State your case: Superbowl edition
The Patriots
New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick takes questions at Media Day on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015, at the US Airways Center in Phoenix. (Dean Rutz/Seattle Times/TNS)
Minutes after the Patriots 41-14 loss in Kansas City in week 4, Trent Dilfer had some harsh words for New England.
He called them a “weak team,” saying that they are “not good anymore.”
You might remember that a few days later, I wrote an article about how New England would have a successful season this year and that they would return to the Super Bowl.
I’ll save the “I told you so” article for when the confetti settles Sunday; this one is about why they’re going to win.
As of late, the Patriots have been hot, winning the AFC Championship 45-7. Although that win came with a bit of a controversy, they could’ve played with a bowling ball and won the game, moving on.
The Seahawks had a nice little comeback to win the NFC Championship. Although the comeback was very impressive, anybody who watched the game will tell you that some ugly football was played in Seattle that day. The matchup for the week will be the Patriots’ high-scoring offense against the Seahawks’ stingy defense.
The key for the Seahawks is to stop Tom Brady and find a way to shut down Gronk. They will need a big game out of the secondary, but with injuries to Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas, it may be tough to limit the passing game. New England’s offense has also been very successful on the ground, LeGarrette Blount picked up 148 yards and 3 touchdowns last week against Indianapolis.
The Patriots’ secondary is going to have a huge game. Doug Baldwin will get stranded on Revis Island, and Brandon Browner will have a huge game against his former team. The Patriots will contain Lynch and will pressure Wilson, forcing him to make mistakes.
Pats win 27-10. Cue the duckboats.
— joebaraiolo@gmail.com
Twitter: @joefish_2
The Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll speaks during Media Day on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015, at the US Airways Center in Phoenix. (Bettina Hansen/Seattle Times/TNS)
The Patriots are in for the rudest of awakenings.
You could list all the cliches about how this game will be won in the trenches or lost in the turnover battle, and you wouldn’t be wrong. But the key to this game — this one beautiful winner-take-all football game — will be who controls the tempo.
That’s why Seattle will win the Super Bowl.
Baltimore laid the blueprint weeks ago, nearly beating New England in front of a home crowd in Foxborough with a solid ground attack and a competent quarterback willing to take shots into the Patriots’ secondary. The Ravens lost that game — barely — because their own secondary resembled soggy tissue paper.
The takeaway is this: running the ball controls the tempo of a game, and that happens to be what Seattle does best.
Marshawn Lynch is 215 pounds of muscle and nightmares who has rushed for 1,000 yards and double-digit touchdowns in every season since he donned a Seattle uniform. His yards gained after initial contact with a defender is actually greater in the playoffs than in the regular season, a credit to his get-out-the-way, Beast Mode mindset. With a weapon like Lynch and Russell Wilson’s ability to successfully shred teams with the read-option, the Patriots will be in for a long day defending the ground game.
If New England tries to answer, they’ll be severely disappointed to discover running back Legarrette Blount really only ever looks good against dreadful defenses. What’s the over/under on how many times Bobby Wagner explodes through the middle and lays Blount out for a loss this game?
The Patriots’ running game is in danger, and even golden boy Tom Brady will have a tough time escaping Seattle’s pressure and getting passes through a secondary consisting of all-pro safeties and corners. Even at partial health, Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas cover wideouts better than most, and Kam Chancellor providing support will cover Gronkowski just fine.
Seattle beats New England 20-13.
— logantjones@gmail.com
Twitter: @logantj