After an entire NFL season, we are down to the last two teams, the best of the best. A faceoff between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks. The last time these teams were matched against each other it was 2014 in the Super Bowl where it ended in drama. But this rematch probably wasn’t expected at all. Will we see similar events unfold?
First let’s talk about the New England Patriots. The Patriots are not new to being in a Super Bowl, and if they win then this will be their 7th Super Bowl win in just 25 years. But this is not the Tom Brady led team like we all knew. This Patriots team is now headlined by their new young core. Drake Maye has been a breakout this whole season, getting second place in MVP voting. But the biggest question is will Maye show up in the largest game of his career. His performance was questionable against the Denver Broncos in the AFC championship game. Maye was only held to 86 passing yards, there was the Denver snow that probably caused the performance but when they needed him Maye showed up and converted a first down to ice the game.
First alongside Maye we have now coach of year Mike Vrabel, only in his first year he has his team in the Super Bowl. Vrabel has been a very good coach in the past years formally coaching for the Tennessee Titans, but he has never had a better chance than this season. Vrabel is hoping to make history this Sunday by winning a Super Bowl as a head coach for the same team he won a Super Bowl with when he was a player. And additionally with Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson, the Patriots have a solid run game to complement their team as a whole. And the Patriots also have Stefon Diggs who has never been in a Super Bowl before but has always been a solid receiver. The Patriots look possibly even better on the other side of the ball, only allowing 8.6 points per game this playoff run. That is the fewest amount of points allowed by a team during a playoff run ever. And also forced eight turnovers in those games. But the Seahawks will be the best team that the Patriots have faced this entire season. Will we see how this team’s strengths do against the juggernaut that is Seattle?
Now on the other side we have the blazing hot Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks have been a Super Bowl favorite for quite some time now. Sam Darnold, who has been in the league for 8 years and played for 4 teams, has been playing his best he has ever played. Darnold has been undervalued and been a laughing stock, but he can not miss this opportunity of winning the Lombardi trophy. Darnold threw for 470 yards across this playoff run and 4 touchdowns in just 2 games. Darnold has been able to achieve this with these weapons at his use. Jaxon-Smith Njigba the offensive player of the year who has shown all-star level performances only in his third season. Njigba racked up 1,793 passing yards and 10 touchdowns this year, and their wide receiver room is just Njigba. They also have Cooper Kupp, a former Super Bowl MVP a few years ago with the Los Angeles Rams. Mike MacDonald could possibly be the third-youngest coach to win the Super Bowl joining the likes of Sean McVay and Mike Tomlin.
Seattle fought a very gritted battle against McVay’s Rams in the NFC championship, the win was highlighted by a star performance from Darnold who threw for 346 yards and 3 touchdowns. And getting the 31-27 victory is nothing to scoff out, both of these NFC sided teams were Super Bowl favorites. The Seattle defense also is lined up to stop this New England offense with their rookie Nick Emmanwori filling up a lot of important roles for this Seattle defense. We will just have to wait and see how these teams match up against each other on Sunday night.
Now with our predictions, It has been quite a one sided affair but we will see how the game unravils.
Owen’s prediction: 31-20 Seattle
Garrett’s prediction: 24-17 Seattle
