The New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks have been here before. In fact, this would be the 10th time the two teams have squared off at the Super Bowl. However, neither of the two quarterbacks, Sam Darnold nor Drake Maye, has any clue what they are in for on February 8.
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The Super Bowl has been unpredictable in recent history. The AFC and the NFC have gone 8-8 throughout the last 16 matchups, and the underdog has managed to cover Las Vegas’ magic number six times in the last 10 years. This highlights the uncertainty that both of these signal callers will face next Sunday.
According to Cam Newton, however, the fact that we are going to have a “virgin winner” at the signal-calling position is exactly what makes this year’s Super Bowl so special.
“We’re not going to have a blue blood type of dynamic,” the former Carolina Panther exclaimed during the latest episode of his 4th & 1 podcast.
“I’m happy for Sam, and I’m happy for Drake. What I will tell them is, you cannot approach this game like it is normal, because it’s not,” Newton advised.
“Halftime is longer, and when you’re typically used to trying to go in and have 15 minutes, you’ve got close to an hour where you’re off for the festivities… The hype around it for a full two weeks is going to be nonstop… Find your normalcy the best way you know how,” he explained.
Just because they are the main figures in the latest chapter of what is now a storied Super Bowl rivalry, and they have had amazing regular seasons, doesn’t mean that they can be sure about the outcome.
After all, Maye’s passing totals have done nothing but dwindle as he got deeper into the playoffs. Darnold, meanwhile, threw the third-most interceptions in the league this year(14). That stat continues to hang over the Seahawks QB’s head.
Another factor at play is that both the Seahawks and the Patriots rank inside the top three in terms of scoring defense. Seattle has allowed the fewest points of any team this year. So the two signal callers will have their work cut out for them. And the oddsmakers appear to be predicting the same as well.
Seattle is currently being listed as -4.5 favorites, and the point total for this year’s Super Bowl has been set at 45.5 points. This makes it the lowest number that sportsbooks have offered on any Super Bowl game since Newton’s Panthers took on Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos in 2016. We still may be in for an instant classic, just don’t expect an absolute barn burner.
