Friday 22 January 2016 13:07, UK
Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders has admitted that the Denver Broncos head into their AFC Championship game against the New England Patriots as underdogs.
The Broncos face New England live on Sky Sports on Sunday with the winner making it to Super Bowl 50 next month, and Sanders is excited about the chance to showcase his talents on the world stage.
"Vegas says we're coming in as the underdog so I guess we're coming in as the underdog!" Sanders told Sky Sports.
"At the end of the day you're playing in an AFC Championship game and you get the opportunity to showcase your talents in front of the world, so I'm looking forward to that opportunity."
Despite the pressure of playing in such a vital clash, Sanders insists he is determined to enjoy the experience of playing in the AFC Championship game.
"I think you need to enjoy the process and embrace it," he said. "You have to understand this doesn't happen all the time. Some day I'm going to be 50 and might be saying: 'Hey son, I played in the AFC Championship game and that's the year we won the Super Bowl!' You never know.
"I try to live in the moment, that's what I've been trying to do to allow my team-mates to understand they should have fun with this and that it doesn't have to be serious.
"Don't make the game bigger than what it is. We've been playing football since we were nine years old, so be that same kid. If you make a play, smile. If you don't make a play, smile anyway. Just don't put excess pressure on yourself.
"I've always said as a receiver when a guy is up in your face you've got to take that as an insult, so my job is to go out and try to beat the guy across from me.
"I try not to have any expectations, because with that you get let down. So I just try to control what I can control."
Sanders has made the Super Bowl once before during his time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he was on the losing side that day in 2011 as the Green Bay Packers secured victory. And the wide receiver admits it would be a dream to go one further this year.
"I've been there and done that in terms of making it [to the Super Bowl], so I think it would be a question of what it would mean to win the Super Bowl.
"It would mean a lot because that's the pinnacle of football. Hopefully that dream comes true."
