I know most peoples football goggles say Carolina. However, a few things are making me say "not so fast" my friend....
1. The bye week. This gives the old man a week of rest and we know no one does the mental prep like Manning. In addition I think this hurt the Panthers. I know you will say the buy didnt hurt them in the wild card round. Consider though in the finale against the Bucs they didn't play that well, sure they won, but it was not a lights out affair. This may have redirected their focus before the playoffs, and we all know that the home field advantage served them well, they wont have that this week.
2. Last dance for Manning. Look you dont need to be a rocket surgeon or brain scientist to know this is Mannings last game. (I wonder if there is a prop bet for that) This guy has the respect of the entire league. His boys are going to be playing for him, which may be an effective motivating factor.
3. Big game Cam....I know 18 gets a lot of heat for big game disappointments, However a few of his big games, Iron Bowl v Bama and NCAA title game, he got off to slow starts in both of those games. Yes, he did win both of those games, but a slow start in the Super Bowl we have seen over the last quarter century can just make a game get ugly. Couple this in with a good defense and Cam trying to force one, it could give Denver an early jump.
On the other side of the coin,
a. Cam is the guy who has the greater ability to make something happen if all else on the play goes wrong and it can come from anywhere on the field.
b. Carolina's defense is not prone to making mistakes, and Denver scoring wont happen quickly, they will have to put together long drives.
In the end I will guess.....
Carolina 26
Denver 20