This was what Anderson had dreamed of, being relied upon to lead the offense, and doing so in his backyard, so to speak, was the icing on the cake. But Anderson's defining moment in the game, perhaps the defining moment of his career, would require an assist from the defense.
Late in the game, the Panthers had cut into Denver's lead. After a Graham Gano field goal, the Broncos failed to gain a first down on consecutive drives. With a little over four minutes to go, Cam Newton and the Panthers had a chance.
Von Miller would rob them of it with his second strip-sack of the game. As the loose ball caromed backward toward the end zone, safety T.J. Ward — another Bay Area native — picked it up and fell forward for a return to the Panthers' 4-yard line.
Upon watching it, Anderson had one thought: "Oh, we've got to score here."
Points were at premium because of Carolina's stingy defense and their offense's capacity to score quickly. To get this close and score a touchdown was not imperative, but if they wanted to close out the game, this was their shot — and Anderson's, too.
It was an inauspicious start. Anderson lost two yards on the first play and then gained those back on the second. Then Demaryius Thomas drew a defensive pass interference penalty, and the Broncos got a new set of downs at the 2-yard line.
Two yards from paydirt, the Broncos hid nothing about their intentions on the next play. They lined up in a jumbo package with reserve lineman Tyler Polumbus on the left, tight end Owen Daniels on the right, tight end Virgil Green at the fullback position and Anderson behind him.
As Manning turned to hand the ball off, right guard Louis Vasquez pulled to the left and Green tried to block the defenders that filtered into the gap. Linebacker A.J. Klein, though, slipped through with a full head of steam and could have blown up the play three yards in the backfield. With a slight cut, Anderson made Klein miss, but then he had the league's 2013 Defensive Player of the Year about to meet him head on.
"It's mano y mano, it's me and Luke Kuechly," Anderson says. "And obviously Luke Kuechly is a hell of a player … but at that moment, it's just me and him. One thing that I knew about Luke Kuechly that I saw on tape, he just tackled high. I trust my ability enough. … I kind of knew if I would have got lower and had a chance to drive in, that was going to be it because I knew he tackled high. Thank God I got that one-on-one moment and it worked out in my favor."
Anderson pushed through the initial tackle, and then reinforcements arrived for both sides. All-Pro linebacker Thomas Davis slammed into Anderson at the goal line in a last-gasp effort to halt his momentum. Vasquez and center Matt Paradis then joined the push toward the end zone. After falling to the ground, Anderson looked up and saw the pylon just behind him.
Getting to his feet, Anderson looked for his family in the stands and ran over to the corner of the end zone and put his hometown roots in the spotlight by doing the Thizz Dance, a move made famous in the Bay Area by rapper Mac Dre. The message was unmistakable.
"I'm back home," Anderson says. "I'm in the Bay. Obviously, Mac Dre was very close to my family. Him and my uncle grew up together, so they're very close to my family. … Just in that moment, right at the corner of end zone with my mom and them on the other side, they're seeing it. I'm pretty sure they're doing the same thing. We had a chance to represent the hometown on the biggest stage."
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Five from 50: CJ Anderson reflects on his Super Bowl 50 homecoming - DenverBroncos.com
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