John Elway, the 39-year-old Manning can ride off with the
Lombardi Trophy after leading Denver to its third NFL title, first since
1999 - when Elway was the quarterback.
"I'll
take some time to reflect," Manning said when asked if Super Bowl 50 is
the end. "I got a couple priorities first. I'm going to go kiss my wife
and my kids. ... I'm going to drink a lot of Budweiser tonight.
Take
care of those things first."
Denver's
suffocating defense kept Newton jittery all day. Despite wearing gold
shoes before the golden Super Bowl, Newton couldn't finish off a dynamic
season in which he was the league's MVP. Miller twice stripped him,
once for a touchdown, the second time setting up a clinching TD.
Denver's top-ranked defense, the one that ran roughshod over Tom Brady
in the AFC championship, simply wouldn't let Newton get comfortable.
"It's every one of these guys who go me to this," Miller said.
Newton
was sacked six times - receiver Ted Ginn Jr., went down once on an
aborted trick play - and if Miller wasn't torturing him, DeMarcus Ware
was. Ware had two of the seven sacks, the most ever by one team in the
Super Bowl.
Carolina's potent offense that led
the league with 500 points was held to its fewest points of the year,
and Denver set an ignominious mark with 194 yards gained, the fewest for
a Super Bowl winner.
So what: The Broncos
(15-4) are champions and Manning is the first quarterback to win Super
Bowls with two franchises, Indianapolis in 2007 was the other.
Manning finished 13 for 23 for 141 yards against a strong Carolina (17-2) defense that just couldn't match Miller and company.
"This
game was much like this season has been, testing our toughness, our
resiliency, our unselfishness," he said. "It's only fitting that it
turned out that way."
"I feel very, very grateful. ... Obviously, it's very special to cap it off with a Super Bowl championship."
Denver's
defense stole Carolina's act. The Panthers led the league with 39
takeaways and were a plus-20 in turnovers. On the Super Bowl stage,
though, Assistant Coach of the Year Wade Phillips got his first ring
because his unit was impenetrable.
It was a far cry from two years ago, when the Broncos were routed by Seattle 43-8.
Carolina has made a habit of sprinting out of the gate in the playoffs. This time, it was Denver that got the quick start.
Manning
opened the game with an 18-yard completion to Owen Daniels, later hit
Andre Caldwell for 22, and C.J. Anderson had a 13-yard run. When the
Panthers held, Brandon McManus kicked a 34-yard field goal.
The
Panthers went nowhere on their first series, then their defense forced a
three-and-out. It was the first of seven such aborted drives for both
sides in the first half.
Carolina's Ron
Rivera, the Coach of the Year, lost a challenge on a pass to Jerricho
Cotchery , and it was a key decision because two plays later, Miller
burst through and didn't even go for the sack. He reached directly for
the ball, stripping it from Newton. It rolled to the goal line, where
Malik Jackson pounced on it for a 10-0 lead.
Miller
dabbed in the end zone in front of legions of orange-clad Broncos fans
after Denver's first defensive touchdown in a Super Bowl.
Miller
spied on Newton at times, and Newton noticed. But Newton escaped him
for runs of 11 and 12 yards - Miller's hard tackle out of bounds
bothered several Panthers - and a 19-yard pass to Greg Olsen on a
misdirection play kept alive Carolina's first scoring drive.
Jonathan Stewart, back from hurting his right foot earlier, dived in from the 1 to make it 10-7.
But sloppiness - and strong defense - marked the rest of the game.
The
first half ended 13-7 after McManus made a 33-yarder that followed the
longest punt return in Super Bowl history. It was a strange runback,
too.
Brad Nortman's kick from his 12 was
barely deflected, and the ball fluttered to Jordan Norwood. One Panther
bumped Norwood, but he didn't call for a fair catch, then took off to
his right. Escorted by a bevy of blockers, he appeared headed for a
touchdown until DE Mario Addison chased him down at the Carolina 14, a
61-yard jaunt.
Denver also forced the first fumble of the season by All-Pro fullback Mike Tolbert.
But
the Broncos also had a giveaway when Manning was picked by DE Kony Ealy
on a zone blitz deep in Panthers territory. And the lead was only six
at halftime.
The margin stayed there when
Graham Gano hit the right upright on a 44-yard field goal attempt to
open the second half. Then his counterpart, McManus, made his 10th in as
many postseason tries for a 16-7 margin.
The kicker was rescuing
Denver's inept short-yardage offense, just as he did in a playoff win
over Pittsburgh when he made five field goals.
Gano
made up for his miss with a 39-yarder to make it a one-score game with
10:21 remaining. The 50th Super Bowl came down to the last quarter - and
as it had all day, Denver's defense dominated.
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