Carolina at Denver

I was on the Broncos in Super Bowl 50 but in this game I'm switching sides. Carolina has got to be wanting this one after getting embarassed in the Super Bowl. They got better from last year on offense with the return of WR Kelvin Benjamin, who missed all of last season. They have balance on offense and a powerhouse defense that is stocked with players in their prime. Last season the defense ranked sixth in yards allowed and points, fourth against the run and chipped in 44 sacks (sixth). The Panthers are also on a 12-5-1 run OVER the total, including 12-5 OVER on the road with an offense that was tops in points and second in rushing in 2015. Carolina is on an 11-5 spread run and faces a Denver offense that is run-oriented with a new QB in Trevor Siemian. Last season he took one snap and kneeled on the football -- now he faces the defending NFC champs who are out for blood. The Denver offensive line is a weak spot and this offense ranked #16 in yards, #19 in points and #17 in rushing. In Super Bowl 50, the Broncos had just 194 yards, the lowest total for any Super Bowl winner, going just 1-of-14 on third-down. Carolina is 19-1 straight-up its last 20 regular season games and has more than enough on both sides of the line to get the win against a defending champ that lost key contributors on defense (DE Malik Jackson, LB Danny Trevathan). The Panthers are 36-11 as a favorite under Ron Rivera including 20-3 over the past two seasons. They want to atone for a terrible Super Bowl. In addtion, Carolina is 25-15 OVER in road games under Rivera. Take Carolina to win straight-up and also the OVER.