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Predicting Final Score of Super Bowl XLIX Between Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots

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The dream matchup for Super Bowl XLIX has been set. For the second year in a row, the No. 1 seed from each conference won their respective Conference Championship game, leaving the teams most pundits considered the strongest in the NFL as the final two remaining. The NFC Champion Seattle Seahawks and AFC Champion New England Patriots square off at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, the home of the NFL’s Cardinals, on Feb. 1 in what is sure to be a thrilling game.

The Seahawks enter the Super Bowl as the hottest team in the NFL, having won 11 of their last 12 contests, including the last eight in a row. Seattle’s NFC Championship victory over the Green Bay Packers proved to be the most difficult of all as the defending Super Bowl champions were forced to storm back in historic and riveting fashion.

Trailing 19-7 with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Seattle marched down the field with a drive culminating in a Russell Wilson one-yard touchdown run to narrow the Green Bay lead to five. The ensuing onside kick was botched by Packers tight end Brandon Bostick and recovered by the Seahawks, who promptly drove the length of the field to suddenly take a stunning three-point lead on a 24-yard Marshawn Lynch touchdown run. The Packers would send the game to overtime with a field goal; before Russell Wilson turned into the championship-winning quarterback we know him to be and sailed the game-ending touchdown pass to Jermaine Kearse in overtime.

The Patriots’ experience in the Conference Championship game on Sunday night could not have been any more starkly contrasting from Seattle’s. A couple miscues by Tom Brady and the New England offense in the first half kept the game close through halftime before Bill Belichick’s team blew it wide open early in the third quarter. New England’s defense stone walled the Indianapolis run game and suffocated the Colts’ wide receivers, leaving Andrew Luck with little chance to move the ball down the field. When the fourth quarter clock mercifully struck zero, the final score read Patriots 45, Colts 7.

The last time these two juggernauts met was in Seattle in 2012, a 24-23 Seahawks win. Much has changed in the two-plus years since, rendering it useless to try and take much stock out of the game. When it comes to taking a shot at guessing the result of this year’s big game, these teams both possess elite defenses and are too talented with too much experience for Super Bowl XLIX to be a blowout in either team’s favor, so that’s a start. Expect a close game throughout with a final fourth-quarter drive ultimately deciding the outcome.

Since a significantly-slow start to the season, Tom Brady seems to be on a mission. The future Hall of Fame quarterback is now 37 and must realize he doesn’t have many shots at a Super Bowl victory remaining. The Patriots defense is probably the team’s best of at least the past decade and capitalizing on this seemingly narrowing championship window is what Brady has his sights set on. With cornerback Darrelle Revis solidifying the defense and a healthy Rob Gronkowski for Brady to pass to, I expect New England will be too much for even the defending Super Bowl champions to handle.

When Marshawn Lynch is unable to gash defenses and power his way forward for big chunks of yards at a time, the Seattle offense sputters. If the Patriots and their stout run defense can contain Lynch and not allow the running back to activate “Beast Mode” like I expect New England will be able to do, all the pressure will be on Russell Wilson and the Seahawks’ receivers to win the game. With a struggling offensive line and a significant lack of weapons in the passing game, counting on Wilson to lead the team to victory through the air is not something Head Coach Pete Carroll should confidently count on.

Tom Brady and the Patriots’ creative offense will ultimately be able to score enough points to squeak out a narrow win, even against the historically-stubborn Seahawks defense. Belichick and Brady will cement their Hall of Fame status with Super Bowl XLIX as one of the final stamps on the legendary duo’s incredible career together.

Final Score:

Patriots  - 23

Seahawks – 17

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