Buccaneers and Chiefs Super Bowl contenders
The defending champions and Patrick Mahomes’ team come into the season as the favorites to win the title.
The first week of a season can be cruel. Especially for those teams that believe that because they all start from the same place, they will also get to the same place. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The NFL is a league that does not forgive shortcomings, injuries or bad decisions, it is relentless and charges dearly for any mistake. It is also a league that rewards well-planned processes, preparation and execution.
At the end of the day it all boils down to two words: Contenders and pretenders.
The contenders are a group of, perhaps 10 teams, with real aspirations to reach the Super Bowl and, ultimately, add a Lombardi Trophy to their trophy cases.
The pretenders are, well, everyone else. Some with different expectations and who are aware that their success is defined in progress and not in the playoffs. For others, reality will hit harder.
Contenders
The list starts, obviously, with the defending champion. When you have Tom Brady at the controls it can’t be any other way. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers come into the new campaign in a unique position by having back the 22 starters that gave the Bucs their second Super Bowl ever. If it worked once, it doesn’t have to not work a second time.
It’s tough to repeat as champion, but Brady knows the way. No one has since Brady led the New England Patriots to back-to-back titles in 2003 and 2004.
“We have to create our own future, and that’s a matter of attitude, hustle and preparation,” Brady said. “Nothing that happened last year will carry over to this year. It’s a whole new challenge.”
On the other side, the Kansas City Chiefs have clearly established themselves as the best team in the AFC with Patrick Mahomes behind center. Two consecutive Super Bowl appearances are the only evidence needed to back up that argument. With a fearsome offense and a timely defense. It will take a major upset for any other AFC team to change that perception.
Reigning league MVP Aaron Rodgers led the Green Bay Packers to the National Conference Championship Game for the second straight year. But a turbulent preseason that threatened to turn into divorce distracted attention from the sports aspect. Rodgers has said it’s his “Last Dance” in Green Bay. Michael Jordan concluded his with a title, can A-Rod do the same in “Titletown”? The pieces, undoubtedly, are there.
“We all know what’s at stake,” Rodgers said.
Under Josh Allen, the Buffalo Bills made a huge leap to the Super Bowl last year, when the team earned its first playoff victory since 1995. For the new season, the Bills added intriguing pieces on both sides of the ball in hopes of closing the gap on the Chiefs and perhaps avenging the Conference Final loss.
Last year, the Bucs became the first team to play in, and win, the Super Bowl at home.
The Cleveland Browns, for example, seem to have all the pieces in place, but in today’s NFL they will only go as far as Baker Mayfield is able to take them. It’s too much to ask. For the San Francisco 49ers, the situation is similar and the question mark will persist until coach Kyle Shanahan decides on a passer. Will it be Jimmy Garoppolo or rookie Trey Lance?
The Seattle Seahawks, on the other hand, have a fearsome offense with the command of Russell Wilson, although their defense is far from helping the cause. The case is identical to the Dallas Cowboys with a defense that threatens to be a hindrance rather than a conduit for an offense that has all the ingredients to be spectacular.
“I think we can be the No. 1 offense in soccer, anybody tell me otherwise. We’re going for it and we’re ready,” Wilson said.
