It is always fun to get into the last week of the season and break down the priorities for the most overanalyzed game in sports. In the era of "analytics," everyone with a smartphone has a complex algorithm that can statistically determine the outcome of the big game. how the most common bit of advice I received before was to have a game plan in place prior to traveling to the site -- and, most importantly, to stick with that game plan.Naturally, you can point to all the conventional wisdom about winning the turnover battle, controlling the clock, etc. Every coach, however, knows to break it down to a few key priorities for your team to hook on to; you want your players to believe that, if they execute these things, the desired result will come. If you find that the game isn't quite working out as anticipated, so be it: improvise and adjust. But if it does indeed go the way you've planned early on, your players will surge with confidence that they truly have the formula to win the .With that in mind, as we head toward 50, here are my top three priorities for the and on each side of the ball:Denver offenseFinally, we've reached the point where we can quit talking about how healthy is -- or if the should be running Gary Kubiak's offense, rather than doing what Peyton has done his entire career. When John Elway Daniel Castano Jersey and Kubiak sat down with Manning last offseason, they sold him on the formula that delivered Elway two wins late in his career, a formula that did not rely on him doing it single-handedly: play great defense, run the ball and get explosive plays out of a minimal number of throws. Even though it has not gone remarkably well to this point ( during the regular season), that is exactly what has to happen. Establish a ground game: The are 9-0 when they run for more than 105 yards and 8-0 when they log 30-plus rushing attempts. This is the heart of the Kubiak system. The problem is that, with and in the middle for Carolina, and and () at the next level, getting productive yards between the tackles against the is going to be next to impo sible. The are going to have to get the bounce-zone plays outside, setting up the zone-cutback plays where most of their big plays come from. Take your shots: It is going to be tough enough to run against the ' front seven, let alone if the safeties and corners can squat inside of 15 yards. The best matchups on the field for Denver have to be with and testing the Carolina secondary. The are not going to beat Carolina with five or six drives of 10-plus plays. Explosive plays will be paramount -- if for nothing else, just to loosen up the running lanes. Notch 7s, not 3s: Denver ranked just 27th in the NFL in red-zone touchdown efficiency during the regular season. That is not going to cut it. If the settle for field goals when they get in the scoring area, it's over. Remember, Denver has to keep up with Carolina -- .Denver defenseDenver's D, under Wade Phillips, has been nothing le s than brilliant this season. With an offense that was many times just average -- and at other times nonexistent -- the are in the because of . The potential problem: Denver has not played a team with the physicality of the . Phillips showed in that he is willing to go against form to get the job done. Stop the run: As good as the Denver defense is, the front seven, though athletic, is undersized and overmatched against Carolina's bludgeoning offensive line/ground game. The are going to have to commit more numbers to the box than normal. The good news is they have the secondary to match up one-on-one with the ' receivers on the outside, which will allow Phillips to apply the bodies it is going to take to stop and Co. on the inside. Frustrate Cam: It has long been a defensive axiom: "It is the front four's job to make the quarterback get the ball out quickly and it is the secondary's job to make him hold it." If the ' secondary can make Cam wait out his receivers' routes, then and and whomever else Phillips wants to throw at Newton can get home. Create takeaways: The can't win unle s they force turnovers and give their offense some short fields. Of course, this won't be easy. Since the beginning of December, Newton has 18 touchdowns against just two interceptions. Also, Newton's 110.4 pa ser rating against the blitz was the third-best mark in the NFL during the regular season. But Phillips might have to dial up the pre sure constantly, to see if he can force a turnover, even though it's clearly risky busine s.Carolina offense has done everything humanly po sible to prove he is a championship-level quarterback. That includes beating you from the pocket, if that's what it takes. But the core of this offense is still the ' ability to pound away with 235-pound back ... then follow it up with the 250-pounder, ... then, when you are nice and tenderized, cut loose the gargantuan quarterback on designed runs. And after all of that, when you're forced to put everyone in the box, Carolina will kill you down the field with big plays. Pound the football: Carolina only ran the ball le s than 30 times twice this season. And even in those two games, they ran for 171 yards on 29 carries and 155 yards on 20 carries in . The know that Denver is undersized and cannot hold up to the pounding they can deliver. And, when the have to play man -- to add the extra players to the box -- that is when Cam can take off for big gains on the ground, as the defensive backs all will have their backs turned to the line of scrimmage. Convert on third-and-medium/short: Oddly enough, Carolina is 30th in the NFL in third-down conversions of 3-to-5 yards. If the are able to run the ball the way I anticipate they will, they have to take advantage of the short third-down opportunities. As good as the were against and New England in their two games, they were just average overall during the season in this down-and-distance. YAC, YAC, YAC: Along with talking up a good game -- and the are the best in the league at this -- they will need to (and should have plenty of opportunities to) generate yards after the catch. This is where most of their explosive plays are likely to come. Jr. only catches about half the balls thrown his way, but when he does haul it in, he seemingly always goes the distance.Carolina defenseSean McDermott, the defensive coordinator for the , has put together the closest thing I have seen to our dominant 2000 defense -- impo sible to run against on the inside because of the down linemen, impo sible to run on to the outside because of the athletic and sure-tackling linebackers. The Achilles' heel: Carolina has given up some big plays in the secondary. No big runs: The front seven is superior to Denver's offensive line, so be patient and don't overrun your gap responsibility. The ' big plays come on the cutback zones; if you eliminate those, they will not be able to sustain enough in the running game to beat you. Ballhawk like crazy: I hate to say it, but Peyton will throw enough pick-able balls for Carolina to take advantage of and win the game. and . I have not run this through the computer, but I don't think that bodes well for the . Make Denver remember : If Denver can't run the ball and can't make any plays down the field early, the ' defense has the ability to make Peyton and Co. think "Dj vu all over again" from the two years ago. All the bad memories might come rushing back to the if they don't start well.Follow Brian Billick on Twitter . Eli Villalobos Jersey