The Buccaneers will overcome the odds
While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are considered the underdogs of the Super Bowl, I believe they are most likely to win the Big Game this year.
First of all, the Bucs have beaten expectations repeatedly. Heading into the regular season, Bleacher Report predicted the Bucs would win only ten games the regular season, but they went on to win 11.
As a mere No. 5 seed going into the playoffs, not many people expected them to get very far. Indeed, wild card teams haven’t fared too well in recent years: The National Football Conference has only sent one wild card to the Super Bowl in the last 10 years, and the last wild card to make it even to the NFC championship game was the 2013 San Francisco 49ers.
Even after a strong road win against the Washington Football Team in the wild card game, the Bucs were far from favorites to make a Super Bowl run. Nevertheless, they earned a decisive 30-20 comeback win on the road against the Saints, who had beaten them during both meetings in the regular season, including a 38-3 rout in week 10.
Most recently, the Bucs overcame the odds by beating MVP-favorite Aaron Rodgers and the No.1 seed Green Bay Packers by more than a touchdown — and never trailed during the game.
This wild card team has now won eight road games in a row and is headed to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2003.
Wild card teams that make it this far usually don’t falter in the big game. The 2012 Ravens, the 2011 Giants, and the 2010 Packers, the last three wild card teams to make it to the Super Bowl, all walked away with Lombardi trophies despite the odds against them.
Tampa now faces another daunting foe: the defending-champion Kansas City Chiefs. While I believe Mahomes will keep it a close game, the Chiefs lack one critical ingredient to success: the G.O.A.T., quarterback Tom Brady.
This is Brady’s tenth Super Bowl appearance. He has already won a record six Super Bowls in his 21 seasons in the league. In just one year, he has led this Buccaneers team from a lackluster 7-9 team that hadn’t been to the playoffs in over a decade to NFC champions. His leadership and experience equip him for the chance to bring the Bucs to victory on Sunday.
Finally, even though Brady has not been an underdog during most of his career, spectators should recall his first Super Bowl victory in Super Bowl XXXVI. As a 24-year-old just off the bench, Brady made history by winning 20-17 and gaining his first of four Super Bowl MVPs despite being a 14-point underdog.
It’s time for Brady to break the odds again.
Josh Newhook is a sophomore studying English and German. He is an assistant editor for the Collegian.
The Chiefs will be back-to-back champs
After a 50-year hiatus from the Super Bowl, the Kansas City Chiefs are built to become the first back-to-back-champions since the New England Patriots of 2005.
Standing between the Chiefs and the Super Bowl trophy is a familiar face on a strange team for sports fans: quarterback Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Despite Tampa Bay’s advantage of playing on their home field, the Chiefs can beat Tom Brady and the Bucs.
Tampa Bay has inexperienced cornerbacks and safeties, with the oldest starter in just his third season in the National Football League.
Meanwhile, with Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman, and Travis Kelce, Kansas City has one of the strongest wide receiving corps in the league.
Just last week, Hill and Kelce both set franchise records, with Hill recording 172 receiving yards and Kelce recording 13 receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
With Frank Clark amassing seven and a half sacks and Chris Jones with six sacks this season, the Chiefs have a strong defensive line that has consistently created pressure. And Brady doesn’t perform well when pressured up the middle.
All this skill, and I haven’t yet mentioned Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the 2018 NFL MVP and last year’s Super Bowl MVP.
In the AFC championship, Mahomes threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns against the Buffalo Bills, seemingly unhindered by his concussion and ankle injury.
The Buccaneers beat the Green Bay Packers last week, but the Bucs looked beatable, especially in the third and fourth quarter when Brady threw three straight interceptions.
The Chiefs’ offense is designed to capitalize on errors, using their speed to erase deficits and build leads within a quarter.
Brady has been one of the greatest QBs of all time, and he has elevated the Buccaneers to a level they haven’t reached since 2002. But Mahomes and his electric offense will pressure Brady to keep up in a shootout, and the Chiefs defense will knock Brady off his game enough to win Kansas City another Super Bowl.
Luke Morey is a sophomore studying history.