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It’s officially Super Bowl Sunday! Live from East Rutherford, New Jersey at MetLife Stadium in a few hours, the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos will battle it out in arguably the biggest football game in recent memory. All eyes are on Peyton Manning tonight, to cap off magical MVP season and further his already solidified legacy.
This is one of the rare occasions the two top seeds each conferences meet in America’s biggest game year. An added bonus with the Broncos currently holding one of the greatest offenses and the Seahawks having their most talked about best defense in the league also makes for another big storyline. While these two franchises obviously don’t have the history like the Pittsburgh Steelers or Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl victories, the Broncos will be looking to inch closer to the discussion winning their third; while Seattle will be looking for their first.
Check after the jump for our in-depth preview to tonight’s game.
UPDATE: Seahawks defeat Broncos 43-8
History shows the extreme temperatures in cold weather are not Peyton Manning’s friend, but luckily for him it will only drop to 40 degrees before 10pm tonight. However, the weather will not be the New Orleans native’s biggest fear tonight, as he will face potentially the toughest defense he’s ever seen in the biggest spotlight. Highlighted by cornerback Richard Sherman and free safety Earl Thomas, the two are expected to hinder the Broncos offense throughout the game and put pressure on the run game of Knowshon Moreno and Montee Ball.
With Percy Harvin returning tonight after missing the NFC Championship game two weeks ago, he’ll cause initial confusion to the Broncos defense giving Denver’s offense little time to regroup and think of game plans moving forward. Russell Wilson has a very rare chance his sophomore season to become the first to win a ring before his fellow peers Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, Colin Kaepernick, and Robert Griffin III among others.
The Seahawks obviously have the NFL’s best roster, but this game will simply come down to the much talked about Seattle defense stopping Denver scenario. Unless Percy Harvin has a major impact tonight, we expect the Broncos defense and Seahawks offense to balance each other out throughout the game. Peyton Manning will have to rely heavily on his offensive-live to give him time to set up plays on-to-go, something the Seahawks have never had problems with this season getting to the passer. Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker will be Peyton’s primary targets tonight, which we expect the defense to be glued on the pair during the game.
We’re not predicting the winner of the game, but the city of Seattle will have the opportunity at their first Men’s professional championship in 35 years (last being the Seattle SuperSonics in 1979). A win from Peyton Manning however could move national attention to arguably the greatest season an athlete has ever had. While tickets are still sold being sold for nearly $4K, we’ll be enjoying this warmer weather on the western side of things when the game begins.