It isn't all that often that the chalk holds both in the AFC and the NFC in the NFL playoffs. In this case, the team which was favored according to the FPI has gone a perfect 10-0. If that continues all the way through the Super Bowl, the Carolina Panthers are going to win their first ever championship. They draw the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50 in what could end up being a highly entertaining duel.
Super Bowl 50 Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Denver Broncos +4
Carolina Panthers -4
Over/Under 45
Just 24 hours ago, you could've had the NFC team at -1 against the AFC team without knowing which teams would be in the Super Bowl. If you laid the lumber, you've gotten yourself a heck of a steal.
The Panthers were only favored by three against Arizona and by 2.5 over Seattle in their first two playoff games, but in both cases, the game was effectively covered in the first quarter.
Carolina has really been stout in the first halves of games here of late. The Panthers have been up by at least 17 points in the first half of three games in a row, and if they're able to do the same thing to the Broncos in this one, we could have a replay of the Super Bowl from a couple seasons ago when everything went wrong from the get go for Denver in an embarrassing loss to the Seahawks.
Denver meanwhile, hasn't been respected at all most every step of the way. The Broncos were underdogs to the Patriots at home in the AFC Championship Game at +3, yet they never trailed for a single second in the game. This is now the sixth game out of 19 this season in which Denver has been an underdog, and believe it or not, it won four of the first five and covered the fifth against Pittsburgh just before Christmas.
Due to the fact that the NFC Championship Game was a blowout throughout, the oddsmakers got an early jump on putting together a betting line for the Super Bowl. Carolina opened at -3.5 and quickly went to -4. When the line moved up to -4.5, there was all sorts of Denver action to put this line back right where it started.
The total has yet to budge from the opening number of 45.
NFC teams aren't often favored in the Super Bowl if you look at recent history. Last year's Super Bowl was a pick 'em, while the year prior, Denver was actually favored against Seattle in spite of the fact that the Seahawks were absolutely dominant on the day. San Francisco was a favorite in Super Bowl XLVII, while Green Bay gave a field goal in Super Bowl XLV, but aside from that, every AFC team which has played in the Super Bowl since the St. Louis "Greatest Show on Turf" has been favored in the Big One.
This total of 45 could end up being the lowest total in a Super Bowl since 2004 when the Patriots won their second championship of the Tom Brady era. The last three totals in the Super Bowl were all virtually the same at 47.5, 47.5 and 48 respectively. The only Super Bowl with a total anywhere near this in recent history was in Super Bowl XLV. The Packers and Steelers combined for 56 points on a day where the total was set at 45.
This is the fourth time Peyton Manning has been the quarterback for a Super Bowl. He was abysmal in Super Bowl XLVIII for the Broncos in the loss to the Seahawks. His statistics were significantly better in his Super Bowls for the Colts, first in his lone Super Bowl win against the Bears and then in a loss to the Saints.
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