2015 Super Bowl Predictions: Still Curtain Weighs In
The Super Bowl will be upon us shortly, and so far it’s been a week full of DeflateGate and not much else.
So let’s talk about the game itself, ok?
There are lots of stories leading up to this game – Will Russell Wilson out sling Tom Brady? Will LeGarrette Blount continue his playoff romps down the field. Will Brady challenge Seahawks top corner Richard Sherman? How much gum will Pete Carroll go through? Will Bill Belichick crack a smile? Will Marshawn Lynch actually speak what’s on his mind if he is interviewed for winning the Super Bowl MVP?
Only watching the game will reveal the answers to those questions. But, that can’t mean speculating and predicting the hell out of this bonanza. So with that, I charged the rest of the Still Curtain staff to give their game predictions with a little bit of analysis to go with it.
Enjoy, and feel free to weigh in yourself in the comments section.
Levi Combs
Seahawks 27, Patriots 20
The Seahawks just seem to have what it takes to win these big games, no matter the scenario. They are experienced in the Super Bowl, their defense is playing lights out. Gronkowski will cause some trouble. But, Brady hasn’t won a Super Bowl in 10 years. His road to the Super Bowl has been easier than the Seahawks this postseason.
Brendan Driscoll
Seahawks 27, Patriots 21
Being from New England the last thing I need is the Patriots to win their fourth Super Bowl. That is not a world I want to live in. While I am nervous that Deflategate could help motivate the Pats, I think the Seahawks dodged a bullet against the Packers.
To draw a comparison to New England sports, as former Red Sox great Kevin Millar said when the Red Sox were down 3-0 in the 2004 ALCS to the Yankees, “Don’t let us win today.”
Unfortunately for this New England team, that’s exactly what the Packers did for the Seahawks in the NFC championship. I believe that the Seahawks are the best team in the NFL and two weeks ago they played their worst game (at least for 3 quarters). Somehow they won and hopefully they will have momentum come Sunday.
Jason Brichta
Seattle
The Patriots will probably approach this game in a similar fashion to the Baltimore game, facing a stout defense against the run and pass. Seattle relies on forcing offenses into passing situations, and tees off on opposing quarterbacks because of the capable secondary. Baltimore does the same, except the Ravens secondary this year was not even close to the group in Seattle. The Patriots were able to drive at will midway in the 3rd quarter until the end of the game.
The Patriots never even called a running play in the fourth quarter against Baltimore, and only called 10 rushing plays total. I don’t believe the Patriots have enough confidence in their running game to stick with it. That means Tom Brady will drop back 40-50 times again, and that plays right into what the Seahawks hope for. Teams just don’t move up and down the field against the Seahawks.
The bottom line: Russell Wilson had the worst game of his starting career against Green Bay, and Seattle’s defense kept them in it against arguably the best offense in football. I just don’t see that happening again.
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Kimmy Myers
Seahawks 42, Patriots 14
I’m going to say the Seahawks win in similar fashion to last year. The Patriots have to play with fully inflated balls knowing they’re fully inflated and Brady never gets into a rhythm. The Seattle defense suffocates the pocket and Brady just can’t recover. Giselle throws epic tantrum in the owner’s box and gets kicked out. Richard Sherman says something even more obnoxious than anything he’s ever said before at the podium while receiving the MVP award.
And the halftime show will suck like nothing has ever sucked before.
But I’m making chili so I’m excited for it :).
Craig Gottschalk
Seahawks 21, Patriots 19
Distractions? What distractions. Both teams are ready and prepared. If the Pats lose (and they will), I don’t want to hear one word about DeflateGate being a distraction to the teams preparation. Great teams can tune that stuff out.
The Patriots will rely heavily on Tom Brady’s arm to win this game despite LeGarrette Blount’s playoff running success, which will ultimately be the downfall of the Pats chances to win their fourth Super Bowl and chalk up a third straight loss in the big game. The Seattle secondary is just too good. The Legion of Boom is returning for their second straight Super Bowl, which says so much about that team and their chances of winning.
The Seahawks will keep the Patriots to kicking four field goals on offense, but I see either a special teams TD or pick six giving them a touchdown to pull close late. The Seahawks and Russell Wilson will do what they usually do in these big games – do just enough to win.