Ah, punters.

The lifeblood of every NFL roster.

Without them, it is almost as if football has no meaning. There is just something about a punt on fourth and long that is refreshing. It’s like a breath of fresh Rocky Mountain air. If teams were consistently going for it on fourth down, football would become chaotic and disorganized. The game would be missing out on refinery and sophistication, and would start to resemble something straight out of the Stone Ages.

A locker room full of ridiculously skilled athletes who could tear stacks of phonebooks in half just for the thrill of it?

Hmm, no thanks.

Give me the 185 pound string bean who often gets mistaken for Jake at State Farm. Those are the guys that really make a difference on a football field.

Don’t let their little towels, hand-warmers, and soccer cleats fool you. Punters are football players too. Although often unathletic and small in stature, they always seem to come through in the clutch with impact plays.

Did Spencer Lanning take a Sparticus kick to the face by Antonio Brown?

Yes.

But did he slow down the NFL’s most threatening punt returner?

Well, kind of?

Okay, maybe I am living in a perfect world. Maybe punters are, in fact, considered the most insignificant piece of the puzzle, the prominent red-headed step child of every NFL roster, but I am convinced that Britton Colquitt is going to be the x-factor for the Denver Broncos this upcoming Sunday.

Colquitt hasn’t had a great season by any standards. After finishing the 2015 regular season with 84 total punts, the 30-year-old out of the University of Tennessee ranked 28th in the league with an average of 43.6 yards a punt. Of those 84 punts, he managed to only place 26% of them inside the 20-yard line. During the Broncos last Super Bowl run in 2013, Colquitt masterfully placed 35% of his punts inside the 20-yard line.

With the Broncos’ offense being highly anemic and unproductive, Colquitt has punted the ball 29% more this season than he did in 2013. Although, with the offense going three-and-out on 26.13% of their drives, he has not really had much of an opportunity to pin teams back inside their own 20-yard line. Even though his statistics have been fairly mediocre this season, a portion of that can be attributed to the lack of movement on the offensive side of the ball.

This postseason, however, Colquitt has been tremendous. With the help of cornerback, Kayvon Webster, he has placed seven of his 15 total punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Of those seven punts, the opponent has only scored a total of three points, a 43-yard field goal by Chris Boswell. It is important for Colquitt to continue his hot-streak with a strong performance in Super Bowl 50.

The Broncos’ defense has been putting on a clinic throughout the playoffs. They have slowed down two of the most prolific offenses in the entire NFL, but things don’t get a whole lot easier this weekend with Cam Newton and Co. Let’s face it, the Broncos are major underdogs this weekend. Over 75% of NFL experts are picking the Panthers to steamroll the Broncos this weekend. Every facet of the Denver gameplay needs to be perfect, and that includes the punting game.

Scoring drops significantly when teams start a drive inside their own 20-yard line. The Carolina Panthers have only started inside their own 20-yard line a little over 18% of the time this season. Only three other teams started inside their own 20-yard line less. In fact, the Panthers rank second throughout the NFL in starting field position, with their average drive starting on their own 30.53 yard line. That kind of field position is a huge advantage for a team. Giving the future league MVP a short field is a recipe for disaster, and one the Broncos must avoid if they wish to win this Sunday.

It is important for Colquitt and the special teams unit to capitalize on every opportunity that is given to them this Sunday. If the Panthers have to continually move the ball 80 and 90 yards for a touchdown, I see no way that this elite defense gives up very many points. It just won’t happen. The Broncos’ defense led the league this season in fewest yards aloud, and the only reason they didn’t lead the league in fewest points given up is the fact that the offense gave opponents great field position almost weekly.

In a game that could be decided by field position, it is important for the Broncos’ offense to move the ball far enough down field to give Colquitt a chance to pin the Panthers deep in their own zone. On drives that the offense isn’t able to do so, it is crucial that Colquitt continues to change field position with long, high, booming punts. For once this season, help the defense out. This is the perfect time to do it. If the Panthers are able to continually put together long and flawless scoring drives against this elite defense, then they deserve to win the Lombardi Trophy.

Although, if Britton Colquitt has a good game, the Broncos will be Super Bowl champions. Just wait and watch.

Britton Colquitt for Super Bowl MVP.