#patriots-vs-steelers

#patriots-vs-steelers

The Patriots benefited from one of the softest schedules in recent memory. They have caught more than their fair share of breaks, from injured opponents, to generous calls from the officials, and boneheaded decisions by opposing coaches. Yes, we're looking right at you, Sean Payton. Bet you wish you had those three points you passed up on in the first quarter now, huh?

Drake Maye vs. Sam Darnold. Two stingy defenses. A second-year head coach vs. a veteran coach in his second act.Super Bowl 60 is set and it's a rematch: The New England Patriots vs. the Seattle Seahawks.The Patriots will seek their NFL-record seventh Super Bowl victory when they face the Seahawks on Feb. 8 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.

The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks faced off in Super Bowl XLIX in 2015, a memorable matchup the Patriots won 28-24. With a second-and-goal at New England's 1-yard-line late in the fourth quarter, Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson was intercepted by Malcolm Butler in one of the more shocking Super Bowl moments. The Seahawks did not reach the Super Bowl since that matchup until this season.

No, ESPN does not hate the Patriots. Wait, check that for a second. Rex Ryan definitely hates the Patriots. Give him some grace on that. The man coached the Jets for six years. You have no idea what that does to the soul. Some might also add Cam Newton to the Patriot Haters Club, since he seems to have a terrible take on something going on in Foxborough every time he appears on "First Take" or its ilk.

He was selected by the Patriots in the fourth round of the 2019 draft and started a grand total of zero games for them. There were some mitigating factors such as backing up Tom Brady in his first season in the NFL. But when Cam Newton came to town in 2020, he was the backup Brian Hoyer's backup so New England clearly didn't think too highly of him.

The New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. In an amazing turn of events from two disastrous 4-13 seasons under two different former coaches, Robert Kraft finally hired Mike Vrabel. In one magical offseason, he engineered a transformation for the ages, turning an NFL frog into a prince by reaching the Super Bowl. Vrabel and his young quarterback, Drake Maye, beat all the odds, and owner Robert Kraft can again stake a claim to being the best owner in the NFL.

The New England Patriots got good news on that front when it comes to Drake Maye's banged-up throwing shoulder. Lindsay Jones reported that Maye not only practiced in full on Wednesday, but took every first-team rep. That's a good sign that Maye, after taking most of last week off, will be about as close to 100 percent as possible entering his 21st game of the season.

In his second season, head coach Mike Macdonald turned a promising 10-7 debut into full control of the NFC West, earning the No. 1 seed and guiding Seattle back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2014. It happened the way Macdonald prefers: through defense, discipline, and suffocating physicality. Seattle finished the regular season with the NFL's top scoring defense, allowing just 16.4 points per game. But the numbers barely capture how oppressive this unit has been.

If Bill Belichick was willing to play to type today, he would rise in Uppermost Dudgeon-it's a suburb of Foxborough-and say he doesn't want to be voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at all, won't accept induction when it does come, and would attend the ceremony only for the privilege of telling everyone who worked to keep him out this time to eat a heaping bowl of death. Expert analysts call this "pulling a Schilling," but more on that in due time.

The Bills have obviously been one of the NFL's best and most successful teams over the last eight years, going toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC. But even though they've had a ton of regular season success, and Josh Allen has even taken home some significant hardware as the reigning MVP, they haven't been able to get over the proverbial playoff hump.