Why Emmanuel Sanders Needs to Exploit Matchups in Super Bowl 50

By now, you’ve imagined and reimagined nearly every possible scenario for Super Bowl 50.

You’ve likely done that with hard-earned dollars, too, participating in Super Bowl props, the annual and best way to make a donation to the one person in the room who hasn’t watched a single football game this year. Go way, way over on Golden Gate Bridge sightings during the broadcast, and don’t give yourself a reason to cheer for earthquakes.

When we’re talking about the actual game to decide an actual championship, there are outcomes and matchup wins that require little thought or reaching. It’s easy to nod in unison, for example, when I predict Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning will struggle mightily against a Carolina Panthers pass defense that allowed only 6.2 yards per attempt this season.

Maybe Manning will silence doubters, making them all eat delicious crow while ascending to his grand football throne with one final triumph. But for now, that prediction feels about as safe as this one: Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas will be sealed off by Panthers cornerback Josh Norman, leaving fellow wideout Emmanuel Sanders as his team's offensive key to any upset bid.

It doesn’t take a wild or vivid imagination to convince yourself of that outcome. Thomas had another fine season, his fourth straight with 1,300-plus receiving yards. But he’s totaled just 52 yards on six catches throughout the playoffs, a tiny average of 8.2 yards per grab.

His recent plunge is tied to the overall sputtering of Denver’s passing offense, with a limited Manning likely about to play his last career game. Which is why an overwhelming confusion settles in when Thomas’ production is put alongside Sanders’ output over that same two-game period.

Receiver	Targets	Catches	Yards	Yards/catch
Emmanuel Sanders	16	10	147	14.7
Demaryius Thomas	14	6	52	8.7

On nearly the same amount of targets, Sanders accumulated 95 more yards despite Manning’s limitations. He’s also logged five straight games with at least one 30-plus-yard reception.

His late-season surge continuing into the playoffs can be attributed to a lack of deep balls to go around. With his much larger frame at 6’3” and 229 pounds, Thomas has been relied on to play the role of chain-mover and cozy, wide wing-spanned possession target in the short passing game that’s developed under Manning. Meanwhile, the few scattered deep looks have gone in Sanders’ direction.

Which is why any downfield push Sunday should go through Sanders, and he needs to win easily exploitable matchups.

What matchups, exactly? The ones where he’ll find himself across from two vulnerable Panthers cornerbacks not named Josh Norman.

Norman generally doesn’t shadow one receiver, meaning Sanders will sometimes be staring down the 2015 All-Pro. But Norman’s physical style is better suited for containing Thomas, which is one reason why Sanders will escape the brash corner’s shutdown grasp. The other is Sanders’ use in the slot, where Norman seldom goes.

Throughout the regular season, Sanders spent a decent chunk of his snaps as a slot receiver (20.9 percent, per Pro Football Focus). That’s foreign territory for Norman, who was in slot coverage a mere 11 times.

So it’s reasonable to assume Sanders will be matched up against either Robert McClain or Panthers slot corner Cortland Finnegan throughout much of Super Bowl 50. When that happens, he absolutely has to torch the rusted and/or weak links in Carolina’s secondary.

Sanders represents a nightmare-fuel matchup for both McClain and Finnegan because of his raw speed combined with an ability to accelerate out of breaks quickly. Those two items in his wide receiver toolbox allow him to create separation with ease while capitalizing on the few deep opportunities Manning offers.

The Broncos lean on Sanders heavily as their vertical threat and cornerback roaster, mostly because using him in any other fashion would be a criminal offense. Only two other receivers had more targets on balls traveling 20-plus yards in 2015, per PFF.

Receiver	20-plus yard targets
Allen Robinson	47
DeAndre Hopkins	44
Emmanuel Sanders	37
Sammy Watkins	34
Mike Evans	34

Carolina held the Houston Texans’ DeAndre Hopkins to just 53 yards on five catches. He averaged 95.1 yards per game throughout the regular season. And the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Allen Robinson was victimized by a similar Panthers shutdown while being held to one catch for 27 yards back in Week 1, well below his per-game average of 77.5 yards.

But all of that dominance came when both Bene Benwikere and Charles Tillman were healthy. The Panthers’ starting No. 2 cornerback and slot corner have since been lost to season-ending injuries, leaving the secondary with gaping voids to fill opposite Norman.

The outside hole is now occupied by McClain, who was signed in December after Benwikere suffered a broken leg. And Finnegan has stepped up to be the primary slot corner, also doubling as the emergency-glass-case veteran.

They’ve both performed well considering the situation, with their play during dire injury times falling somewhere between serviceable and above average. But if you’re Sanders, it’s hard to stop a drool reflex when looking at these numbers once the caliber of competition increased.

Cornerback	Yards allowed
McClain	143
Finnegan	104

McClain was targeted heavily by both the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals during their playoff games against Carolina for obvious reasons: again, he’s not Josh Norman.

Any corner opposite Norman is always going to see a steady diet of footballs swirling in his direction. McClain has responded to that increased pressure during win-or-go-home scenarios by allowing touchdowns in two straight games and giving up 10.2 yards per reception, per PFF.

Finnegan, meanwhile, has been effective in the slot, albeit on a small sample size. But at any moment, the liability who’s posted back-to-back seasons with a passer rating in coverage over 100.0 could reappear.

So if Thomas is neutralized by Norman, there should be chances for Manning to direct his gaze elsewhere and for Sanders to pounce.

That sounds great in theory and when it’s in word form on this screen. In practice, it’s another matter, because there’s an element far out of Sanders’ control.

Sanders can sprint, execute double moves and separate defenders from their undergarments with nimble footwork all he wants. He can do everything necessary to get open deep. But then the former third-round pick will be relying on Manning’s increasingly creaky arm to make sure the ball travels the required distance.

Sanders isn’t unique in that sense. Being at the mercy of your quarterback is part of a receiver’s standard job description. But his strengths simply don’t jibe with Manning now, who has averaged only 5.8 yards per attempt throughout the playoffs, and he completed just 28.6 percent of his 20-plus-yard attempts this season, per PFF.

To truly expose McClain and/or Finnegan, then, Sanders has to accomplish two tasks: get open and become a leaping, pogo-stick-like hero by seizing whatever opportunities he’s given.

The latter bit can be done through literal seizing. Namely, the seizing of a football, sort of like this…

Manning lofted that saucering duck in Sanders’ general direction during the AFC Championship Game. Lacking the push to make it sail downfield fast, the ball died mid-flight and hung in the air, allowing New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler a chance to settle underneath.

Butler mistimed his jump slightly while attempting to corral what looked like a sure interception. Which is when Sanders plucked the ball away, securing his 34-yard catch.

The tiniest misstep against Sanders when the moment calls for athleticism often ends in a defensive disaster. During his scouting combine appearance in 2010, Sanders posted a vertical of 39.5 inches, the fourth-highest leap of his position group. He has silky-smooth hands, too, with a modest six drops during the regular season even while managing a high target volume (76 receptions on 131 targets).

Sanders may not be called upon often Sunday, but when the entire package is put together, he has the skill set needed to make a critical play at a critical time. We know this because of his overall production in 2015, which included 1,135 receiving yards with six touchdowns. But more importantly, there’s confidence in Sanders coming through with difficult catches under duress because of what we’ve seen with our eyes.

In addition to what he did to Butler in the AFC Championship Game, Sanders also had to deal with an oncoming blow from Patriots safety Devin McCourty back in Week 12.

Credit: NFL GamePass

Both McCourty and a pass thrown slightly behind arrived at the same time after Sanders had accelerated away from coverage on a crossing route. He secured the throw, then absorbed McCourty’s hit, all while making sure the ball didn’t pop out when both bodies went crashing to the ground.

Source: NFL GamePass

That’s the gift of elusiveness on display first, followed by body positioning and control. All three will be essential skills on football’s brightest stage.

The Broncos offense is already restricted to some degree by Manning’s limitations. Now the weight of that reality is about to get even heavier against a fourth-ranked run defense.

The football stars are aligning for potential doom, then. What if Manning receives little support from his backfield? What if Thomas is erased by Norman? And what if a Panthers defense that allowed only 49.4 receiving yards per game to tight ends in 2015, per Football Outsiders, also largely removes an intermediate target?

If even one of those questions goes against the Broncos, they’ll need a field-stretching secondary option. They’ll need to maximize every downfield look. They’ll need a receiver who can win jump balls and create game-breaking plays after the catch.

They’ll need Emmanuel Sanders.