Super Bowl 2015: Stat Predictions for Game's Key Players

Super Bowl stat projections don't tend to matter going in, but boy do we remember them going out for the game's biggest names. Big Super Bowl performances leave lasting images and make careers.

Bleacher Report takes a look at some statistical projections of the game's brightest stars, including physical marvels Marshawn Lynch, Rob Gronkowski and LeGarrette Blount. Of course, we also look at the quarterbacks who have already written some Super Bowl history for themselves, Russell Wilson and Tom Brady.

We even give some love to a pair of defenders, Darrelle Revis and Richard Sherman. We would be remiss to leave that marquee cornerback duel out of the discussion.

In addition to player-by-player stat projections and analysis, we also give you some of the player props posted by Las Vegas, including game MVP, first player to score a touchdown and most popular over/under totals on yards and touchdowns. After all, those are why we would care about the numbers, right?

RB Marshawn Lynch, Seattle Seahawks

Projection: 22 carries for 85 yards and a touchdown, two catches for 15 yards

The quarterbacks get all the hype, but "Beast Mode" is the player who might be the most important figure in the game. You can run the ball on the New England Patriots, as the Justin Forsett and the Baltimore Ravens proved.

If the Pats were to limit Lynch's effectiveness, they would have a much better shot at winning the game. The Seahawks boast the NFL's No. 1 rushing offense and Lynch won't come off the field in a tight game.

Lynch is the Las Vegas favorite to score the game's first touchdown.

Lynch Props

Which player will score the game's first touchdown:

1. Marshawn Lynch (SEA) RB 11-2
2. Rob Gronkowski (NE) TE 13-2
3. LeGarrette Blount (NE) RB 9-1
4. Julian Edelman (NE) WR 10-1
5. Doug Baldwin (SEA) WR 12-1
6. Brandon LaFell (NE) WR 12-1
7. Russell Wilson (SEA) QB 12-1
8. Jermaine Kearse (SEA) WR 14-1
9. Shane Vereen (NE) RB 16-1
10. Luke Willson (SEA) TE 16-1
11. Danny Amendola (NE) WR 20-1
12. Ricardo Lockette (SEA) WR 20-1
13. Timothy Wright (NE) TE 20-1
14. Robert Turbin (SEA) RB 25-1
15. Brandon Bolden (NE) RB 30-1
16. Jonas Gray (NE) RB 30-1
17. Cooper Helfet (SEA) TE 30-1
18. Tom Brady (NE) QB 35-1
19. Tony Moeaki (SEA) TE 40-1
20. Kevin Norwood (SEA) WR 40-1
21. James Devlin (NE) FB 50-1
22. Michael Hoomanawanui (NE) TE 50-1
23. Christine Michael (SEA) RB 50-1
24. Will Tukuafu (SEA) FB 50-1
25. Field 15-2
26. No TD scored in the game 125-1

Total rushing yards: Over/under 92.5

Will Lynch score a TD in the game? Yes -200 / No +160

TE Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots

Projection: Seven catches for 110 yards and a touchdown

Beast Mode might be the single most important player in the Super Bowl, but Gronk is the most unstoppable/indefensible. Sure, you can bracket him with Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas, perhaps, but that is a lot of attention to pay one player on a Bill Belichick team.

Overcompensating for Gronk will open up too much of the Patriots offense. You almost have to let him have his numbers over the middle and in the short game and just contain him from taking over entirely.

The Seahawks gave up 11 touchdown receptions to tight ends this season, the third-most in fantasy, per FFToday.com. We expect Gronk will have a performance like the one he had against the Ravens: 7-108-1.

Gronk Props

Total receiving yards: Over/under 72.5

Will Gronk score a TD in the game? Yes -170 / No +140

QB Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks

Projection: 225 yards passing, two touchdowns and 45 yards rushing

Wilson directs the NFL's sixth-worst passing offense, but that ranking is affected by the quality of the rushing attack and the fact that the Seahawks defense dictates the game's tempo. We should assume Wilson will have to do a lot more than he usually has to do against the weak quarterbacks of the NFC West.

Tom Brady and the Pats, while not an offensive juggernaut, have a way of dictating tempo, too. They are also less likely to get blown out the way Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos did, because they just play a lot closer to the vest, which tends to lead to fewer big mistakes.  

Wilson is going to need to have a performance closer to his fourth-quarter and overtime self he showed against the Green Bay Packers.

Wilson Props 

Total passing yards: Over/under 219.5

Total rushing yards: Over/under 40.5

Will Wilson score a rushing TD in the game? Yes +220 / No -280 

Total TD passes: 

• 0: 5-2
• 1: 3-2
• 2: 13-5
• 3: 5-1
• 4 or more: 12-1

QB Tom Brady, New England Patriots

Projection: 250 yards and two touchdowns

The Seahawks' "Legion of Boom" is the NFL's No. 1 pass defense, allowing just 185.6 yards passing per game in the 2014 regular season. That number is certainly skewed by the mediocre NFC West quarterbacks they play against, but they also limited Aaron Rodgers to 178 yards passing and one touchdown in the NFC Championship Game.

Chalk that up to circumstance. The Packers were leading the entire way. When they had to open it up on their final drive of regulation, they were able to do so. We expect Brady to hit 250 yards, especially if the Seahawks overcompensate to defend Gronk.

That wouldn't be the LOB way, though. So expect Brady and Gronk to get theirs throughout and Brady to take the underneath stuff to attack the better matchups in the short and intermediate game. Brady is the Las Vegas choice for MVP, even if we list him as the fourth-most statistically significant player in this slideshow.

Brady Props

Odds to Win Super Bowl XLIX MVP:

1. Tom Brady 8-5
2. Russell Wilson 7-2
3. Marshawn Lynch 4-1
4. Rob Gronkowski 9-1
5. LeGarrette Blount 12-1
6. Julian Edelman 25-1
7. Doug Baldwin 33-1
8. Richard Sherman 33-1
9. Kam Chancellor 33-1
10. Darrelle Revis 33-1
11. Earl Thomas 40-1
12. Jermaine Kearse 50-1
13. Bobby Wagner 50-1
14. Jamie Collins 50-1
15. Brandon LaFell 66-1
16. Shane Vereen 66-1
17. K.J. Wright 75-1
18. Danny Amendola 75-1
19. Luke Willson 100-1
20. Rob Ninkovich 100-1
21. Dont'a Hightower 100-1
22. Patrick Chung 100-1
23. Devin McCourty 100-1
24. Stephen Gostkowski 100-1
25. Steven Hauschka 100-1
26. Malcolm Smith 100-1
27. Byron Maxwell 100-1
28. Field 25-1

Total passing yards: Over/under 260.5

Total TD passes:

• 0: 7-2
• 1: 11-5
• 2: 5-2
• 3: 3-1
• 4 or more: 7-1

RB LeGarrette Blount, New England Patriots

Projection: 17 rushes for 70 yards and a touchdown

Sure, the Legion of Boom is tough to attack downfield with the pass, but Blount might have the most unfavorable matchup of all. The Seattle Seahawks have the NFL's third-best run defense.

The last time the Pats faced such a stiff front, it didn't go so well. They rushed for just 14 yards on 13 attempts in the divisional playoffs against the Baltimore Ravens, the league's No. 4 run defense. Blount was limited to just one yard on three carries in that game.

Chalk that up to rust from the end of the regular season and the wild-card off week, a banged-up Blount and a bad game plan. You beat a great defense by running right at it. Expect the Pats to be stubborn with the run, even if they aren't great at it. 

As we outlined in prior sides, Blount is the fifth choice in Las Vegas to win Super Bowl MVP honors and the third choice to score the game's first touchdown.

Blount Props

Total rushing yards: Over/under 62.5

WR Julian Edelman, New England Patriots

Projection: Six catches for 70 yards

If you are going to attack the Seahawks' Legion of Boom, you don't tend to do it on the outside or deep downfield. You take what they give you, which tends to be the underneath stuff, so they can come up, hit you, cause turnovers and make your day miserable.

Edelman is used to that stuff. We will see how much he can hack it against this defense, though. It should be noted, we came up with the above projection before looking at the Las Vegas line on him. Edelman's stat props look like ones we wouldn't touch. Las Vegas has them on the money.

It should be reminded from the previous slides, though, Edelman is the fourth pick to score the game's first touchdown and the sixth choice for MVP. He is important, even if he isn't one of the sexier names on the board.

Edelman Props

Total receiving yards: Over/under 67.5

Total receptions: Over/under 6

CB Darrelle Revis, New England Patriots

Elsa/Getty Images

Projections: One interception and three tackles 

Defensive players are not usually stat hogs, but Revis is not an ordinary defender. He might tally some numbers in this one. He is tied for the seventh choice to be named game MVP by Las Vegas oddsmakers. 

It should be noted, Russell Wilson threw four interceptions in the NFC Championship Game at home. Revis, Brandon Browner and free safety Devin McCourty are far stiffer tests than the Green Bay Packers secondary. The Seahawks are more of a play-action passing team, so if the Pats cannot take away the running game, it might force the secondary to be more aggressive upfield.

Revis is going to have an impact in this game, especially since the potential offseason free agent might feel this is his one and only shot at a Super Bowl. He has millions on the line with a big performance, a great motivator.

Revis Props

Total interceptions: Over 0.5 (+275) / Under 0.5 (-350)

CB Richard Sherman, Seattle Seahawks

Projections: No interceptions and three tackles

We gave Revis a nod as a notable stats-maker, so we had to have Sherman in here, too. The difference is we don't expect Bill Belichick to allow Sherman to beat them.

The Pats tend to be all about the matchups and Sherman stays on one side of the field (the defensive left and offensive right). Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels should be able to scheme Sherman out of the game.

The silver lining is whether they might consider going to Gronk one-on-one with Sherman by spreading the Y end wide right. That would be something to see. It is theater so potentially good, we probably won't be so fortunate to see it. 

Sherman Props

Total interceptions: Over 0.5 (+200) / Under 0.5 (-250)

WR Doug Baldwin, Seattle Seahawks

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

Projections: Three catches for 35 yards and no touchdowns

Baldwin is a good receiver, not a great one. Most can agree on that. Seeing him get the better of Darrelle Revis, the cover corner who tends to take away the New England Patriots opponents' best threat, has to be considered a long shot.

Baldwin is the fifth choice to score the game's first touchdown and tied for the seventh choice to be MVP. It would be some dramatic irony for him to get the game's top honors amid the public spats he has had with the media about the disrespect for the Seahawks receivers. It is equally unlikely, especially with Revis expected to be used to take him away.

Baldwin Props

Total receiving yards: Over/under 54.5

All statistical prop bet information is courtesy of OddsShark.com.

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Eric Mack, one of the giants among fantasy writers, is the Fantasy Football Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter, where you can ask him endless questions about your team, rip him for his content and even challenge him to a head-to-head fantasy game.