Von Miller (58) of the Denver Broncos runs back to the sidelines after a sack in the fourth quarter. The Denver Broncos played the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. on Feb. 7, 2016. (Joe Amon, The Denver Post)
The best and worst from the Broncos’ 24-10 win over Carolina in their Super Bowl 50 game on Sunday…
It’s Miller time. Carolina double-teamed Von Miller on its first possession. But he stunted twice and pulled back, and his blockers stood with nothing to do. On the Panthers’ next possession, tight end Ed Dickson showed double-team, then left Miller alone. So Miller blew by lineman Mike Remmers to create a fumble and a Denver touchdown.
Home away from home. Super Bowl crowds usually are a “wine and cheese” set and not very engaged. But the crowd Sunday at Levi’s Stadium appeared to be 80 percent Broncos fans clad in orange. They were very loud.
Very special. Kayvon Webster stuffed Carolina for a 1-yard loss on a punt return. Jordan Norwood returned a punt 61 yards. Brandon McManus hit all of his kicks. Denver special teams got an A grade.
Talib hands ball to Panthers. Aqib Talib’s taunting penalty in the first quarter accounted for more Carolina yards than the Panthers’ offense had at that point. They had just 9 yards of their own. Talib’s miscue gave 15 yards and a first down to the Panthers. The cornerback’s face-mask penalty in the second quarter put Carolina close enough for Jonathan Stewart to high jump for a touchdown on a 1-yard run.
Ugly offense. With Peyton Manning’s passes wobbling, the Broncos struggled on third downs and on offense overall after their first possession.
More drops. Demaryius Thomas dropped two passes in the first half, then all but disappeared. He was targeted five times during the first three quarters and made only one catch.
Grades
Offense: C-
Peyton Manning and the Denver offense started fast Sunday but failed to maintain that momentum. The Broncos didn’t score an offensive touchdown until late in the fourth quarter. They had only four first downs in the first half and were 1-of-14 on third downs overall. Manning threw one interception and was sacked five times, fumbling on the last one in the fourth quarter that nearly gave away Denver’s six-point lead. But C.J. Anderson, making a start for the first time since Oct. 18, found the end zone on a 2-yard run to clinch the victory with 3:08 left. Manning finished 13-of-23 for 141 yards. Denver had only 194 total yards.
Defense: A
As was the case most of the season, the Denver defense made up for the offense’s shortcomings with pressure and big plays. Von Miller strip sacked Cam Newton in the first quarter and Malik Jackson recovered the ball in the end zone to give Denver a 10-0 lead. The defense had seven sacks and four takeaways, the last of which was, of course, by Miller, who forced a fourth-quarter fumble that set up Denver’s only offensive touchdown.
Special teams: A
Kayvon Webster continued his impressive play on special teams. He tackled Ted Ginn Jr. for a loss of 1 yard on a first-quarter punt return, forcing Carolina to start its second possession of the game at its 15-yard line. Jordan Norwood set a Super Bowl record with his 61-yard punt return in the second quarter. Brandon McManus was perfect on his field-goal attempts, kicking 34-, 33- and 30-yarders. Britton Colquitt averaged 48.4 yards on seven punts, two of which landed inside the Panthers’ 20-yard line.
Coaching: B
The penalties that hurt the Broncos early in the season re-
appeared Sunday and could have been costly. The defense again brought the pressure and the big plays, as defensive coordinator Wade Phillips mixed it up against Newton and put cornerback Aqib Talib on tight end Greg Olsen. But the offense left much to be desired. The Broncos were only 1-of-14 on third downs overall and earned only four first downs in the first half. But they are NFL champions, having defeated a Carolina team that was 17-1.
Game balls
Von Miller. Denver’s all-pro outside linebacker had two strip sacks, one in the first quarter that led to a defensive touchdown and one in the fourth quarter that set up an offensive touchdown. He finished with 2½ sacks.
C.J. Anderson. Making a start for the first time since Oct. 18, the undrafted tailback rushed for a game-high 90 yards on 23 carries. He scored Denver’s only offensive touchdown Sunday on a 2-yard run with 3:08 remaining in the fourth quarter.
