Introduction national National Football League NFL games are usually fun no matter which teams are playing They become extra special when the teams are rivals Rivalries can grow in a number of ways Two teams might have a history of playing important games against each other They might be located in the same part of the country with fans of both teams living and working in the same communities Or sometimes it's both Many of today's rivalries come from the NFL's eight divisions Teams in the same division are typically close to each other These teams play each other twice each season Many of these divisional rivalries date back to the 1960s Read on for the stories behind some of the NFL's greatest matchups and what makes them so special
10 Drew Brees has put up big numbers against the Panthers over the years Panthers Saints the The New Orleans Saints once dominated the National Football Conference NFC South Division Quarterback Drew Brees led them to division titles in 2006 2009 and 2011 But their rivalry with the Carolina Panthers soon tilted heavily in the other direction Dynamic quarterback Cam Newton and the Panthers won three straight division championships from 2013 to 2015 The changing of the guard was on display late in the 2013 season Brees threw four touchdown passes against the Panthers in a Sunday night game in early December That gave the Saints a one game lead in the division But two weeks later Newton threw a touchdown pass with 23 seconds to play lifting Carolina past New Orleans 17 13 The Panthers went on to win the first of their three straight division titles Both teams are centered around their quarterbacks two men who couldn't be more different Newton was the NFL's Most Valuable Player MVP in 2015 He's tall and fast with a cannon for an arm He is a threat to run as much as to throw And he's a showman who is known for elaborate touchdown celebrations
Cam Newton makes plays on the ground as well as through the air Brees is short for his position at 6 feet 183 cm He isn't fast he hardly ever runs and his arm isn't particularly strong When the Saints make a big play Brees rarely does more than pump his fist But he was the Super Bowl MVP when the Saints won it all after the 2009 season There's even a bit of a generational gap between the two Newton was the first pick of the 2011 draft after he won the Heisman Trophy which is given to the best college football player in the nation Brees was the first pick of the second round 10 years earlier when Newton was 11 years old But as the jewels of their clubs Brees since 2006 in New Orleans Newton since 2011 in Carolina they have helped build a fierce divisional competition between their teams
