Carolina Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith has said that he understands why his side are ranked as underdogs going into Sunday's playoff match against the San Francisco 49ers.
The Panthers are on a seven-match winning streak at home and have been victorious in 11 of their last 12 games, including a 10-9 win over the 49ers in November, but still find themselves second favourites.
Smith believes that the odds were heavily influenced by the 49ers' impressive away victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, but has stressed that the pre-match predictions would have no impact on the game itself.
"After you look at what happened [on Sunday] night, you look at Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers, everything going on there, you understand it," Smith told reporters.
"You don't really take it as a shot at us. You just look at it as that's just how things go. But at the end of the day, the game is played on the field, not in the media room, not on video games. It's played with real men between the white lines."
Panthers head coach Ron Rivera has also played down the effect of being made underdogs, suggesting that it takes the pressure off his side and puts it on the 49ers.
