Super Bowl XLVIII: Best Offense Against Best Defense

Still in the first quarter and initial expectations are telling.

At NYT, "Denver’s Offense (Unstoppable) vs. Seattle’s Defense (Unmovable)":

And... Here. We. GO! #SB48 ONLINE STREAM: http://t.co/x7Ru2OQP39 pic.twitter.com/7eVvtMCH2I

— NFL (@nfl) February 2, 2014

COME ON @Broncos !! #SB48 @SuperBowl WE ❤❤❤ YOU COACH FOX!!

— Angie Harmon (@Angie_Harmon) February 2, 2014

For the first time in 23 years, and the fifth time over all, the game will feature the league’s top-ranked offense against its top-ranked defense. And the 23.5-point disparity between the Broncos’ average scoring output (37.9) and the Seahawks’ average points allowed (14.4) is the largest in Super Bowl history, according to FootballPerspective.com. No team was more efficient inside the red zone than Denver. No team was stingier inside the red zone than Seattle.

“I don’t think they’ve played a defense like us,” Seattle linebacker Bobby Wagner said.

Nor, though, have the Seahawks played an offense like that of the Broncos, whose quarterback, Peyton Manning, at 37, set the N.F.L. single-season record for passing yards and touchdowns. Manning has a unique capacity to decipher defenses and upload information before the snap, then adjust by calling a play that exploits a weakness.