Patriots over Seahawks (Sunday at 5:30 p.m.): Not many people are giving the Patriots a chance in this game for a multitude of reasons. “They had the easiest schedule,” “they only played one good team all year,” “they should have lost to the Broncos,” etc. I don’t care how easy their schedule is — it’s the NFL, and it’s really hard to win games no matter what. On top of that, this Patriots team isn’t some loaded squad full of elite superstars. Prior to this year, the two previous seasons they had a combined record of 8–26, so to turn that around in such a short period of time is pretty remarkable.
Drake Maye will be the second-youngest quarterback in history to play in the Super Bowl (only Dan Marino was younger). Players like Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen haven’t even been to one yet, so that is an accomplishment he can hold over them. If they played this game 10 times, Seattle would probably win nine of them, but unlike other playoff sports where you play a series and dropping the first, or even the second game, doesn’t matter because you have a chance to come back, the Super Bowl is just ONE game. If you’re the underdog, you only have to be better than the other team once.
All it takes is a rough start for the Seahawks, a couple of turnovers, and all of a sudden a game that was supposed to be a blowout becomes interesting. It still will be a tough outing for New England, especially against the Seattle defence, but I’ve seen stranger things happen, and I’m not ready to just declare victory for the Seahawks despite what all the “experts” say.
Playoffs overall: 4–4