Super Bowl XLVIII is the first in history to pit the league's best offense against the best defense. The Denver Broncos have just finished one of the most prolific seasons to date, led by legendary quarterback Peyton Manning. Now they face the Seattle Seahawks, whose defense, led by Richard Sherman, sends chills down quarterbacks' spines.

We've used the average yards per play (ypp) method, laid out by Brian Burke at Advanced NFL Stats, to determine how each side stacks up. On offense, this means average yards gained on each play from scrimmage, and on defense it means average yards given up per play.

While Super Bowl XLVIII is the first time two number ones on opposite sides of the ball have gone head-to-head, the teams don't have the largest differential in offensive yards per play and defensive yards per play in Super Bowl history. That distinction goes to Super Bowl XLIII which featured the Arizona Cardinals' high octane offense against the Pittsburgh Steelers' staunch defense. Pittsburgh won in an exciting game, 27-23.

This year's matchup is similar to several past Super Bowls. If the Broncos win, they will resemble Peyton Manning's 2006 Indianapolis Colts who beat the more defensive Chicago Bears. The Seahawks are reminiscent of the 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers who tallied 5 interceptions on the way to the championship.