I'm curious how you guys think we compare to the Broncos last year. The Broncos had arguably the best regular season of any team in history. They beat us pretty handily in the Afccg. Most people picked them to beat Seattle and then they got destroyed.
This years Seattle team is pretty much the same as last year. So how are we more likely to beat them? I would argue Brady is playing some of his smartest football of his career. I would also say our defense is better than last years Broncos team. And the addition of Blount has really opened up our offense when he gets rolling. I've just been getting excited because I think we are gonna win and it's not gonna be that close and that's what everyone thought about the Broncos last year. Thoughts?
In addition to what almost everyone else has said here, you can't compare teams like that. A team can look like a world-beater one week, then suck the next.
Seattle didn't make Denver snap the ball into the end zone for a safety.
Denver THIS year was much more talented at many levels than they were last year, and the Colts. the pansy-ass, Irsay-stoned Colts, buried them IN DENVER.
Denver played an incredibly easy schedule last year - the other thing that changed is htat the penalties that were called against people defending them in the regular season shut off in the Superbowl. The refs let them play, and Seattle beat the snot out of them.
I don't think Seattle is as good as they were last year, but they're still pretty damned good. They're also pretty damned lucky - Green Bay had them beaten in their own house...gigantic choke. If Green Bay had beaten Buffalo, I have no doubt that we'd be lining up against Aaron Rodgers on Sunday. Seattle would not have beaten the Packers in Green Bay. Not sure it would have been that close, honestly.
Seattle is still very good, though. There were three teams in the NFC this year better than anything the Pats had to beat in the AFC (with the possible exception of the Ravens, who, like Seattle, seem to morph when it's on the line - credit to both).
Also, Belichick should have been the coach of the year last year and Brady the MVP. That they got the Pats to the AFCCG is nothing short of astounding. We all knew that the Patriots would be better this year simply by getting healthy.
Add Revis, Browner, LaFell, Branch, Ayers, Stork, Chung, the emergence of Jamie Collins and Dont'e Hightower, the health of Gronkowski and Amendola (who could be an x-factor against Seattle), and the fact that there has been no drop-off in performance from the rest, and well...this Pats team is much better than last year's version. In fact, this particular Patriots' team might be the best of the Belichick era. Certainly the deepest.
Should be a great game.