Super Bowl XLVIII storylines we won't get sick of

[Denver Native (Carol)]

The epic NFC Championship game was barely over before we started to think ahead to Super Bowl XLVIII: The best Super Bowl matchup possible this season.

This is the first time in NFL history that an offense ranked first in points and yards will face off against a defense leading the league in points and yards allowed. These were the best two NFL teams all year, and they couldn't be more different. It feels like the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks play in different eras, not different conferences.

Over the next two weeks, we'll dissect both rosters in every way imaginable. We'll learn too much about various players' tangential connections to New York, and probably hear the word "legacy" and "narrative" too many times.

But this is a game to be celebrated. It's the matchup we deserve as football fans. Here are a few of the storylines we won't get sick of leading into Super Bowl XLVIII:

rest - http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000315980/article/super-bowl-storylines-we-wont-get-sick-of

[Denver Native (Carol)]

http://www.nfl.com/superbowl/48/super-bowl-matchup

[Denver Native (Carol)]

Thank you.

Thank you, thank you, thank you -- thank you, football gods.

I've argued before that the 2013 campaign will go down as the greatest ever. And as if a regular season filled with drama, competition, stories and excellence wasn't enough, there's more: We have the most amazing possible Super Bowl before us.

In a league where wonderful competitive balance reigns supreme and playoff upsets are an annual norm, the two best teams made the title game. The quarterback who had arguably the best regular season in history is in, as is the NFL's top-to-bottom most talented squad, ready to fight for the Lombardi Trophy in the spotlight provided by the single greatest city in the world.

rest - http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000315645/article/peyton-manning-vs-seahawks-d-tops-super-bowl-storylines

[Denver Native (Carol)]

The greatest quarterback of all time was just beginning to celebrate one of his greatest victories and the drumbeat was already starting. After a week's worth of discussion about the importance of Sunday's AFC Championship Game to Peyton Manning's legacy, the storyline for the next two weeks begins to take shape: Manning must win the Super Bowl to cement that legacy and be considered the greatest ever.

Hogwash.

We find ourselves, sadly, in the nothing's-ever-good-enough era of sports. We talk more about who didn't get into the Hall of Fame than about who did. We obsess over every officiating mistake. We wring our hands about a word like "legacy" when it comes to deciding which brilliant player is better than which other brilliant player and by how much. It's paralysis by analysis, where the victim is our ability to enjoy.

rest - http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/10322500/2013-nfl-playoffs-peyton-manning-stands-alone

[Broncolingus]

I would like to hear, "...This one's for, Pat..."

...and to see Champ go out as a champ.

Those are my two biggies right now...

(...thanks, Carol ;) ...)

[Denver Native (Carol)]

from article:

Here are the 10 most important questions for Super Bowl XLVIII.


2. How will officiating affect the Super Bowl? Neither team should have any complaints in this one. Terry McAulay lets players play and doesn't litter the field with flags. He officiated the Seahawks-New Orleans Saints divisional-round game in Seattle. In that game, his crew called 15 penalties, 14 of which were accepted.

The umpire will be Carl Paganelli, which should warn both teams to be careful about offensive holding. Paganelli called two holding penalties each on the Saints and Seahawks.

Both teams should be able to get away with aggressive man-to-man coverage. Steve Freeman is the back judge. He did the Carolina-San Francisco divisional-round game. There was only one defensive pass interference penalty in that game. Officials are allowing extra grabbing by defensive backs. A classic example was how Patriots safety Devin McCourty mauled Broncos tight end Julius Thomas on a pass from the 10-yard line in the first quarter of the AFC Championship Game.

In 10 playoff games, only seven defensive pass interferences have been called. This should benefit the Seahawks, who play as aggressive man coverage as there is in football.

full article - http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2013/story/_/page/lastcall140119/2013-nfl-playoffs-sb-xlviii-storylines-start-manning

[weazel]

dont know if any of you know this but Jerome Bettis is from Detroit

[Denver Native (Carol)]

Mike Adams won't be going to Disney World if the Denver Broncos win the Super Bowl. Instead, he'll take a walk -- literally -- to his hometown of Paterson, N.J.

Adams told the Denver Post that he intends to walk to crime-ridden Paterson if the Broncos win Super Bowl XLVIII, which will be played in East Rutherford, N.J., approximately 10 miles from his hometown

"If we win the Super Bowl, I'm going to keep my helmet and pads on and I'm walking home," Adams told the Post.

rest - http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/10354267/super-bowl-mike-adams-vows-walk-crime-ridden-hometown-new-jersey-denver-broncos-win-super-bowl

[Joel]

from article:

Here are the 10 most important questions for Super Bowl XLVIII.

full article - http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2013/story/_/page/lastcall140119/2013-nfl-playoffs-sb-xlviii-storylines-start-manning
Um... they're gonna clamp down on OFFENSIVE holding but "let 'em play" in the secondary, so NEITHER team should have any complaints?! When it's irresistible force vs. immovable object and they stifle the force while reinforcing the object, you bet I'll complain. I've been preemptively complaining about the Legion of Dopes juiced thugs most of the season, and wondering if they'll win the SB precisely (but solely) because of this.

Let's send Denvers high-velocity passing and fast-but-small D to play a ground 'n pound team in the snow. Oh, and let's call every offensive penalty but no defensive ones, because 5'9" 185 lb. Welker's a dirty thug, but the juiced up Legion of Boom are the best DBs in the game. Also, when Denver has possession the ball will be electrified and explode after 5 seconds. :rolleyes:

[Dzone]

So far, am not tired of listening to sports (broncos) talk radio several hours a day and watching and reading everything I can possibly find about the Broncos in the Super Bowl. LOL...Just found an article about Peyton Manning in this weeks Time magazine. Going to check it out.
Hey this is what we dream about. It happens pretty rarely. We never know how long it will be between super bowls. So we have to take it all in. If I didnt have to work, I might be focused on nothing else. lol

[Dzone]

dont know if any of you know this but Jerome Bettis is from Detroit
I didnt know that. Now I do. That explains everything