What Can the Broncos Take Away from Panthers Only Loss for Super Bowl 50?

The Denver Broncos have an incredibly high-powered opponent coming up in Super Bowl 50. The Carolina Panthers steamrolled through the regular season in 2015, finishing with a nearly unblemished 15-1 record, and their offense will be a handful (and then some) for the Broncos defense.

The one loss came at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons in Week 16 of the regular season. The Falcons were able to shock the world by beating the Panthers 20-13 in front of their home crowd in the Georgia Dome.

The win by the Falcons ended an 18-game regular-season winning streak for the Panthers. The contest also marked the fewest points the Panthers had scored since a 2014 game against the Minnesota Vikings (Week 13, 31-13).

Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak has a healthy respect for the leader of the Panthers offense, quarterback Cam Newton.

“He’s a special talent, a rare talent. He’s doing a lot of things on the line of scrimmage, which is very impressive to us as we prepare to play him. They’ve given him a lot of freedom. So a tremendous athlete that they’ve molded their offense around, and obviously they’ve shown up this year in how they play.”

What can the Broncos take away from the Panthers' only loss? Let’s take a look.

Use Balance on Offense

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The Falcons didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard against the Panthers, but they had total balance against their divisional foe. Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan finished the game with 30 passing attempts with 306 passing yards and one passing touchdown. As a team, the Falcons finished with exactly 30 rushing attempts, with their leading rusher, Devonta Freeman, toting the rock 22 times for 73 yards and one touchdown.

By featuring a balanced attack, the Falcons were able to win the time of possession battle. They held the ball for 35:38, while the Panthers only had the ball for 24:22.

Balance is the name of the game for Kubiak, and running back C.J. Anderson knows the ground game can help seal the victory.

“You wear teams down. It’s about being patient; you have to be patient when you’re in there. There’s a lot of things that can go for two (yards), three (yards) and four (yards), but eventually you just have to be patient, and when you get your chances, when you get your opportunity to hurt a team, then you’ve got to hurt them, and you’ve got to make them pay on that.”

The Panthers have been able to build big leads in their first two playoff games. If they are able to get up on the Broncos early, it’s important the team doesn’t abandon the running game.

We’ve seen the Broncos rally from deficits before this season, and they've done that largely by staying patient and staying with the Kubiak system.

Get a Big Play in the Passing Game

One of the best players in the game is Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones, and the superstar receiver certainly made a big impact on the win in Week 16. The biggest play of the game was a 70-yard touchdown grab by Jones in the third quarter.

NFL.com - Game Rewind

As you can see, Jones lines up in the slot before the snap. There are two defenders, linebacker Luke Kuechly and safety Kurt Coleman, tasked with covering Jones. As the play unfolds, Ryan is under pressure and extends the play with his feet while keeping his eyes downfield. Ryan points to Jones to go long, and the veteran receiver bends his route toward the inside of the field.

NFL.com - Game Rewind

Coleman falls down as Jones approaches the left sideline, leaving Kuechly as the lone player defending Jones. This picture shows Jones reaching high to pluck the pass out of the air over Kuechly. With the pass secure, Jones then turned and zoomed into the end zone for the score.

The Broncos have a similar player to Jones in Demaryius Thomas. In two postseason games, Thomas has been targeted a team-high 14 times, but he’s only snared six passes for 52 yards and no touchdowns. In order for the Broncos to gash the Panthers through the air like Jones, Thomas is going to have to elevate his game in the Super Bowl.

If Thomas can’t do it, then perhaps Emmanuel Sanders can. Either way, the Broncos would greatly benefit from field-flipping plays on offense that can rob the momentum away from the Panthers.

Win on 3rd Down

John Bazemore/Associated Press

The Broncos need to win on third down and get Newton off the field. The defense is going to have to get pressure early and often on Newton, but it especially needs to put him under duress on third down.

The Falcons were able to put Newton under duress on 35 percent of his dropbacks in Week 16. That number was the second-highest total of the year for Newton. This advanced stat is amazing when considering the Falcons are not known as a team that can get after the quarterback. Newton attempted nine passes—with only three complete for 31 yards—under duress against the Falcons.

Simply put, Newton hasn’t seen anything like the Broncos defense.

In the game against the Falcons, Newton was 0-for-6 passing on third downs. Newton also failed to complete his lone attempt on fourth down against the Falcons. That game marked the first time in his career that Newton had gone without completing a pass on third or fourth down. It also marked only the second time Newton had not passed for a touchdown in a game during the 2015 season.

It’s simple but true. Win on third down, and you give yourself the best chance to win the game. Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, making the first Super Bowl appearance of his 38-year coaching career, should have plenty of schemes cooked up to apply a ton of pressure to the superstar quarterback.

Summary

The task at hand won’t be easy, but the Broncos have the capability of winning the Big Game on Sunday. They need to have balance on offense and use up as much of the game clock as they can. The Broncos would also benefit from a big play or two from the passing game to gash their opponent. Finally, the game can be won or lost on third down. It’s critical the Broncos win on that down to get the ball back—and let their defense rest.

The team is considered the underdog in the Super Bowl, but that doesn’t matter to Kubiak.

“I don’t think I have to go there. They're smart players. They’ve been at it for a long time.”

Kubiak emphasized, “I would just say this: We’ve been in this situation before throughout the course of the season. We have great respect for their football team and what they’re capable of doing, and how they got here, but we also have a lot of confidence in our football team, too. We’ll stay [focused] on ourselves, stay in the moment and continue to get ready to play.”

The best coaches in the NFL are known to borrow from schemes and game plans that have worked before. If the Broncos win it all against the Panthers, there may be traces of what we saw when the Falcons won in Week 16.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via the Broncos media department unless otherwise noted. Advanced stats via ESPN's employees-only database.

Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac. Transaction history provided by Pro Sports Transactions.