Patriots vs. Seahawks: Who Has the Edge at Each Position in Super Bowl XLIX?
Super Bowl XLIX is set, with the New England Patriots preparing to battle the Seattle Seahawks for the right to raise the Lombardi Trophy.
And now that we know the two teams tangoing for a title, we can begin to break down the positional matchups to give ourselves a better idea of which team might emerge victorious.
While the headlining positional battles are clearly at quarterback (if Tom Brady vs. Russell Wilson doesn't do it for you, you probably stumbled onto this column by accident) and cornerback (what needs to be said other than Richard Sherman vs. Darrelle Revis?), other matchups will unquestionably help decide the Super Bowl champion.
In this column, we'll examine each individual position and determine which team—the Patriots or the Seahawks—has the edge in Super Bowl XLIX.
Quarterback
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Super Bowl XLIX features an epic matchup of signal-callers: New England's Tom Brady and Seattle's Russell Wilson. For the first time since Super Bowl XLVI (Brady vs. Eli Manning), both starting quarterbacks will have already won at least one Super Bowl (Brady has three, Wilson has one).
Brady is the epitome of the "old guard"—while his level of play remains elite, he's clearly in the twilight of his career at age 37—while Wilson, 26, is the living, breathing manifestation of the "new guard"—in Year 3, he already has a world championship under his belt.
Brady had a spectacular regular season, tossing 33 touchdown passes against only nine interceptions, and threw six touchdown passes in two playoff games this month. He's clearly motivated to win his first Super Bowl since the 2004 season, and one more championship would tie him with Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana for the most Lombardi Trophies (four) won by a starting quarterback.
Meanwhile, Wilson is trying to secure his second Super Bowl title in only three seasons, and while he was positively brutal for the vast majority of last Sunday's NFC Championship Game (14-of-29 passing, one touchdown pass against four interceptions), he turned it on late—as has become his wont—and wrestled victory from the jaws of defeat.
While both quarterbacks are absolute superstars, it's impossible to give Wilson the edge over the more experienced Brady. Plus, Brady has the extra motivation in knowing that this could be his last chance at Super Bowl glory.
Edge: Patriots
Running Back
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Come on. Did you really expect to see a picture of anyone other than Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch above this breakdown?
Lynch—the artist affectionately known as "Beast Mode"—is one of the best backs in the NFL and could be putting the finishing touches on a Hall of Fame resume. He was at his violent best in the NFC Championship Game against Green Bay, toting the rock 25 times for 157 yards and a touchdown, pulverizing Packers defenders with sheer brutality.
The Patriots roll out a three-headed monster at running back, with LeGarrette Blount, Shane Vereen and Jonas Gray taking turns carrying the ball. After a rollicking performance in the AFC Championship Game (30 carries, 148 yards, three touchdowns), Blount appears to be the feature back, but one can never be quite sure in a Bill Belichick-coached offense, and no Patriots running back carried the ball more than 100 times on the season.
Blount and Vereen represent a solid one-two punch, but Lynch is the star of this particular show.
Edge: Seahawks
Wide Receiver
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As far as pop and sizzle at the wide-receiver position is concerned, this is the least exciting championship matchup since the Giants and Ravens hooked up in Super Bowl XXXV.
Both teams boast talent at the position, but neither the Patriots nor Seahawks possess a superstar pass-catcher. The closest player to that lofty standing is New England's Julian Edelman, who caught 92 passes this season. The Patriots also roll out Brandon LaFell and Danny Amendola to complete a solid (if unspectacular) receiving corps.
As for Seattle, the receiving corps thinned out a bit with the midseason trade of the mercurial Percy Harvin, but it still contains reliable options. In fact, it's as if Seattle's receivers are a carbon copy of the pass-catchers that the Patriots employed at the start of the Brady/Belichick era, as players like Doug Baldwin, Jermaine Kearse and Ricardo Lockette take turns making plays.
While neither corps is flashy, both get the job done. And because the Patriots have the best individual option (Edelman), we'll give New England the slight edge here.
Edge: Patriots
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Tight End
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Gronk catch! Gronk score! Gronk spike! Gronk give New England the edge at tight end!
But seriously, how could anyone not give the edge to the Patriots when it comes to tight ends? They employ the NFL's single-best tight end, Rob Gronkowski. The Seahawks could sign an amalgamation of Kellen Winslow Sr. and Tony Gonzalez, and New England would still probably take the cake.
Gronkowski is a freak of nature, a rare combination of size and speed that keeps opposing defensive coordinators awake at night. He hauled in 82 receptions and 12 touchdown catches this year and is also effective as a blocker. And his backup, Tim Wright, is no slouch, either.
While the Seahawks have a decent option in Luke Willson, he's not Gronkowski. And while that's certainly not an insult to Willson, it's also the reason why the Patriots have the clear edge at tight end.
Edge: Patriots
Offensive Line
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Early in the season, New England's offensive line was one of the most maligned units in the NFL, especially after being manhandled in Week 4's emphatic loss at Kansas City.
From that point forward, the group rebounded nicely, with the team settling on a lineup of Sebastian Vollmer (RT), Ryan Wendell (RG), Bryan Stork (C), Dan Connolly (LG) and Nate Solder (LT). The Patriots ended up allowing only 26 sacks on the season, and the blocking was much better down the stretch. Plus, Solder scored a receiving touchdown in the AFC Championship Game, and offensive linemen scoring touchdowns is always fun.
For Seattle, the Seahawks unit is solid if not spectacular, spearheaded by left tackle Russell Okung and center Max Unger (Pro Football Focus' fourth-ranked center). While it consistently opens up holes for running back Marshawn Lynch, the pass protection can falter at times, with the unit having allowed 42 sacks in the regular season and seven in two postseason games (compared to only three for New England in its two postseason games).
Both lines are solid, but the edge goes to New England due to the discrepancy in pass protection.
Edge: Patriots
Defensive End
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Last year, the Seattle Seahawks defensive line was dominant in the Super Bowl, with ends Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril tormenting Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning.
And with Avril and Bennett combining for 12 sacks in the regular season, Seattle has serious heat rushing the opposing passer. Per Pro Football Focus, Avril (second overall) and Bennett (13th) both finished the regular season as top-15 defensive ends.
For New England, defensive end Chandler Jones (who finished 2014 with a pass-rusher rating of plus-11.2, via Pro Football Focus) is the star of the show, but he has yet to record a sack in his six career postseason games. Because of Jones' lack of playoff production, there's no way the Patriots have the edge over Seattle in this category.
Edge: Seahawks
Defensive Tackle
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Not only is New England Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork an incredible football player, but the dude is also a good Samaritan. What else could you ask for? Well, a plus-15 rating for his work against the run from Pro Football Focus certainly helps as well.
Seattle has former Vikings star Kevin Williams holding down the fort alongside Tony McDaniel. Neither are world-beaters (although to be fair, Williams had a decent season, finishing as Pro Football Focus' 40th-ranked defensive tackle), and neither can match the skills (or life-saving ability) of Mr. Wilfork.
That—and Wilfork's big-game experience (this will be his fourth Super Bowl, with one title under his belt)—gives the Patriots an easy edge at defensive tackle.
Edge: Patriots
Linebacker
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Both the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks are blessed to employ significant talent at the linebacker position, which should help make Super Bowl XLIX a fun viewing experience.
The Patriots have rising superstar Jamie Collins, who was a dynamo down the stretch of the season and in the team's first two postseason games. He's joined by stud 'backer Dont'a Hightower, as well as reliable options Rob Ninkovich and Akeem Ayers.
For the Seahawks, the stars are Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright, and they also have last year's Super Bowl MVP, Malcolm Smith.
While Wagner is spectacular, an argument could easily be made that Collins and Hightower are both superior players, and that means the Patriots get the edge.
Edge: Patriots
Cornerback
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It's rare for cornerback to provide the juiciest positional matchup in a Super Bowl, but as it concerns Super Bowl XLIX between the Patriots and Seahawks, it's the unequivocal truth.
This Super Bowl will feature the two finest cornerbacks in the NFL: Seattle's Richard Sherman and New England's Darrelle Revis. Both were spectacular in 2014 (Sherman finished ranked as Pro Football Focus' third-ranked corner, and Revis finished fourth) and both picked off passes in their respective championship games. Comparing the two is like putting Mozart up against Beethoven—both are superb, and the choice will likely come down to personal preference.
So in order to decide which team merits the edge, we must look at the rest of the corps. New England trots out former Seahawk Brandon Browner, Logan Ryan and Kyle Arrington, while Seattle has Byron Maxwell, Tharold Simon and Jeremy Lane.
We prefer the Patriots options a bit more, so while the Seahawks certainly have the most bombastic corner (Sherman), New England's overall group is better.
Edge: Patriots
Safety
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It doesn't matter what team they're judged against—when it comes to the Seahawks, it's probably a safe bet to just go ahead and give them the edge at safety without even considering the opposition.
While the Patriots do possess talent at safety—most notably Devin McCourty (who was actually ranked higher than Kam Chancellor by Pro Football Focus, coming in eighth overall), Patrick Chung and Duron Harmon—Seattle employs the NFL's preeminent safety combination in Chancellor and Earl Thomas (both finished 2014 ranked as top-20 safeties, per Pro Football Focus).
Chancellor and Thomas are both absolute studs and wreak havoc on opposing offenses. Heck, just ask Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos, who learned that firsthand in last year's Super Bowl.
Giving the safety edge to the Seahawks says a lot more about Chancellor and Thomas than it does about New England's options. Chancellor and Thomas are just that good.
Edge: Seahawks
Kicker
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Both Super Bowl kickers—New England's Stephen Gostkowski and Seattle's Steven Hauschka—are excellent.
In the end, we'll give the edge to Gostkowski because he garnered better regular-season numbers. Gostkowski converted on 35-of-37 field-goal attempts while Hauschka went 31-of-37.
But the positive here is that both fanbases should feel supremely confident in their kickers if the game happens to come down to a last-second field-goal attempt, as both men have proved to be clutch over the course of their careers.
Edge: Patriots
Punter
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We suppose that we could have simply awarded this positional edge to the Seahawks based solely on punter Jon Ryan's touchdown pass off a fake field goal in the NFC Championship Game, but that's not how we roll.
Instead, we'll award it to the Seahawks because Ryan is clearly the superior option to New England's Ryan Allen. Per Pro Football Focus, Ryan finished the year as the NFL's sixth-ranked punter while Allen checked in at 31st overall—and no, that's not good.
So whether it's straight-up punting the ball or some good ol' fashioned chicanery in the form of a fake, the edge here decidedly goes to Ryan and the Seahawks.
Edge: Seahawks
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