The New England Patriots fell to the Denver Broncos, 20-18 in the AFC Championship. In the NFC Championship, the Carolina Panthers beat up the Arizona Cardinals 49-15. The Russell Street Report writers react to the two Conference Championship games.
Joe Polek
There is nothing better than seeing the New England Patriots lose… Especially if it means they are not going to the Super Bowl.
No one gave the Broncos a chance, but their defense came to play. That was one of the most incredible defensive efforts I have ever seen. You don’t see Tom Brady get rattled like that very often. Peyton Manning didn’t look like the 39-year-old who had struggled all season.
The Panthers offense is impressive and their defensive does enough to worry any offense. The amount of turnovers they force will make opposing teams be extra careful.
Panthers O vs Broncos D should make for a fun Super Bowl. And is this the final game for one of the best QBs to ever play the game?
Brian Bower
Ravens fans rejoice with the Denver Broncos taking down Tom Brady and company, even though it had us all biting our nails until the final whistle blew. I am not one really to take pride in other people’s misfortune…but I will at the Patriots’! it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving owner, head coach or quarterback.
The Carolina Panthers continue to impress with a cast of wide receivers even Google has trouble finding. Cam Newton showed exactly why he is the league MVP. He kept the offense firing on all cylinders against a usually tough Arizona defense. While I feel bad for Bruce Arians and Larry Fitzgerald for not making it to the big game, the better team one.
One has to wonder whether John Fox is looking over his shoulder as both of his former teams will face battle in what promises to be a defensive Super Bowl 50.
Tyler Lombardi
I already did plenty of reacting to the Broncos’ victory, so I’ll just stick to the late game here…
Twelve years ago, I remember sitting down to watch the New England Patriots play the Carolina Panthers in the Super Bowl. I remember rooting for Jake Delhomme, Steve Smith, Stephen Davis, and Muhsin Muhammad against what was then just a budding dynasty. I like Cam Newton, Luke Kuechly and Josh Norman‘s game, but I wish the old guys, Carson Palmer and Larry Fitzgerald, were moving forward. I wouldn’t mind seeing that group get another shot next season.
Now, I’ll have to flip a coin to see who I want to win the Super Bowl. I really don’t know.
Ryan Jones
It seemed like most people, including myself, thought the NFC Championship would be the more entertaining of the two, but that was clearly not the case.
AÂ lot of the talk in the next two weeks will be around whether Peyton Manning can ride off into the sunset in a fashion similar to Ray Lewis‘ path to retirement. The real story of the game, though, was Denver’s defense. They made Tom Brady look like Brandon Weeden, and they took away Gronk and Edelman for most of the game (although Gronk ended the game in spectacular fashion). Wade Phillips’ name should be one that’s mentioned more for head coaching vacancies.
I still don’t know how the Panthers are dominating, particularly on offense. Can you imagine if Kelvin Benjamin hadn’t torn his ACL in the preseason? They’d be unstoppable. The defense is also impressive. They are one of the most aggressive and confident units in recent memory. They have a way of making good quarterbacks, like Carson Palmer, look really bad.
Adam Bonaccorsi
There’s something joyous about seeing the Pats miss the 2-point conversion and knowing they could’ve tied with an extra point had Stephen Gostkowski not shanked one in the early stages of the game. And with that, I officially declare the Cundiff curse lifted!
Of course we can’t diminish what Denver accomplished today either. Manning was very un-Manning-like with 2 TD passes and avoided the bad mistakes. And despite Bronco defenders dropping like flies, they still managed to keep Brady in check most of the game.
As for the Panthers… My lord. What a truly dominant team. I honestly thought Arizona could keep it close but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Carolina dominated Carson Palmer, who had FOUR picks, and Cam Newton dabbed all over that Cardinal defense.
2 great QB’s and 2 great defenses will meet in 2 weeks. Damn shame Coldplay will ruin it at halftime…
