With 30 teams gone, Seattle and New England enter Santa Clara with a shot of Super Bowl validation, and their roads show how unique one’s path can be to the throne.

For Seattle, Mike MacDonald’s unit was heavily doubted before the year started. Stagnant and middle of the pack for years on end, the Seahawks made a bold move to get the newly revitalized Sam Darnold in the offseason, which was exactly what they needed.

Darnold himself has been excellent this year, with over 400 passing yards in two playoff games and no interceptions, he’s been playing with fire before the biggest game of his life. His receiving core is excellent, with superstar Jaxon Smith-Njigba being the main star with almost 1800 receiving yards in the regular season. Cooper Kupp and AJ Barner are his other primary targets, both with over 500 yards receiving.

Kenneth Walker III is their 1000 yard rusher, able to break through gaps with ease. Their second man in Zach Charbonnet is out though, and that is a big blow to their rushing attack considering his 700 yard year in the regular season.

Seattle’s offensive line is solid but spotty, but guard Gary Zubel leads an offensive line that is good in both pass and rush protection, which is very much needed with the explosive power of the Seahawks offense.

Their defense has been elite, and leading tackler Ernest Jones is their leader in the linebacking core with 124 tackles and leads the team in interceptions as well with five. The ends in Demarcus Lawrence and Leonard Williams have been having great seasons with seven and six sacks respectively. Uchenna Nwosu has had a colder stretch in the postseason, but is their leading sacker of the regular season at seven. Byron Murphy II is the man in the middle of the D-line, and he has six sacks.

The secondary has some real killers too, with Coby Bryant and Ty Okada combining for five interceptions playing deep as safeties. A combination of Riq Woolen and Josh Jobe man the corners and have been playing well this postseason.

Special teams is where this team can really strike down their opponents, with the speed of Rashid Shaheed, George Holani, and Dareke Young combining for over 100 yards in kickoff returns, and Shaheed stealing the show with two receiving touchdowns.

Seattle’s had a tough schedule this year with being in the NFC West, which had two other contenders in San Francisco and Los Angeles.While their playoff encounter with San Francisco was nothing to write home about, their trilogy against the Rams have become legend already, with Darnold’s journey from bust to star being one game away.

The Patriots on the other hand had a rough time since 2019, falling to the back of the pack last year with no signs of slowing down. They were 4-13 for the second straight year, they just fired their head coach in Jerrod Mayo and put in Mike Vrabel in an attempt to build for the future. Their new head coach molded them back into a giant overnight, now here they are.

Drake “Drake Maye” Maye has become an MVP contender thanks to returning offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ hand, but the young star has a lot of weapons to support him as well. With over 4000 yards in passing and a tendency to scramble, Maye can burn you both ways effectively.

Stefon Diggs has had a resurgence of a season with over 1000 yards receiving. Hunter Henry, Kayshon Boote, Mack Hollins, and Demario Douglas have also been crucial passing weapons for Maye, all over 400 yards.

The running game features a Rhamondre Stevenson that can explode and has lost his fumbling woes, while rookie TreVeyon Henderson can go and stay going. Maye too can run, and while his 450 yards are no Josh Allen, he can surprise defenses.

Top Pick Will Campbell mans an offensive line that while spotty, does its job well enough to allow Maye to throw, and their runners to run. While not the best, this ability is crucial for a young team like New England to get their momentum going.

Their defense is one of the best out there, with top corner Christian Gonzalez being the main star. While he didn’t have an interception until the Texans game, he still is crucial for the Pats success with his ability to play the ball well. Jaylinn Hawkins and Craig Woodson are the safeties that cover strongly, andCarlton Davis III and Marcus Jones join Gonzalez as the regular corners. A lack of turnovers has plagued this secondary until the playoffs, where they have had six in three games compared to 19 in 17 games during the regular season.

Their defensive line too is critical, with Milton Williams being the primary end and Christian Baremore being the man in the middle, both with multiple sacks on the year. Their main sack getters however are Harold Landry III, who is questionable for the Super Bowl, and K’Lavion Chaisson, one of the many free agent pickups for the Pats.

Last but not least, Marcus Jones has been as electric as Shaheed in returning, being able to get two returns to the house in the regular season.

Concerns of a weak schedule for New England have quickly been washed away thanks to strong showings against three of the top five defenses in the league. They played who was in front of them, and beat them all with pure football.

Both of these two teams have been playing with house money all season long, but have far from lucked their way into this Super Bowl. Two gunslinging quarterbacks, two coaches making their debut on this stage, and fanbases who never forgot the contest in the desert between these two teams 11 years ago.

The way this matchup is shaping up to be is a matchup between two teams that are built similarly and are even in a lot of ways. Two very dynamic offenses that can torch defenses in a moment’s notice, defenses that can stop even the best offenses from getting hot, and special teams that can change the game on a dime.

While Seattle on paper seems like the better team, the Patriots historically have never been the team to underestimate. With that being said, the Seahawks have a bit of an advantage considering the receiving core, the better turnovers ratio and the better form as of late. If Maye can get going, expect a close one that can go either way. If not, the Seahawks could cruise to a victory, as long as they keep the foot on the throat.

This Super Bowl is one that is very unpredictable and one where both teams can be really loose considering they both have little to lose. While most of America roots for Seattle, there should be a very good game this year in Santa Clara between two young teams that are more excited than nervous.