Yay, Broncos!!

[Jeemie]

And BTW, I think Peyton is retiring too, but he showed a little class- had he announced it yesterday, it would have become the story, instead of his team and his defense, which pretty much carried him to the title (and I think Peyton knows it).

I can't remember a Super Bowl winning QB who did less to help his team win than Peyton did the entire post-season.

He also got it wrong when he said he'd be drinking Budweiser and "Von Miller is buying".

Peyton had better be buying Von Miller anything he wants for the next several weeks. Without Miller, Manning is 1-3 in Super Bowls.

[Vandal]

New York radio host Mike Francesa on Cam Newton not diving on the ball: "If you're going to wear a Superman jersey onto the field, how can you act like Lois Lane?"

[K.P.]

You might not remember it (I certainly don't) but Super Bowl V (a Colts' 16-13 win over Dallas) featured 11 turnovers (including 7 by Baltimore, the most ever by a winning team), 14 penalties (which was a lot back then) and a blocked extra point.

It earned the moniker "The Blunder Bowl".

It was the only time the MVP award was given to a member of the losing team, the game was that bad.

[silverscreenselect]

I can't remember a Super Bowl winning QB who did less to help his team win than Peyton did the entire post-season.

That's putting no value on Peyton's leadership qualities. Carolina was the better team personnel wise, but the intangibles were with Denver.

WIth Brock Osweiler, Denver in a #5 seed and goes out in the first round of the AFC playoffs.

[littlebeast13]

But his behavior after the game did not bode well for the future, and shrinking from trying to recover that fumble in a season-defining moment was awful. He would have gotten it if he had dived for it.

Best case scenario is he manages to deflect the ball to where one of his teammates would have recovered it. He should have definitely dove for it, but the Bronco defender was already going for it himself and would have prevented Newton from covering the ball...

lb13

[Jeemie]

I can't remember a Super Bowl winning QB who did less to help his team win than Peyton did the entire post-season.

That's putting no value on Peyton's leadership qualities. Carolina was the better team personnel wise, but the intangibles were with Denver.

WIth Brock Osweiler, Denver in a #5 seed and goes out in the first round of the AFC playoffs.

You have no way to know they would have lost to San Diego had Osweiler stayed in that game.

And they beat the Steelers because the Steelers couldn't finish drives, and to the Pats because Tom Brady couldn't handle the defensive pressure, not because of Peyton's leadership.

Manning was terrible this post-season run. In fact, when looking at his whole season, he was one of the worst QBs in the NFL.

[kroxquo]

But his behavior after the game did not bode well for the future, and shrinking from trying to recover that fumble in a season-defining moment was awful. He would have gotten it if he had dived for it.

Best case scenario is he manages to deflect the ball to where one of his teammates would have recovered it. He should have definitely dove for it, but the Bronco defender was already going for it himself and would have prevented Newton from covering the ball...

lb13

And the talk here in Carolina is that the NFL payed off Cam and the officials to throw the game so that Payton could go out with a win. It explains everything - Cam's lackluster play generally, not going after the fumble, the non-call on the interference call on the Broncos late in the game, the Broncos wining the review of the catch/non-catch in the first quarter, and Cam's attitude and performance at the press conference. Sure - I buy the whole thing

[Pastor Fireball]

You might not remember it (I certainly don't) but Super Bowl V (a Colts' 16-13 win over Dallas) featured 11 turnovers (including 7 by Baltimore, the most ever by a winning team), 14 penalties (which was a lot back then) and a blocked extra point.

It earned the moniker "The Blunder Bowl".

I definitely don't remember that one, considering that it took place in 1971 and I wasn't born until 1980.

[Jeemie]

And the talk here in Carolina is that the NFL payed off Cam and the officials to throw the game so that Payton could go out with a win. It explains everything - Cam's lackluster play generally, not going after the fumble, the non-call on the interference call on the Broncos late in the game, the Broncos wining the review of the catch/non-catch in the first quarter, and Cam's attitude and performance at the press conference. Sure - I buy the whole thing

More and more lately, I've been giving more credence to the notion that the NFL scripts or attempts to script outcomes to their games.

Last two years, especially, I've noticed a "pattern".

Team that all the money is being bet on loses the game.

Team that looks like they should have won either does something inexplicable or has something questionable happen to them (i.e. the Seahawks throwing a slant pass from the one instead of pounding Lynch against one of the worst run-stopping teams in the league, and this year, the Cotchery catch ruled a non-catch when it clearly was, and Cam's apparent give-up on the fumble).

Team that wins has a scandal/mini-scandal erupt on them, which potentially drives betting money away from them (last year, Deflategate, this year, the HGH/Peyton issue, which the NFL decided to announce publicly it was investigating the week before the Super Bowl).

From other years- Steelers winning a Super Bowl in Detroit in Bettis' last season in a questionably-officiated game, Ravens slumping into the playoffs, but then going on a tear and winning it all after Ray Lewis announced he was retiring. That Super Bowl, too, ended with a blatant DPI that wasn't called when the Niners were driving for the win.

Hell- go all the way back to Super Bowl XXXVI, and improbable win by a team called the "Patriots", following 9/11 (remembering LB commenting in another thread how after Vinatieri's GW FG, the clock continued to run when it should have stopped. Never saw a FG take seven seconds before.

Sure it's all me seeing patterns where none exist...but it IS interesting.

[SportsFan68]

I'll go on the record as saying that it was Peyton's last rodeo. After the game, one of the on-field announcers asked him about retiring, Peyton said he had no plan, and the announcer jokingly called him on it. I'm with the announcer. That Papa John's embrace and the Budweiser mention seemed pretty well planned to me, considering Peyton's well-deserved reputation for those lightning fast neurons he's got racing through his brain.

Brains aside, though, ESPN or CBS showed a clip comparing some of his old Colts touchdown passes to the last few weeks. Forget it! He's a brilliant general, but the zip in those passes is gone.

And he knows he's leaving the team in good hands (go Oz!).

I just hope I get Cam on my BB fantasy team again next year.

I lost a lot of respect for Cam Newton...we'll have to see if he recovers from this.

He's not the first player to wilt in his first Super Bowl, and he got no help from either his teammates or OC Mike Shula, who called a TERRIBLE game that constantly put the offense in bad situations.

But his behavior after the game did not bode well for the future, and shrinking from trying to recover that fumble in a season-defining moment was awful. He would have gotten it if he had dived for it.

He still is one of the most talented players in the NFL. He still deserves that MVP. Sure, he had a couple missteps. Give the Denver defense the credit, don't put the blame on Cam. I doubt that his after-game behavior will have a noticeable effect on his future. Also, I agree with LB that the Broncos would have recovered that fumble anyway. I think it was a miscue -- I think Cam thought that his arm was going forward when he dropped it.

And I still want Cam on my fantasy team next year.

[SportsFan68]

And BTW, I think Peyton is retiring too, but he showed a little class- had he announced it yesterday, it would have become the story, instead of his team and his defense, which pretty much carried him to the title (and I think Peyton knows it).

I can't remember a Super Bowl winning QB who did less to help his team win than Peyton did the entire post-season.

He also got it wrong when he said he'd be drinking Budweiser and "Von Miller is buying".

Peyton had better be buying Von Miller anything he wants for the next several weeks. Without Miller, Manning is 1-3 in Super Bowls.

As always, I appreciate Jeemie agreeing with me.

Not only does Peyton know it, he said so. This was at the microphone in the official post-game interview, and he said something like, "The defense carried us during the season, and they carried us today."

As happy as I am to have Jeemie agreeing with me, I have to disagree with him.

I can't remember a Super Bowl winning QB who did less to help his team win than Peyton did the entire post-season.

I give the credit to Coach Kubiak and Coach Phillips, because all Peyton had to do was not lose those games, which he had the brains, talent, and leadership to do. If he'd started airing out a few long passes, that great Panthers defense probably woulda intercepted him. Also, speaking on the podium, Von Miller said, "He's my #1 quarterback," and then he said something else, but I don't remember what it was, something about hoping he wouldn't retire or something. I think that's a vain hope, right now the over-under is on when Peyton will make the announcement.

I also agree with Jeemie that Peyton should buy Miller an Elway AutoNation Corvette or whatever he wants because without Von. he's 1-3 in Super Bowls.

[Jeemie]

Today Cam said he didn't go for the fumble because he was worried about his leg.

And got a little petulant about being asked about it too.

He made a "business decision" in a season-defining moment.

Not good.

[Jeemie]

And you know you've fallen far from glory as a quarterback when all that's expected of you is you "not lose".

[SportsFan68]

And you know you've fallen far from glory as a quarterback when all that's expected of you is you "not lose."

I agree. I predict he will make the announcement Monday.