In what seems to be an annual tradition now in the NFL, the New England Patriots are AGAIN playing in the Super Bowl and I’m going to make the betting case for why the Pats will win (and cover) Super Bowl 53.
Although most football fans outside of Boston are suffering from Patriots fatigue, I’m one of the few who is excited to see them play again in the big game so here is my reasoning for why I’m dropping stacks on the Massholes:
Tom Brady is the G.O.A.T.
Remember when Michael Jordan hit that game-winning shot over Utah in the NBA Finals in 1998 and he cemented his status as the Greatest Basketball Player Ever? (Just stop, LeBron lovers.) Well, after Tom Brady went into Arrowhead Stadium in the AFC title game and manufactured another come-from-behind win, I can’t deny TB12’s greatness anymore.
The Patriots are playing in their ninth Super Bowl in the Brady/Belichick era. Just think about that for a minute and realize that Brady has more Super Bowl appearances than the Saints, Cardinals, Chargers, Buccaneers, Jets and Titans combined. He also seems to save his best games for last as evidenced by his stats from his last three appearances against the Seahawks, Falcons and Eagles. In those games, he’s totaled 1,299 passing yards (433 per game) and nine touchdowns, and broke the single-game passing yard mark in a Super Bowl with 505 yards vs the Eagles. It’s not a coincidence that he’s the front-runner in the odds to win Super Bowl MVP.
I think TB12 and the Patriots will dominate this matchup and it all starts with the man who destroys opposing secondaries like he chugs avocado smoothies.
Bill Belichick is a Master at the Unpredictable Game plan
Obviously, if I give that much love to Brady, I have to send some over to the Hoodie. Bill Belichick continues to show that the elderly can still have some good ideas and can adapt with the times. Adaptability is the key word here because week to week, defensive coordinators are on sleepless nights trying to figure out how to stop the Patriots offense.
One week the Pats will heavily feature RB James White and go with the dink-and-dunk/screen game, and the next week they’ll lean on Sony Michel and the power run game to keep the opposition’s quarterback off the field (see: Patrick Mahomes). When Belichick and Josh McDaniels have an extra week to prepare for an opponent, the Patriots are 29-9 SU in 38 playoff games since the Hoodie took over as coach in 2000.
Run Game Will Be Too Much for Rams
I know Rams backers will point to how they shut down the rushing attacks of the Saints and Cowboys, but you don’t allow 5.1 yards per carry during the regular season and then become bulletproof. That mark was dead last in the NFL this season and Los Angeles allowed 122.3 yards per game on the ground. Enter Sony Michel. The rookie running back was used extensively in the Patriots’ wins over the Chargers and Chiefs and he totaled five touchdowns and 242 yards on the ground in those games.
The Patriots will do anything they can to get an edge (Deflategate, anyone?) and controlling the clock with the run game will be essential to keeping Jared Goff on the sidelines. And if the Rams do decide to sell out on the run? Then the Patriots just take the top off the offense with Chris Hogan, whom I expect to kill CB Marcus Peters on deep routes, or a revitalized Rob Gronkowski who was deadly against the Chiefs.
It’s a “pick your poison” dilemma for the Rams with this offense. Do I think the Patriots roll the Rams by double digits? Hell no! Only one of the Patriots’ Super Bowl wins was by more than three points and that was because they got a touchdown in overtime vs the Falcons. But we don’t need a 10-point win, just a three-point win and a sixth Lombardi Trophy in the display case.