"By finally choosing substance over style, stats over sentiment, the best team over the best story, I was right. So I'm doing it that way again. In this matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. I hate one of these franchises with a passion. It doesn't matter. I detest that one of these franchises once cheated its way to numerous championships while arrogantly daring anyone to stop them"
"Still, none of it matters. Like nearly everyone else outside of New England, I hate the Patriots. But I love, love, love them on Sunday. I love their coach, their quarterback, their coolness, their momentum, their journey without the conniving Bill Belichick. I love their small edge in virtually every area of the game, all of which will lead to a big upset by a 4.5-point underdog."
"As the Philadelphia Eagles were in the process of demolishing the favored Kansas City Chiefs by 18 points, I was screaming in front of the stunned and somewhat embarrassed faces of those sitting around me. "I called this! I had this! I knew this!" Strange but true, a couple of days earlier in my 26th annual Super Bowl prediction column, I had penned the following sentence. "I'm picking the Eagles in a beatdown, and listen to me, this time I'm right.""
An underdog upset is predicted: the New England Patriots will defeat the Seattle Seahawks and claim the Super Bowl despite being a 4.5-point underdog. The selection prioritizes substance over style, using statistics and team strength over narrative and sentiment. A prior correct call matched the Eagles demolishing the Chiefs by 18 points, marking only the eighth correct pick in 26 attempts after many early misses. Widespread disdain for the Patriots stems from past cheating allegations and Hall of Fame snubs, yet the Patriots are credited with a small edge via coach, quarterback, momentum, and overall team areas.
Read at Los Angeles Times
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]