Achieving the impossible, following a pandemic, the NFL has blessed us with an incredible match-up we will be fortunate enough to watch on February 7, 2021 to cap off one of the most atypical years in history. Tom Brady will be playing in his 10th Super Bowl, gunning for his 7th victory, while Patrick Mahomes--the reigning Super Bowl MVP-- is one game away from running it back; something nobody has been able to accomplish since Brady back in New England (2003-2004). Both teams are loaded on the offensive side of the ball, which will most likely result in a high-scoring affair, however after taking a deeper look at each offense in its entirety, there are several aspects left to be dealt with.
Beginning with Tampa Bay, when teams have been able to get consistent pressure on Brady throughout the course of a game, he has looked very average this season. The offensive line has looked great throughout their three playoff games this season and will need to maintain that success, as Chris Jones and Frank Clark have said publicly that they will be flying off the line of scrimmage with the mindset of getting #12 on the ground as fast as possible.
Moreover, Brady needs to be much more careful with the football against Kansas City than he was against Green Bay, as they will capitalize with touchdowns as opposed to Green Bay’s field goals. Brady threw three interceptions in just the second half of the game at Lambeau, and was fortunate enough that his defense played outstanding that afternoon, as if he turns the ball over at an alarming rate on Suday, he will single-handedly lose his team the Super Bowl. The Cheifs are too disciplined to give extra possessions, as Mahomes (unlike Rodgers and the Packers) will capitalize with gut-punching touchdowns rather than field goals.
Moving on to the visiting team, if the Chiefs pass rush does not get home and get home early, their defense will suffer in a long, dragged out game. Brady will pick their torchable secondary apart, as Kansas City does not have a single corner that can guard Mike Evans or Chris Godwin. The key for the Chiefs will be for Tyrann Mathieu to have a huge game, force Brady into quick three-and-outs, and pressure him to throw unnecessary interceptions.
Furthermore, on the offensive side of the ball, despite their incredible weapons in Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce, the Cheifs will be missing three starting offensive linemen which will give that ferocious Tampa pass rush a huge advantage. Mahomes will most likely be pressured almost every other play considering how depleted their offensive line is, so it will be up to him and his legs and overall pocket presence to get out of harm and make difficult, on-the-move throws, something he is well-capable of doing.
My Prediction: I am predicting a high-scoring game, as I do not believe the Chiefs defense is very good and although the Buccaneers defense has been hot of late, Mahomes and that offense are too explosive to manage for an entire four quarters. Something sports analyst Skip Bayless has said in the past and continues to say is that there is one man in sports he does not bet against and that is Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (Tom Brady). Unfortunately for Skip, I am taking the Cheifs in a close one (30-28) as I believe Brady will make a couple bad decisions that will result in two turnovers and I do not believe the Buccaneers defense will have an answer for either Travis Kelce or Tyreek Hill. If I had to guess specifics, I chose (30-28) as the score because I believe Mahomes will lead a game-winning drive down (27-28) resulting in a clutch Harrison Butker game-winning field goal to seal the Super Bowl LV victory.