Super Bowl XLVIII Prediction

It’s been awhile, loyal fans.

Over two weeks has passed since posting my last article, and I actually feel more stressed than before the break. I guess school does that to you, even as a business student.

But let’s be honest: were you really going to turn to Around The Corn Sports Blog for your Super Bowl information needs? Hell no you weren’t. ESPN has that topic on lockdown, much to the dismay of us fans that want to watch actual sporting events.

I’m glad that this two week period of seemingly nonstop coverage is near its end. I could lie to you and write that the unnecessary amount of coverage is precisely the reason that I don’t do much coverage of the game myself, but that’s only solid deflection from the real issue. Sometimes I just get lazy.

Anyway, I do like to give my prediction and a brief preview of the biggest sporting event in the United States. Some of you even like reading it.

Here is the preview for Super Bowl XLVIII.

Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos (Sunday, 6:30 PM ET – FOX)

Very rarely do the two teams most prognosticators think will make it to the Super Bowl before the season begins actually get the job done. It’s a testament to the talent across the entire National Football League, and one of the reasons why Houston and Denver fans alike can go into a new season with the highest of hopes. But often times, the parity in the NFL leaves us wondering “what if?” What if the league’s most feared defense, that shut down one of the best quarterbacks in the league for nearly an entire NFC Divisional Round game, got to play the league’s most efficient offense, that made Tom Brady’s performance in the AFC Championship Game look pedestrian?

For the 48th edition of the Super Bowl, we as fans got lucky. Because that’s exactly what we don’t have to ask ourselves when the game is over.

Seattle may have benefited greatly from home field advantage leading up to this game, but don’t for a second believe that the defense will start to wilt in New Jersey. An overhaul of last season’s successful defensive scheme has the Seahawks fooling even the best offensive minds in the game. There is but one more offensive genius to conquer, and his name is Peyton. The 37-year old superstar is on the back end of his career, but could follow a career trajectory similar to that of Denver’s current executive vice president of football operations (John Elway, for those that I confused. The career trajectory is two Super Bowl victories in a row to cap off a career). The newly minted five time league MVP isn’t doing this alone, though, and his help is a big reason the Broncos are in this game. The receiving corps is what separated Denver from New England two weekends ago, and it is the reason that the Broncos are the one team that has the talent to carve up Seattle’s vaunted secondary. That, and Manning’s precision, of course. No disrespect to Colin Kaepernick, but Peyton Manning isn’t going to help the Seahawks out with two crucial interceptions in the fourth quarter.

I had a conversation with a friend about which quarterback I would rather take: Manning or Brady. We agreed that, given equal talent on the receiving end, we’d rather have Brady. But Peyton Manning doesn’t have equal talent in that area. He is exceptional talent. That is why I’m picking the Broncos to win Super Bowl XLVIII.

My Pick: 24-19 Denver

– K. Becks