What's your early Super Bowl LXI pick? Jeremy Fowler, national NFL reporter: Rams over Broncos. Los Angeles matched up with Seattle as well as anyone last season and will be back to finish the job. The Matthew Stafford-Sean McVay connection is improving with age. The secondary was a weakness late in the season, so expect the Rams to address that issue for roster balance.
Now that the dust has settled on the 2025 NFL season, NFL Media's Nick Shook ranked all 63 quarterbacks who started at least one game last year based on how they played during the regular season *AND* playoffs. Shook's list of quarterbacks who made at least one (1) start is a doozy and features seven different tiers. However, one name stands out (to me) above the rest - and it is Caleb Williams.
The crowd inside Gillette Stadium, as it would be for some much more important home games in January, went absolutely berserk. It was a sign of things to come for Henderson, who as the Patriots' speed compliment to running back Rhamondre Stevenson in the backfield, is uncatchable when he finds so much as a crease. He scored touchdowns on four runs of 50-plus yards this season, which is tied for the most by a rookie in NFL history.
Not only did she cite stats and reasoning behind her decision, but she put fellow analyst and Stafford's friend, Dan Orlovsky, to shame. Although he tried to argue immediately that she was wrong, Kimes didn't stutter and spoke the truth, even though most voters wouldn't have chosen the most qualified candidate and would have gone with whoever they felt had the least chance of winning it again.
The wide receiver has played out of his mind this season. He roasts every defensive coverage and has morphed into a three-level threat: beating man-coverage quickly off the snap, showing fearlessness to attack the middle of the field and stretching away from deep coverage. Klint Kubiak, the Seahawks' offensive coordinator, has channeled the entire Seattle offense through his star receiver. Smith-Njigba lines up everywhere: out wide, in the slot, in the backfield. From any of those looks, he's a matchup nightmare.
He probably feels a lot like Peyton Manning did 10 years ago when his arm was hanging by a thread and the Denver Broncos beat Carolina 24-10 in Super Bowl 50 at Levi's. Or Tom Brady in Super Bowl 53 when the New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3. How about Terry Bradshaw (9 of 14, 86 yards) for Pittsburgh in a 16-6 win over Minnesota in Super Bowl 9?
