SUPER BOWL 50: Our official picks for who will win Sunday's big game

One game more!

The Broncos and Panthers face off on Sunday in what is already a historic Super Bowl, the first one ever without - you guessed it - Roman numerals. Crazy! Here's hoping the football lives up to the momentous occasion.

Before we get to our picks, first let's break down a couple of things:

• Peyton Manning has struggled in the Super Bowl. Putting aside for a moment the ongoing speculation about whether or not Manning will retire after Sunday's game (he's going to), let's instead talk about the Sheriff's performances in past Super Bowls. He's made three appearances, most recently in 2013 against the Seahawks, perhaps the most lopsided Super Bowl in recent memory. In all, Manning is 1-2 in Super Bowls, has thrown more interceptions (four) than touchdowns (three), and boasts an underwhelming quarterback rating is 81.0. Will he be better on Sunday?
• Cam Newton is the least divisive "divisive" athlete on the planet. Does anyone actually dislike Cam Newton? For all the talk about how Newton, with his dancing and fashion and overall flashiness, rubs some people the wrong way, as far as I can tell the chorus of people defending Newton is exponentially larger than the mob of people that supposedly hate him. Newton is the MVP of the league and a ridiculously fun player. The only people who don't like him are Alabama fans.
• The Broncos have an amazing defense, but Carolina's isn't half-bad, either. Much will be made of Denver's defense, and it's deserving of all the praise it receives. Make no mistake: the Broncos are in the Super Bowl because of their defense. But don't forget about Carolina's defense, either. According to Football Outsiders, the Broncos rank first in defensive DVOA and 24th in offensive DVOA. The Panthers? Second defensively, and fifth offensively. Both QBs could be in for long nights.
• Coldplay ... and Beyonce are performing the halftime show. How is this going to work? Is Beyonce just going to stand around awkwardly during Coldplay songs, and vise versa? Is Jay-Z going to make a cameo? Will he do "Lost+" with Coldplay? Does anyone besides me remember that song? Super Bowl halftime shows are increasingly safe, which is a real missed opportunity by the NFL but not much of a surprise. Oh well, "Fix You" is still a jam.

Now, to the picks! In honor of the Super Bowl, we brought the whole gang out to make their official predictions. Enjoy the game, everyone!

TONY MANFRED: Panthers -5.5

I don't have much to say...I love Carolina. I don't see how they don't crush the Broncos. The Panthers are going to be seen as a historically great team, but nobody who watched them this year will have appreciated how great they are. Final Score: Panthers 35, Broncos 24

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