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The top six matchups that could decide Super Bowl 50
Von Miller will look to hit Cam Newton as often as possible in Super Bowl 50. Charlotte Observer/Getty Images

The top six matchups that could decide Super Bowl 50

Super Bowl 50 between the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos offers us a ton of star power on both sides of the ball.

Can Cam Newton bring a new era of quarterback to the highest level of success football has to offer, or will Peyton Manning show that there's some fight in this old dog?

More than that, individual matchups within the larger game will help dictate who is hoisting the Lombardi at Levi's Stadium Sunday evening.

Can Josh Norman shut down a player in Demaryius Thomas who has been Manning's favorite target?

Will Newton have success against an elite-level Broncos defense that ranked first defending the pass during the regular season?

These are among the top six matchups for Super Bowl 50.

1. Demaryius Thomas vs. Josh Norman

This is going to be a great individual matchup within the overall game. Norman, one of the top cover guys in the NFL during the regular season, allowed a sub-70 quarterback rating when targeted.

He's now going to be tasked with taking on a player in Thomas who put up a Super Bowl-record 13 receptions the last time Denver played in the big game.

While Thomas' performance against Seattle in that blowout Super Bowl loss really doesn't amount to a hill of beans, it's important to note that he did it against what was then the best secondary in the game.

It will be interesting to see if Peyton Manning and Thomas can get into some sort of rhythm early on in this one. Thomas put up just six receptions for 52 yards in the two playoff games leading up to Sunday's titanic matchup.

Though, it is important to note that Thomas put up 68 receptions for 816 yards in the nine regular-season games Manning started. For comparison's sake, he tallied just 37 receptions in the seven games Brock Osweiler started.

The importance of this matchup cannot be overstated. If Manning and Thomas are not able to have success 10 yards beyond the line of scrimmage on Sunday, it will enable Carolina to go all out against a rushing attack that struggled big time with Manning under center during the regular season.

In fact, Denver averaged 84 rushing yards per game with Manning starting during the regular season. Compare that to the 133.6 it averaged with Osweiler under center, and you can sense a theme here.

It's fine and dandy for Manning to act the part of a game manager. This doesn't mean Denver can have success without him at least attempting to push the ball down the field. That's where Thomas vs. Norman becomes extremely important.

2. Michael Oher vs. Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware

Surprisingly, Oher has been among the best left tackles in the NFL in terms of pass protecting this season. He allowed just three sacks during the regular season.

Though, it's going to be a much more difficult task Sunday against the likes of Miller and Ware, who combined for 18.5 sacks during the regular season. Add in a youngster in Shaquil Barrett, and this is a tremendous area of strength for Denver.

Wade Phillips prides himself on scheming to the strengths of his players. This is something few defensive coordinators do in today's NFL. It's also going to create some major issues for Carolina's pass protection.

Who will line up where? Is it going to be Miller taking on Oher or a lesser pass-protecting tackle in Mike Remmers? If not, how does Carolina scheme to counteract what will be a major disadvantage? This will go a long way in determining the outcome of Super Bowl 50.

3. Greg Olsen vs. T.J. Ward

Here's another important thing to look at come Sunday. How will Phillips and Co. decide to cover Olsen?

As Cam Newton's favorite target, this pass-catching tight end tallied 77 receptions for a career-high 1,104 yards during the regular season. He's also added 12 catches for 190 yards in the team's two playoff games up to this point.

Denver could go physical with strong safety Darian Stewart. Though, that could leave the team in a vulnerable position between the hashes.

It could also decide to throw corner coverage over the top with Brandon Marshall or Danny Trevathan underneath. The issue there is that Denver would be focusing double teams Olsen's way throughout the game.

Instead, it seems more than likely that Denver will start out with Ward going up against Olsen. That would pit one of the best pass-catching tight ends in the NFL up against a darn good cover safety. It would also likely eliminate much success on the outside, especially considering Carolina lacks a true No. 1 receiver.

4. Cam Newton vs. Denver Broncos pass defense

We covered the Greg Olsen angle above. However, there is a much larger concern for Carolina heading into Super Bowl 50.

Denver yielded an average of just 122.7 yards to receivers during the regular season. In addition to that, the Broncos gave up less than a 60 percent completion rate to that position.

With Ted Ginn Jr. acting as the Panthers' top receiver, Newton is going to have a heck of a time finding success on the outside. After all, Ginn caught just 45 percent of the passes thrown in his direction during the regular year.

Assuming Aqib Talib will be tasked with going up against Ginn, that will leave both Chris Harris and Bradley Roby to take on lesser receivers. Without success to Ginn, the Panthers are going to be in a world of hurt when the clock strikes zero in the fourth quarter on Sunday.

Of course, that's all dependent on Wade Phillips and Co. successfully scheming to stop Olsen up the middle.

5. Denver Broncos offensive line vs. Carolina Panthers defensive line

Trench warfare. Despite all the talk about the quarterbacks, this is what's really going to decide the outcome of Super Bowl 50.

As immobile as it gets (don't let that run in the AFC Championship game fool you), Manning acts as a sitting duck in the offensive backfield.

It's going to be rather important for his makeshift offensive line to set him up with a clean pocket throughout the afternoon at Levi's come Sunday.

Not only are left tackle Ryan Harris and right tackle Michael Schofield going to have to do a tremendous job in pass protection, but the interior of Denver's offensive line must keep an elite defensive tackle in Kawann Short out of the backfield.

That's going to be easier said than done. Short racked up 11 sacks and 50-plus quarterback hurries during the regular season. Those are some pretty ridiculous numbers for a defensive tackle.

The onus here is going to fall on the likes of Evan Mathis and Louis Vasquez, both of whom struggled to an extent in pass protection this season.

More to the point: Short's knee injury is going to be cause for concern in Carolina. He should be more than fine come Sunday afternoon, but any limitations on his part would enable Denver to push max protect to the outside, further taking away boundary pressure against Manning.

6. Emmanuel Sanders vs. Cortland Finnegan

If Norman does indeed find a way to shut down Thomas, the onus is going to be on Sanders to pick his game up.

The good news here for Denver is that Sanders has an advantage against a veteran corner in Finnegan who has struggled in coverage over the past few years.

This past regular season alone, he allowed a 64-plus completion percentage and a quarterback rating that neared the triple digits.

That's going to be the ultimate key in this one. Can Sanders and Manning find a way to take advantage of a perceived mismatch that's going to be in the team's favor? If not, Carolina's defense should have a field day here.

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