It hasn’t happened often in your lifetime, if you aren’t old enough to remember when the New England Patriots couldn’t beat an egg, but the two best teams have made it to the Super Bowl.
And by the grace of God, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, for the sixth time in 14 seasons, those same Patriots are one of those teams. They’ll try to dethrone the Seattle Seahawks a fortnight minus a good night’s sleep from now in Glendale, Ariz.
We knew it all along, didn’t we?
Sure we did.
I have written proof that I picked a Dunkin’ Donuts vs. Starbucks showdown back in August. Of course, by late September/early October, I was relatively certain that somebody had laced my coffee.
When the Patriots weren’t a red zone stop away from a humiliating loss to the Oakland Raiders, they were getting undressed by the Kansas City Chiefs on national television.
Not to be outdone, the Seahawks were dysfunctional enough to make Jim Harbaugh’s puzzling, sometimes creepy leadership of the San Francisco 49ers look stable. They struggled to win away from their bandwagon, um, I mean home field. There were rumblings of teammates questioning whether or not their pure winner of a franchise quarterback was true enough to his race, whatever in heaven’s name that means.
It’s hard to put a finger on what spun things in a positive direction for either team. Yes, the Patriots got ex-Seahawk Brandon Browner back from his season-opening suspension and re-signed LaGarrette Blount after he quit on the Pittsburgh Steelers. Yes, the Seahawks successfully treated their locker room cancer by dealing Percy Harvin to the New York Jets for a box of chin straps.
Mostly, though, New England and Seattle did what great teams with great coaches do: Moved around the pieces that already were on the chessboard, and didn’t panic.
Contrary to what the fellowship of the miserable believed, Belichick was aware he had a still-viable Tom Brady and still-healing Rob Gronkowski in his camp. Not to mention, anchored by Browner and Darrelle Revis, something the Patriots hadn’t known for the better part of a decade — a secondary that didn’t stink out loud.
And that lovable, overgrown surfer dude, Pete Carroll, never forgot that he had the best running back in the league, Marshawn Lynch, in his huddle, as well as the league’s dominant defense when all else failed.
Perhaps that’s why we didn’t see the No. 1 seeds go down in the divisional round or conference championship, in the manner we’d become accustomed. They didn’t start 9-0 and get fat, lazy and happy. Each team clawed its way back to a position of authority by peaking in November and December, rather than simply trying to avoid getting hurt.
Consequently, we are blessed with one of the most delicious Roman numeral match-ups in a long time. I know two weeks of hype and the obligatory 12-hour pregame show are excessive, but how many ridiculously fun story lines will we get to talk about in that window?
Belichick vs. Carroll. The guy who is arguably on the Mount Rushmore of NFL coaches versus the man who was fired to make room for him. Each stumbled in his first crack as the face of a franchise, both partially due to some circumstances beyond their control. They exhibit polar opposite styles with players and media, which only confirms that there is more than one blueprint for winning jewelry and Lombardi trophies.
Brady vs. Richard Sherman. Although from the footage I consistently saw during the second half of Sunday’s insane comeback against Green Bay, the prevailing question this time might be, “You hurt, bro?”
Brady vs. Russell Wilson. Two quarterbacks who were badly underestimated by draft scouts and dismissed for various perceived physical shortcomings. Brady is a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Wilson is another ring or two away from proving that he is more than a game manager, although Sunday’s rally after an atrocious first half showed that he has the selective amnesia common to the great ones.
Lynch vs. Gronkowski. Yeah, that’s a stretch. They don’t play the same position, but there are not two more freakish athletes at their respective positions in today’s NFL. It is almost guaranteed that one will be the difference-maker two Sundays from now.
Legacy vs. legacy. In some people’s minds, Brady is competing against a bunch of quarterbacks who aren’t even playing in this game. Peyton Manning, for one. I don’t buy that, but it is surely a battle of the Patriots’ sustained excellence (yes, duhhhh, it’s a dynasty) against a team that’s trying to take a giant leap in that direction. Last team to repeat as champions? The 2003 and 2004 Patriots, of course. If you don’t think New England is interested in keeping its name at the head of that column, you haven’t been paying attention.
It is a collision of historic greatness vs. in-this-moment splendor in a league that has built its house unabashedly on a foundation of parity and constant change.
That doesn’t come along every February. Enjoy every minute, before, during and — hopefully, if you’re a Patriots fan — after.
Kalle Oakes is a staff writer. His email is koakes@sunjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @Oaksie72.
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