Carolina, Denver win; will host conference title games
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Four games into his playoff career, Cam Newton recognizes the key element to success. He calls it "Big Mo," and there couldn't have been a better example than Carolina's 31-24 victory over Seattle on Sunday.
Emphatically backing up their superb regular season with one of the most dominating halves in football history, the Panthers then hung on in the face of a furious Seahawks rally before surviving.
"The playoffs bring out more than any other time the impact of 'Big Mo,'" Newton said after Carolina (16-1) moved into NFC title game, which they will host next Sunday against Arizona (13-3). "Momentum.
"We can't wait for no one to make plays for us."
The Panthers, winners of 12 straight at home, made all the right plays in building a 31-0 lead, then were dominated by the two-time defending NFC champs in the second half. So if Carolina wins its first NFL championship, it can credit the lesson learned from the Seahawks (11-7).
"We have to find a way to com- plete a full game of football," the All-Pro quarterback added. "We have been known to take our foot off the throttle and we have to find that killer instinct."
Newton noted how players, coaches and even the fans were feeling the pressure in the final 30 minutes as Seattle staged a relentless comeback.
"It was a tale of execution. We needed a little more of that in the second half. You just have to find ways to get your groove back on." Definitely. "That's what this game is going to teach us," said All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly, who returned a firstquarter interception for a touchdown. "No matter how good you play in the first half, the second half is just as important. It's crazy - you go into these games and you expect it to be like this, so it wasn't a surprise for us. But you've got to be locked in the whole game. "
Jonathan Stewart, returning from a foot injury, scored two touchdowns after jumpstarting the Panthers with a 59-yard sprint on their first play. Newton threw for a touchdown.
Then, Seattle showed its pedigree and climbed back within seven points.
"We made a mess of it in the first half," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. "We look at this game as a microcosm of the season. We struggled so much early in the season to get going, and it took us a long time. When we finally did, we caught fire, and got rolling. Everyone in here just feels like we ran out of time." season's worth of matchups between the two quarterbacks whose careers are so intertwined that a conversation about one almost has to include the other — like Bird vs. Magic or Ali vs. Frazier.
"It'll be the Broncos vs. the Patriots," Manning said. "We'll enjoy this one tonight. I think you knew that answer was coming. To kind of quote Bill Belichick, we'll be on to New England. But I'll be talking about them on Wednesday."
His boss, John Elway, who only got to face his fellow Hall of Famer Dan Marino twice in his playing career, once said there will never be another rivalry like Brady-Manning.
Brady has won 11 of the 16 meetings, but they're 2-2 in the playoffs, including Denver's 26-16 win in the conference championship game two years ago. This game marks just the seventh time Manning will face Brady at home.
This matchup was slated for November before Manning went out with a foot injury that pushed longtime backup Brock Osweiler into the starting — and starring — role.
Osweiler led the Broncos (13-4) back from a two- touchdown, fourth-quarter deficit against New England on Nov. 29 in a game Denver won 30-24 in overtime. Manning had just gotten out of his cast and watched that game from the locker room.
He returned to action in the season finale, his cameo propelling the Broncos past San Diego and into the AFC's No. 1 seed that ensures Brady & Co. will have to play at altitude in their fifth consecutive trip to the conference championship game.
Manning's teammates dropped seven passes, but came through in crunch time. Denver is 10-3 in games decided by seven points or fewer, and Manning said being battle- tested helped them on this night.
With Denver down 13-12 with less than 10 minutes left, cornerback Bradley Roby punched the ball from Fitzgerald Toussaint's arms and teammate DeMarcus Ware recovered at the Denver 35yard line.
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