Was it magic \u2014 or an illusion?\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Patriots\u2019 transformation from four-win embarrassment \u2014 in Jerod Mayo\u2019s lone season as head coach \u2014 to AFC champs under Mike Vrabel came with the aid of the league\u2019s softest schedule, in which they avoided playing a top-10 scoring defense, while enjoying eight games against bottom-nine defenses, helping them put up 28.8 points and 379.4 yards per game.<\/p>\n
![\"Drake](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2258173908.jpg\")
Drake Maye of the New England Patriots makes a pass during the second quarter in the AFC Championship Playoff game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High on January 25, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. Getty Images<\/p>\n
In the playoffs, New England has faced three top-eight scoring defenses, and been limited to 18 points per game \u2014 the lowest postseason average by any Super Bowl participant since the 1979 Rams \u2014 and 278.3 yards per game, while committing five turnovers.<\/p>\n
Super Bowl 2026 brings the Seahawks\u2019 top-rated defense.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019ll be critical, our ability to create some of those [explosive] plays that maybe we haven\u2019t had as many of and we\u2019ve had in previous games,\u201d Vrabel said after the team\u2019s first Super Bowl practice. \u201cWhether we hand it off, we\u2019re going to need to gain some chunks, and if we throw it, we\u2019re going to need to do the same.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maye, who missed Friday\u2019s practice with an illness<\/a> and is also dealing with a new shoulder injury<\/a>, is set to become the second-youngest quarterback to start a Super Bowl, and hoping to avoid joining the group of the all-time youngest quarterbacks (Dan Marino, Ben Roethlisberger, David Woodley, Jared Goff) who struggled on the biggest stage.<\/p>\n Maye\u2019s play started suffering once his first postseason began, passing for 177.7 yards per game, with a 55.8 completion percentage, four touchdowns, two interceptions and six fumbles (three lost).\u00a0<\/p>\n The offensive line \u2014 featuring a pair of rookies (Will Campbell, Jared Wilson) \u2014 hasn\u2019t been of much help, allowing 15 sacks in the playoffs after letting Maye take the fourth-most sacks (47) this season. Seattle presents the unique challenge of the league\u2019s fourth-best pressure rate (38.9) and the eighth-lowest blitz frequency (22 percent).\u00a0<\/p>\n This week, Tom Brady favorably compared this Seattle unit to the vaunted \u201cLegion of Boom,\u201d which propelled the franchise to its only title after limiting the highest-scoring offense in history (Peyton Manning\u2019s Broncos) to eight points in a Super Bowl blowout at MetLife Stadium.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c[The Legion of Boom\u2019s] scheme was a little more predictable,\u201d Tom Brady told Seattle Sports. \u201cIf I saw certain coverages, I knew where the weak spots were. It\u2019s not as predictable with this defense. This defense spins the dial a little bit more with their coverage schemes, where they decide to put their help \u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt takes a Matthew Stafford surgical passing team to really exploit that.\u201d<\/p>\n Or perhaps a scrambler.<\/p>\n![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/AP_Patriots_Broncos_Football_41099-aaa67-0.jpg\")
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye runs against the Denver Broncos during the second the half of the AFC Championship NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Denver. AP<\/p>\n