The slate is set for Super Bowl 2015, the New England Patriots will take on the Seattle Seahawks, let’s just hope the Patriots do not have control over the amount of air that is in the football!
Carolina Panthers
The Panthers are an unlikely addition into the NFL playoffs of 2014. The Panthers actually have a losing record at 7-8-1 in which they were to secure the NFC South’s division crown. This allows the Panthers to host a home game in the playoffs which will be played against the Cardinals. Since the Cardinals are missing their starting quarterback Carson Palmer, it is totally possible that the Panthers could pull off an upset. It is likely that the Panthers will be favored at home in this contest.
Several weeks ago, Cam Newton was involved in a car accident. The Panthers quarterback was shaken up but he eventually returned to field to help the Panthers get back into the playoffs and ultimately win the division. The Panthers are a dangerous team and Cam Newton is a proven winner in big games. Could the Panthers shock the world and win the NFC championship and appear in the Super Bowl? A lot of good things would need to happen for this franchise in order for that to work out but in the NFL, anything can happen and often, it does! The Carolina Panthers will look to be one of the few teams in NFL history that has actually won a playoff game with an overall losing record. Ironically, the last team to do that was the Seattle Seahawks a couple seasons ago.
Arizona Cardinals
Wouldn’t it be incredible if the Cardinals came back from a season of adversity which involved the loss of their veteran starting quarterback to injury only to be one of the only teams to ever play a Super Bowl in their home stadium? The Cardinals would generate an enormous amount of buzz by being able to pull off an upset and beat teams that they are not favored to win against. The truth is, since Ryan Lindley has been given the head quarterbacking job, he hasn’t been able to run the offense in the same way Palmer was it is begins to show on the scoreboard. Lindley has a lot to learn and he may be able shock the league and win a game against the 7-8-1 Panthers. The Cardinals will have a tough road ahead as they will have to travel to Charlotte to play the Panthers on their home turf.
The Cardinals will have an uphill battle if they look to play a Super Bowl on their home field in February. The Cardinals would have to win some tough games in order to make that happen and most analysts believe that isn’t possible with the amount of leadership displayed by Lindley as of yet.
Detroit Lions
The Lions are one of the only teams to have never played in the Super Bowl. With their berth in the NFL playoffs as a 6th seed, the Lions will be able to improve on past Lions NFL playoff performances. The Lions are quarterbacked by Matt Stafford and he is throwing the ball extremely well this season. With much of the NFL needing accurate quarterbacks and explosive receivers; Detroit has this combination covered with Stafford and Megatron on the field. Megatron is the nickname used to describe Detroit wide receiver Calvin Johnson.
The Detroit Lions look to get past a tough NFC playoff line up. The Lions will likely travel to Dallas in order to play the Cowboys in AT&T stadium. The Cowboys are on fire and the 11-5 Lions will need to play their best game of the season in order to beat the Cowboys. If the Lions are able to make it past the first round, they will likely face a more formidable challenge. The Lions will need to continue to be explosive on offense so that they can continue to run up to scores on teams that threaten them on both sides of the ball.