Peyton Manning and his prolific offense vs. the "Legion of Boom."
Top offense vs. top defense.
Super Bowl XLVIII offers plenty of intrigue solely based on that matchup. One of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time taking on one of the greatest pass defenses in league history.
But which will win out?
Taking a look back at past Super Bowls, you can make a case for both.
Only once before has the NFL's top offense and defense squared off, back in Super Bowl XLVII between Tampa Bay and Oakland.
The Bucs dominated and stifled the Raiders that night, Jon Gruden easily conquering his ex-team to hoist the Lombardi.
But that game presented an interesting set of circumtances.
1. Gruden had coached that Oakland team just a year prior and had to know the pieces extremely well.
2. Many credited Tony Dungy and Monte Kiffin for putting together that Tampa team, and particularly the defense which so excelled.
3. Rich Gannon was a good quarterback in his heyday but he's nowhere near the echelon on which Manning resides.
This week, the AP chronicled how top units fared in the big game.
Eleven times top defensive leaders went into the Super Bowl, nine of those times they won.
Offensive leaders went into the Super Bowl a dozen times and won seven of those times, barely more than half.
Interesting.
For as much as everyone talks about how the NFL is a passing league and all about offense now, the most recent example of a top offense falling wasn't too long ago, Super Bowl XLII, when the Giants thwarted New England's perfect season.
In that game, the Giants' pass rush flustered Tom Brady and held the Pats' dynamic offense to only 14 points.
Brady's a legend whose Super Bowl lore is well-documented and a strong defense took him down.
So, that's a nod in Seattle's favor.
But what about the case for offense and the Broncos' record-setting group?
The rationale I would use is not so much about Manning's past Super Bowl experience. I don't think that matters as much as some may think.
Instead, I think a lot of how this game goes will hinge on the arm of Russell Wilson. If he can play a good enough game to support the Seattle defense, the Seahawks have a very good shot of winning.
That doesn't mean being perfect or throwing for 400 yards. Eli Manning was 19 of 34 for 255 yards, 2 TDs and an INT in the infamous big game in Glendale. But he made one of the greatest throws in Super Bowl history, escaping pressure and connecting with David Tyree to set up the game-winning touchdown to Plaxico Burress.
Two weeks ago in the NFC Championship Game, Wilson made his own big throw, hitting Jermaine Kearse for a touchdown on a 4th and 7 in the fourth quarter. The Seahawks took the lead and would not surrender it again.
Wilson threw the ball only 25 times but that was all Seattle needed. He fumbled in the first half but didn't turn it over again. His counterpart on the other side, Niners quarterback Colin Kaepernick, fumbled and threw two interceptions.
Turnovers will be key to the outcome, as is typical. Peyton surely has to know that from his second Super Bowl with Indy, Super Bowl XLIV, as the pick six he threw to Terry Porter sealed the deal for New Orleans. Last year, in his first season in Denver, Baltimore's 2OT INT off Manning set up the game-winning field goal.
While legendary or top-notch quarterbacks don't always win the Super Bowl, they have more often then not in the past decade or so.
Sometimes winning the Super Bowl fuels the perception that inconsistent quarterbacks are elite (Eli, Joe Flacco).
A good portion of the rest of the championship quarterbacks are perennial Pro Bowlers, signal-callers in the top 5-10 of the NFL.
That list goes, starting with Super Bowl XXXVII to now: Brad Johnson, Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Joe Flacco.
Johnson is an exception, as his defense was exceptional (defensive back Dexter Jackson was the MVP of his win). The better quarterback typically prevails, as when
Manning won his last Super Bowl over the Rex Grossman-led Bears.
Sunday, we find out if the young Wilson will go down as a Grossman-esque quarterback who couldn't play well enough to defeat a legend or if he can slay a quarterbacking Goliath, as Peyton's brother did twice.
Seattle has to have good defense to win, just as Denver has to have good offense. Those are basics for both. But without a poised performance from Wilson, maybe even one with a defining moment, it will be difficult for Seattle to earn the victory.
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