Super Bowl LX is here. After a long, wild season, on Sunday, Feb. 9, the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots will battle it out at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Both teams are battle-tested, but they head into the big game with wildly different storylines.
Path to the Big Game
The Seahawks have all the momentum and confidence to win this game. Coming in as the favorites, they have shown both their offensive and defensive star power through the Divisional Round and the Conference Championship games. After getting the top seed and a bye week in the Wild Card Round, they dominated their divisional rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, 41-6. It was a blowout right from the first play of the game, with wide receiver Rasheed Shaheed returning the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown. This gave the Seahawks home fans everything that they needed to hype up their team, which went up 17-0 at the end of the first quarter. After the first, the 49ers made two field goals, but the rest of the points in the game came from the Seahawks. The Seahawks showed both their stifling defense—forcing three turnovers—and their star-powered offense, led by quarterback Sam Darnold, running back Kenneth Walker III, and wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
After facing one divisional rival, the Seahawks moved on to face another, the Los Angeles Rams. It was a battle between two of the best quarterback-wide receiver duos in the NFL: Darnold and Smith-Njigba, and Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua. Smith-Njigba and Nacua each had over 150 receiving yards, along with one touchdown. Stafford and Darnold each threw three touchdowns and threw for over 340 passing yards. A high-level offensive game led to a Seahawks 31-27 victory. The Seahawks once again showed that they could fight, containing the Rams’ offense in the 4th quarter and recovering from costly mistakes on defense earlier in the game. The Seahawks head into the Super Bowl ready and determined to win, hoping to close out on a dominating season with a Lombardi Trophy.
The Patriots, though, are a little bit shaky for a team entering the Super Bowl. A popular narrative around the team is its lack of a difficult schedule, both in the regular season and in the postseason. According to CBS Sports, the Patriots played the easiest regular-season schedule of any team since the 1999 Rams, based on opponent winning percentage. Their opponents had a combined win percentage of 39.1%. This is also the third lowest of any team in the last 50 years. Furthermore, in the playoffs, they faced a Los Angeles Chargers team with an injury-riddled offensive line, a Houston Texans team without its star wide receiver Nico Collins and a Denver Broncos team without its starting quarterback, Bo Nix. Despite this narrative, the Patriots deserve respect for their success thus far. They faced three strong defenses, and they found a way to win against each one.
The Patriots earned the two seed in the AFC after a 14-3 regular season, the same record as the Seahawks, and played the Chargers in the Wild Card Round. The defense dominated, allowing the Chargers just three points and cruising to a 16-3 victory. It was a promising postseason start for the Patriots, showing that even if their MVP candidate quarterback, Drake Maye, didn’t lead the offense to a dominating showcase, they could still pull out a victory.
In the Divisional Round, they faced the Texans. The Texans have been viewed all year as possibly the best defense in the NFL. Still, the Patriots scored 28 points. Maye threw for three passing touchdowns, and cornerback Marcus Jones got an interception which he took back for a touchdown. Once again, the defense dominated, with opposing quarterback CJ Stroud throwing four interceptions, and now the offense was clicking, like it had in the regular season.
The Patriots looked amazing heading into the AFC Conference Championship game, where they faced the Broncos, who’d lost Nix in the game prior. The Patriots were expected to win the game, and they did, but not in a flashy way. They won in a snow-filled, low-scoring battle, 10-7. After going down 7-0 in the first quarter, they came back to take the lead 10-7 in the third, and no points were scored after that. It’s also worth noting that the Broncos missed both of their field goal attempts; one went wide, and one was blocked. The Patriots had a few chances to lose, but they persisted, winning a close game like they have all year. They head into the Super Bowl with hopes to win in a year where everyone doubted them. Not many thought of the Patriots as a playoff team at the start of the year, no less a Super Bowl team, but they’ve proved everyone wrong.
Who Wins at Each Position
The Patriots and Seahawks enter the game with star-studded rosters. Both teams have talent and depth at each position, along with two of the best head coaches in the NFL.
Quarterback: Patriots
Although Darnold has played better in the postseason, Maye has been better throughout the entire regular season and is an MVP candidate for a reason. He led the league in yards per passing attempt, finished fourth in passing yards, first in completion percentage, third in touchdowns, first in passer rating and threw fewer interceptions than Darnold. Maye beats out Darnold in all the major passing stats for a quarterback, in addition to having more rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.
Running Back: Seahawks
Although the Seahawks lost one of their great running backs, Zach Charbonnet, to injury, they still have Walker III, who’s been phenomenal on the path to the Super Bowl. None of the Patriots’ running backs matches up with him, as Walker III has scored four touchdowns throughout the postseason, whereas Patriots running backs have combined for zero. Furthermore, Patriots running backs have averaged fewer yards per carry than Walker III.
Wide Receiver and Tight End: Seahawks
The Seahawks have Smith-Njigba, arguably the best receiver in the NFL. They also have a good supporting cast around him and a decent tight end, AJ Barner. Although the Patriots have the better tight end with veteran Hunter Henry, they don’t have a true star receiver to come close to Smith-Njigba.
Offensive Line: Seahawks
The Patriots and Seahawks both have strengths and weaknesses in their offensive lines, but the Seahawks have allowed an average of 2.5 sacks in their two playoff games, while the Patriots have allowed five in three games. The Seahawks’ rushing attack has also been superior throughout the postseason.
Defense: Seahawks
Although the Patriots have had a strong defense in the playoffs, the Seahawks are loaded with talent at every single defensive position. They have one of the best secondaries in the league, led by cornerback Devon Witherspoon, safety Julian Love and safety Nick Emmanwori. They have a great linebacker crew led by veteran Ernest Jones IV, who played like a star this year. They also have a top defensive line, led by defensive tackle Leonard Williams and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence. Although the Patriots have strong cornerbacks with star Christian Gonzalez, Jones and Carlton Davis, along with a great defensive end in Milton Williams, they don’t have the depth and the talent to match what the Seahawks have at each position.
Coaches: Patriots
Although Mike Macdonald (Seahawks) and Mike Vrabel (Patriots) have both been incredible this year, arguably the top coaches in the NFL this season, the slight edge goes to Vrabel, who has more experience in high-pressure situations.
Super Bowl Predictions
Score Prediction: Seahawks win 24-17
11 years after their infamous head-to-head matchup, where Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson threw a game-sealing interception on the goal line, the Seahawks will get their revenge on the Patriots. They are far more talented and have shown their excellence in the playoffs, whereas the Patriots have struggled at times. It won’t be a dominating victory, as the Patriots have a strong team, but the Seahawks will control the game and run the ball a lot, keeping the Patriots’ defense on the field and wearing it out.
Super Bowl MVP: Kenneth Walker III
In a game where the Seahawks will rely heavily on the run game, Walker III is their top option. He’s already had a great postseason and will continue his success by scoring a crucial touchdown that helps lead the Seahawks to victory.
Big Momentum Swing: The Patriots will start strong, but a turnover or a very long touchdown will completely change the momentum after halftime.
The Patriots might start strong in this game, with their defense containing the Seahawks and with some success on offense in the first quarter or two. After halftime, with the Seahawks either losing or the game tied, there will be an unexpected shift that flips the game around. It’ll either be a turnover during a crucial Patriots’ drive or a 50-yard+ touchdown for Seattle.
