Okay, so here is my take on the game.
The aspect that I will enjoy the most is the secondary play on both sides. You have maybe the best secondary match-up in the Super Bowl in the last 10 years. Elite talent on both sides, with Sherman v. Revis on the same field, in addition to Thomas, Browner, and Chancellor. In my opinion, Chancellor is the best of all of them.
I would also add that I think Chancellor is the best player on either team. He is simply a phenomenal football player. Hopefully his injury in practice on Friday wasn't that bad and hopefully Sherman and Thomas will also be able to play to their normal level.
That said, I think the Seahawks have a couple clear advantages:
1) Assuming that the secondary is healthy, the Seahawks are entirely capable of blanketing every receiver the Patriots have. The Seahawks will swarm Gronkowski like they have Jimmy Graham in recent years and likely force the others to step up. It is hard to imagine Lafell, let alone Edelman or Amendola, winning their 1-on-1 match-ups much at all in this game.
2) LaGarette Blount is a great running back, but the Seahawks are fast enough to not allow him to find any rhythm in this game. He had a fabulous day against Indy, but he had basically no yards against Baltimore. If you're a Patriot fan, you can probably expect him to have somewhere in between those two extremes today. Blount can be a gamechanger in this one, but he may also be stifled. It's hard to tell, but I don't think his impact alone will sway the outcome. He will make a couple great plays but probably be thwarted for the most part.
3) Pete Carroll is a magnificent offensive playcaller in the big games, going back to his USC days. After the anomaly against Green Bay, I expect him to be extra sharp with his gameplan and in utilizing crossing routes to stretch the field in his vintage USC style. Carroll is probably the most important person on the field tonight given his gameplanning brilliance.
4) Russell Wilson's rough day against the Packers was maybe the worst thing that could have happened to New England before playing the Seahawks. He will be determined to have a much better day and be much sharper. Plus, he is a good runner. I expect him to have, if not a great game, at least a solid game that puts the Seahawks in position to win.
5) The Patriots are going to have a very difficult time stopping Lynch, especially if the Seattle passing game gives Lynch some help early on. The Patriots' strength on defense is their back 4, and their linebackers are unexceptional. I expect Lynch to have at least 100 yards and I wouldn't be surprised if he went for even 200 or 250. Revis and Browner, talented as they are, can't affect the running game very much, and Carroll is going to give them more than enough to worry about in terms of defending crossing patterns and dealing with the Seahawks' receivers' speed (which is the strength of the Seattle wideouts).
6) The Seahawks defense will take the challenge of facing Brady very personally and very passionately. Unless the secondary's injuries are a huge hindrance, I expect them to dominate this game.
Last year I predicted Seahawks 36, Broncos 17 and I was being too nice apparently. I will go this year with Seahawks 34, Patriots 13.
uzzled
