NFL Picks 2014: Super Bowl Weekend

Well, it didn’t look exactly how we expected it to, but all four of us nailed the match-up: Seattle and New England.

It took an amazing comeback for the NFC result to come true. The AFC game was a mismatch – there’s been more drama with the weight of the footballs than there was during the game. Andrew Luck will have to wait at least another season to unseat Tom Brady as the King of the AFC.

Here are the standings for the post-season:

Name	Championships	Overall
Tony	2-0	8-2
Anthony Maggio	2-0	8-2
John Vomhof	2-0	7-3
Andy	2-0	6-4

Bill Nye the Science Guy has weighed in, as has Bill Belichick and everyone else on Ball-Gate, the debate over whether or not the Patriots artificially deflated their footballs at some point leading up to the AFC Championship game.

And, okay, Belichick has probably brought a lot of this on himself with some of his past escapades. But let’s look at this objectively: THEY BEAT THE COLTS 45-7.

Does anyone in their right mind really, really think if the balls had not been deflated that the Colts would have won? Maybe it would have been 38-10, maybe 35-13 – or maybe it still would have been 45-7. But they could have played with ping-pong balls, tennis balls, bowling balls or whale balls and the result would have been the same: The Patriots are the best team in the AFC.

Don’t get me wrong – I know there are principles at stake – but I actually heard a caller to one show suggest that the game should be replayed at a neutral site. Let’s get real.

Anyway, getting back to the main point of all of this: Here’s who we think wins when the focus leaves the science classroom and returns to the football field on Sunday:

John Vomhof Jr.

Seattle

The number one seeds from both conferences squaring off in the Super Bowl – what more can you ask for? On paper, this has the makings of a fantastic football game. (Yeah, I said that last year, too, but I’m more confident this time around. I really love the way these two teams match up.)

Ultimately, I think it’s going to come down to the running game because both defenses are stout against the pass. Seattle needs to get Marshawn Lynch into “beast mode” early and find opportunities to utilize Russell Wilson’s legs, too. For New England, the key is to wear down the Seahawks D by extending drives with LeGarrette Blount.

It’s a coin flip for me, but I’m picking Seattle to pull off the rare NFL repeat in a very close game.

Anthony Maggio

Seattle

If the NFC Championship Game insanity wasn’t enough to show Seattle is a team of destiny, I don’t know what is.

I couldn’t care less about deflated footballs, and New England had already destroyed the Colts once this season, so let’s not all be wowed by the fact the Pats did it again, this time at home instead of in Indy. I expect a much more competitive game than last year’s Super Bowl, but the Seahawks are about to prove they are every bit the dynasty New England has been the last decade.

Tony

Seattle

This is truly a difficult pick to make. Last year, everyone thought we had a great matchup in the high-powered offense of the Broncos against the staunch defense of the Seahawks. Turned out we had a massacre.

This year, everyone seems to be saying things like “This is a better matchup than last year,” or “The Patriots won’t be taken by surprise like the Broncos.” But what do we have to base that on? There are a lot of other factors, as well—we haven’t had a repeat Super Bowl winner since 2005 (edge, Patriots). The team that repeated in 2005? The New England Patriots (edge, Patriots). We also had one team dominate their opponent in the conference championship game, while the other needed a near historical comeback to win (edge, Patriots…?).

You do wonder, if playing a tight game against a better opponent might put the Seahawks in a better frame of mind for the Super Bowl, though (so…edge, Seahawks?). You also have a unique situation where the Seahawks are focused on the game right now, while you have to wonder how much Deflate Gate is a distraction for the Patriots — most Pats fans will claim this kind of distraction is nothing new (is it at all awkward that accusations of cheating is considered “nothing new” by the fans?), but this is on a different level/stage. Cutting ties with an accused murderer in the offseason is one thing. Accusations of cheating the week before the Super Bowl? How can that not be distracting (edge, Seahawks)?

In the end, sadly, this might come down to the referees, which is the NFLs worst nightmare — not in them making a correct/incorrect call, per se, but just in how they call the game. If they call the game touchy, the edge probably goes to the Patriots, but if they allow the same physical type of defense the Seahawks are predicated on, the edge goes over to them. I tend to think the last thing the zebras will want is to be noticeable in this game, which is why I give the edge to the Seahawks—let’s say 27-21.

Andy

New England

There are a couple reasons I’m making this pick. First, I made a bet with a guy before the season that the Seahawks would win the Super Bowl – I took Seattle and he got all the other 31 teams. I typically lose these bets in fantastic fashion (the last time I had a wager on the Super Bowl, it was in Vegas – in June of that year I had New England winning the Super Bowl. It looked good and then bad and then good and then, finally, bad when the Giants ruined the Pats’ perfect season.

Second, there’s superstition. Last year on this site, I picked in the pre-season Seattle to win the Super Bowl, but in our Super Bowl predictions, switched my bet to Denver. The Seahawks, of course, won, making me look both brilliant and stupid at the same time.

But more importantly, New England proved last week it’s hitting on all cylinders in the postseason. Bill Belichick thrives on situations like Ball-Gate. He’s probably laughing demonically inside right now, having successfully taken the spotlight away from his team and placing it squarely on his own shoulders.

Meanwhile, the Packers, for 55 minutes, created a blueprint for how to muzzle Seattle and Russell Wilson. When the match-up was first finalized, I was leaning Seattle. But ever since I’ve been wavering and now I’m fully converted. The Patriots and the Belichick/Brady tandem win this game.