BY TRISTAN SASSE
Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots – Sunday, February 4 at 5:30 PM on NBC
For the fourth time in five seasons, both one seeds have advanced to the NFL’s biggest stage. After 30 teams have been eliminated from a shot at their ultimate goal, a rematch of Super Bowl 39 is set. Some might consider it to be a David vs. Goliath matchup, as the Philadelphia Eagles will take on the perennial powerhouse New England Patriots. Below is a preview of participants for the highly anticipated heavyweight bout.
The Underdog — Philadelphia Eagles (13-3)
After Philadelphia’s MVP candidate Carson Wentz went down with a seasons-ending ACL and LCL tear in week 14, many believed any chance at a Super Bowl run was over. Nick Foles replaced Wentz and has thrown for eight touchdowns and only two interceptions in five games (regular season and postseason) he has played in relief. Furthermore, 13 NFL teams have never won a Super Bowl, and the Eagles happen to be one of them. Philadelphia has appeared on the big stage twice (1981 and 2005) and can envision the third time’s a charm. Additionally, the Eagles will be an underdog when they take the field. So far, the underdog role has not bothered this resilient squad. Also, Philadelphia has not been favored to win in either of its playoff games. Nevertheless, they defeated the Atlanta Falcons 15-10 in the Divisional Round and stomped the Minnesota Vikings 38-7 in the Conference Championship. They’ve proved skeptics wrong all postseason and are definitely capable of doing it again, as they are a dark horse in Super Bowl LII.
The Powerhouse — New England Patriots (13-3)
New England will be playing in its tenth Super Bowl. Additionally, it will be the eighth appearance in the Tom Brady era (since 2000). For Brady, who will turn 41 at the start of next season, this may be one of his final chances to end up on top of the game’s biggest stage. Although the road to Super Sunday in the AFC seemed to be easier for this team compared to prior years, it was no walk in the park. Many people doubted the Patriots early in the season when they started 2-2, but they have only lost once since October. As the season has gone on, New England has continued to find ways to win. In the playoffs, the Patriots dominated the Tennessee Titans 35-14 and followed it up by overcoming a double-digit deficit to survive the Jacksonville Jaguars, 24-10.
How They Got Here
Both of these teams are well-rounded. During the regular season, each team averaged 28.6 points per game. With that being said, the Patriots struggled offensively against the Jaguars for the majority of the AFC Conference Championship. New England had more points in the final quarter (14) than the other three quarters combined (10). Ultimately, the Conference Championship did not go as planned for the Patriots, but a win is a win no matter how it happens.
On the other side, Philadelphia is coming off its third-highest scoring performance of the season, and it happened to be against arguably the best defensive team in the entire NFL, the Minnesota Vikings. Not only has the Eagles’ offense been firing on all cylinders, the defense has only allowed 33 points in its past four games (8.25 ppg). Additionally, both Super Bowl contenders ranked in the top five defensively during the regular season. Philadelphia ranked fourth in the NFL, allowing 18.4 ppg. Meanwhile, New England followed at fifth and gave up 18.5 ppg.
Bottom Line
Both teams are currently playing some of their best football of the season. Each team narrowly escaped in one of their playoff wins and completely dominated in the other matchup. This Super Bowl should be one of the more evenly matched title games in recent memory. Any mistake on Sunday could be fatal to any chance of being crowned the Super Bowl champion.
Prediction: New England 27 Philadelphia 24
Fans in Hays can prepare for the big game by joining KFHS Station Manager and DJ, Boomer Sabata, and The Penalty Box radio show live from Tiger Burgers on Superbowl Sunday. KFHS and The Penalty Box will be live from 3 – 5 p.m.