Kickoff: The Patriots and Seahawks are meeting for the second time in the Super Bowl. The two teams met in Super Bowl XLIX where the Patriots stunned the Seahawks late, beating them 28-24. Malcolm Butler’s now famous interception sealed the deal.
Both the Patriots and Seahawks failed to qualify for the playoffs last season. No one expected either of these teams at the beginning of the season. Both teams had 40-1 odds to make it to Super Bowl LX. The Patriots need to make the most of this unexpected opportunity. Win and you achieve immortal status with a seventh Lombardi Trophy.
Four Downs for Super Bowl LX.
1st Down: Get to Darnold early and often: The Patriots have been aggressive in the playoffs with their blitz packages. Defensive coordinator Zak Kuhr has been bringing a lot of five, six and on occasion, seven man pressures. The Patriots to light up Darnold, get him off his spot. Sim pressure will also be a big part of the defensive game plan. The Patriots will bring pressure off the edge and from the slot. They have to if they want to win this game.
2nd Down: Win the line of scrimmage, win the game: Super Bowl LX will be won at the line of scrimmage. If the Patriots win the battle upfront, they will win the Super Bowl. If they don’t, they could end up struggling to keep this game competitive. Seattle is very good up front and they create a lot of matchup problems one on one. If the Patriots can compete along the offensive and defensive lines, they will put themselves in a position to win what will be a tight game.
3rd Down: Keep Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s damage to a minimum: JSN is going to get his. There is no other way around it. You just have to limit his effectiveness, especially down the field. If he gets loose, he is a problem after the catch. He is not exactly a burner but he will move the chains. The Patriots will have a diverse plan in place to deal with him. Christian Gonzalez will matchup with him in man coverage but the Patriots could also play some combo coverages and double him at times depending on alignment. How they deal with him will be a major story line in this game.
4th Down: Forget the stage. Just play good, fundamentally sound football: The stage is big. We know that. The Patriots have to make sure it is not too big. It is ok to have some early jitters but the Patriots need to shake them off and play football. As long as they execute, take care of the football and play a full 60 minutes, they will be fine. It is easy to forget that despite the influx of veterans this past offseason-season, this is still a relatively young team. The Super Bowl stage cannot phase them.
Stage will be big. How they manage it will be key.
Extra Points: The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks will meet in a Super Bowl for the second time. The Patriots won Super Bowl XLIX against Seattle with a 28-24 victory at the University of Phoenix Stadium on Feb. 1, 2015.
This will be the 21st overall meeting between the two teams. Seattle leads the all-time series 11-9. The Patriots have lost the last three regular season meetings, including a 23-20 overtime loss on Sept. 15, 2024 in Week 2 last season at Gillette Stadium.
Seattle joins San Francisco and Philadelphia as the only teams to have a winning record against New England at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots and Seahawks played 12 times in a 14-year span from 1980-93, but have played only seven times since then (2004, ’08, ’12, ’16, ’20, ’24 and Super Bowl XLIX).
Series Breakdown
NEW ENGLAND 9, SEATTLE 11 (Including New England’s SB XLIX Win)
Home Record: 4-7
Gillette Stadium: 1-2
Foxboro Stadium: 0-3
Sullivan Stadium: 2-2
Schaefer Stadium: 1-0
Road Record: 4-4
Kingdome: 3-2
Qwest Field: 1-0
CenturyLink Field: 0-2
Neutral Site: 1-0
Total Points in the Series: Patriots 423, Seahawks 408
Courtesy of patriots.com, Patriots Communications
Final Drive: Super Bowl LX is finally here. No expected either one of these teams in this game, especially the Patriots. New England is playing with house money. Win and bring lucky number 7. Lose and it is disappointing but still a great season all things considered. Winning is better. I think this will be a tight game and I think the Patriots find a way to get it done. They truly are a team of destiny.