Don't be blinded by the spectacle

We all know that “the big game” is on Sunday, Super Bowl Sunday, that is. And how could we have missed it with all the hype and controversy? It started with allegations of the New England Patriots cheating by deflating footballs in the AFC Championship Game. Of course there were subsequent calls for the tar and feathering of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick. Such a strong reaction always happens when you have football’s biggest stars and biggest egos in the spotlight. And the Patriots aren’t alone. The NFC champion Seattle Seahawks tote a trailerful of egos to Glendale, Ariz., for Sunday’s show, as well featuring their rather verbose head coach Pete Carroll and defensive back Richard Sherman.

As part of the show we’ve had the opportunity to see star running back Marshawn Lynch turn himself into an internet meme by answering every question at media day with “I’m here so I won’t get fined.” At various times both teams have claimed to have had hurt feelings or to have been saddened by all the accusations and trash talk going on. Poor souls, what drama. In all it is one enormous social media stirring, television feeding, and a heap of a spectacle.

Which, of course, is a genuine shame because it’s a distraction from the real story: one of the best Super Bowl matchups in recent years between two teams on historic runs of success. In the era of free agency, being a playoff and championship contender year in and year out is nearly impossible. But the Patriots have consistently done it since 2001. And of course the Seahawks are playing in their second straight Super Bowl, a rare feat on its own these days.

Neither can we overlook the coaches. Polar opposites in style, Belichick and Carroll are the best in the business, with Belichick and his cyborg-like persona and crafty strategies and Carroll and his energy of a fifth-grader on Red Bull and charisma of a Hollywood leading man. One is a morose-looking grump in public and the other is Mr. Positivity, and they simply win, win, win.

No football team is great without great quarterback play, and this game features two of the best. Seattle’s Russell Wilson is where Brady was 13 years ago, ascending fast with one Super Bowl ring already and the promise of a long and fruitful career ahead. Brady can look back at three Super Bowl championships and a Hall of Fame–worthy career, but he continues to prove he still has plenty of game left. Brady’s best target is monstrous tight end Rob Gronkowski, the nastiest player at his position in the league. But of course he will be going against the hardest hitting, best secondary in the NFL, the “Legion of Boom.”

This Super Bowl may be preceded by a spectacle, but it is set to be a magnificent game. There is no clear favorite. Will some unlikely hero emerge? How will the momentum swing? Who knows? But I predict the product on the field will far surpass the circus that led up to it.