Upon Further Review: Broncos - Panthers Offensive Preview

QB: Cam Newton

RB: Johnathan Stewert

FB: Mike Tolbert

WR: Steve Smith, Brandon LaFell

TE: Greg Olsen

OL: Jordan Gross(LT), Amini Silatolu(LG), Geoff Hangartner(C), Jeff Byers (RG), Byron Bell(RT)

Panthers Rankings:

Offense: 20th

Passing: 18th

Rushing: 12th

Broncos Rankings:

Offense: 3rd

Passing: 4th

Rushing: 18th

The Quarterbacks:

Panthers:

Cam Newton is a talented athlete. Newton had an outstanding rookie year, but really hit the sophomore wall this year. Newton isn't have a great year passing this year. Newton has 1902 yards passing, 6 TD's and 8 INTs. Not great numbers at all. Newton is only completing 57% of his passes, he has been sacked 17 times, and has a 77.7 QB rating. I expect the Broncos defense to have its way with Newton.

Broncos:

Peyton is having a MVP type year. Peyton on the year has 20 TD's and only 6 INT's. Manning on the year has 2404 yards, a 69.5 completion % and has only been sacked 10 times this year. Manning has been on fire lately, and i expect him to have a good game against this average Panthers D.

The Running Backs:

Panthers:

The Panthers have used multiple people in the backfield. Leading the team in yards is QB Cam Newton with 347 yards, DeAngelo Williams has 247 yards, and Jonathan Stewart has 235 yards on the ground. Carolina will try to pound the rock. Look for QB Cam Newton to carry the ball 10 or so times via QB Keepers and read option plays, he will also be a threat inside the goal line. Stewart and Williams have been hit or miss all year, but expect whoever has the hot hand to get the ball.

Broncos:

Carolina has a average run defense, so look for Denver to use the run the way they did against the Saints, and hope to get similar success. On the year Willis McGahee has 620 yards rushing and 4 TD's and rookie Ronnie Hillman has 32 carries for 140 yards. We'll see if they give the ball to Hillman this game as well.

The Receivers/Tight Ends:

Panthers:

Leading the team in catches and yards is veteran Steve Smith. On the year Smith has 38 catches for 630 yards, Brandon LaFell has 20 for 367 yards. Tight End Greg Olsen has 34 catches for 395 yards. These are Newtons main targets so expect the Broncos defense to try to lock down these guys. Newton has been off this year too, so we'll see how he does.

Broncos:

Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas have been having outstanding years. Leading the team in catches is Eric Decker with 46 for 583 yards, and right behind him is DT with 45 for 756 yards. Veteran Brandon Stokley has 278 yards. Jacob Tamme has 29 catches for 253 yards, and Joel Dreessen has 21 for 191 yards. Look for Manning to spread the ball around to all these guys. Decker has been his main TD guy of late, so we'll see if DT can get in on the action.

Offensive Line:

Panthers:

Carolinas OL ranks 14th in the league. They have allowed 930 yards on the ground and 9 TDs and a rushing average of 4.4. They have also allowed 17 sacks and 27 QB hits. Newton can scramble so that can help and hurt an offensive line.

Broncos:

Denvers OL ranks 3rd in the league. They have allowed 855 yards rushing on the ground and 5 TDs, and a average of 3.9 yards. The Broncos OL has allowed only 10 sacks and and only 22 hits. Peyton has been getting the ball out quickly, so expect this to continue again this weekend.