Super Bowl LIII- The matchup nobody wanted

We could have had Drew Brees v Tom Brady in a matchup of two of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time. Or, there was Jared Goff v Patrick Mahomes, the rematch from the epic Week 11 showdown that was the most talked about and beloved game of the 2018 season. Heck, Brees v Mahomes would’ve been fine too. We didn’t get to see that matchup during the regular season and those two quarterbacks are the front-runners for the MVP so putting them on the same field in the biggest game in the sport would have been great.

But no, we don’t get any of that. Instead, we are going to be treated to yet another Brady Super Bowl appearance because that never gets old. At least when Alabama shows up every year in college, they have a whole bunch of different players, but this Patriots thing is ridiculous. This will be the Patriots fourth appearance in the Super Bowl in the last five seasons. This will be Bill Belichick and Brady’s ninth Super Bowl appearance since Brady entered the league in 2000. He’s played 19 seasons, this being the 19^th, and he’s won five Super Bowls. There’s only one team that has more Super Bowl wins than Brady, the Pittsburgh Steelers with six, but he could tie that if the Patriots beat the Rams. As a football fan, who also happens to be a Steelers fan, I don’t want to see that happen.

On the other hand, the Rams aren’t the most beloved team in the nation either. Well, they will be for the next week or so since everyone wants them to win except Patriots fans, but that’s an entirely different discussion. If you’ve seen the Rams play home games, it’s exactly the opposite of a home-field advantage. I think only the Chargers have it worse right now. Some home games look like away games when you look at the stands. Not to mention that there’ are some annoyed fans in St. Louis, but the Rams just don’t have that local-feel that other teams have. We all saw how Philadelphia Eagles fans reacted to winning the Super Bowl last year. The Rams won’t have that.

Now I actually like the makeup of the Rams team. I really enjoy watching Sean McVay coach, which just looks weird to type, but it’s true. Todd Gurley is incredible but somehow Aaron Donald is better. If Cooper Kupp was healthy, they’d have the best receiving corps in football. Between the deep threat Brandin Cooks, the reliable target Robert Woods, Cupp, and Josh Reynolds, I mean you can’t ask for better depth at a position. Despite all this, I know a lot of people don’t really like this team. I don’t entirely get why, I think it might be because they came up so quickly and have so many stars, including free agent signings from this offseason. I guess, in terms of roster composition, you could liken them to the Golden State Warriors in basketball, with a lot of good draft picks and the big free agent players. Those teams can rub people the wrong way.

I still don’t see how anyone but Patriots fans can root against the Rams though. The Rams haven’t won the Super Bowl since the 1999 NFL season, give them a break. The Patriots won just a few years ago, and they show up so often. It’s gotten to the point where I might just pencil them in as my pick to make it out of the AFC in 2019-20.

What does this whole rant have to do with anything? I’m just going to say this, those other three matchups I mentioned at the beginning of the article would’ve been much better and more exciting than the one we got. Brees is one of the most likable players in the league and Mahomes brings a crazy style that is just fun to watch. Again, I’m not disappointed the Rams made it, but I just feel like there was so much possibility and we got let down. The biggest individual matchup this Super Bowl will be Belichick v McVay. I did say I like to watch McVay coach, but I don’t think that should be the headliner of the final game of the season.

Oh well, maybe it will at least be a close game. I just don’t want to watch another game like Super Bowl 50 (Broncos-24 v Panthers- 10) or XLVIII (Seahawks- 43 v Broncos-8). Going to overtime wouldn’t hurt either. But the one thing we all don’t want is for the refs to ruin the game.