Carolina Panthers or Arizona Cardinals – does anyone else feel like Carolina missed a trick not being called the Cardinals? Anyway, more important stuff to discuss – like the odds.
On the back of a phenomenal year for both sides – the two most successful teams in the regular season – Cam Newton and Carson Palmers will be looking to lead their boys to victory and through to a place in the Golden Super Bowl. We’ve covered the Broncos and Patriots for you. Here’s the other two.
Carolina Panthers
The panthers averaged just the 31.2 points per game this year – that’s a 15-1 record. Brilliant. Interestingly that one loss came at the end of December to an Atlanta side (13-20) whom just two weeks previously they had trounced 38-0.
Cam Newton and Carson Palmers, the former the quarterback for Carolina, become the first two Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks to meet each other in a playoff game. Quite the stat.
Newton has given supporters both cause for concern and optimism in one statement, speaking to a journalist earlier this week. When asked how he was feeling, he responded with a typical “It’s just a football game.” A few days out from a decider, it’s either a crazy or a special player that doesn’t feel nerves. Maybe he’s both. And maybe that’s the secret weapon the Panthers come into this game with.
Against the blitz (when additional players rush the quarterback to force a tackle or ruin the pass) this season, Newtown threw a season-high 19 touchdown passes. That sort of form should hold him in good stead for the pressures that come in this game – whether he feels them or not.
Arizona Cardinals
Enough about Carolina – Arizona hold 30.6 average points per game this year with an almost equally impressive record of 13-3. Carson Palmer had a nervy game last week at Greenbay Packers but managed the first post-season win of his career nonetheless. This week he needs to lift.
Just over a year since major knee surgery, he has put together the best regular season passer rating (104.6) of his career. That’s a whole 13 years. And just like his opposite number Newton, Palmer comes into the playoff with 35 touchdowns to his name, so fans will be confident he can turn around from last week’s performance.
A big card in his deck is Larry Fitzgerald. The Arizona receiver lit up last week with a storming touchdown straight through the Packers defence. But it’s not just Fitzgerald Carolina need to worry about. As Paolo Bandini wrote for the Guardian, “Josh Norman is capable of taking almost any receiver out of a game, but he alone cannot keep tabs on all three of Larry Fitzgerald, John Brown and Michael Floyd.”
The tape around Palmer’s index finger – the result of a dislocation three weeks back – is clearly having an effect on the star’s passing, with completion rates dropping below 60% since the injury was sustained. Certainly something that you might want to keep in mind when placing those bets.
Disclaimer: All opinions expressed herein are that of the author and not necessarily those of Hello Punter, and should not be taken as betting advice. No bets are guaranteed, and you may lose more money than you get back. Please gamble responsibly.
