It’s Pro Bowl week in the NFL, but most of the attention will still be on the Super Bowl 60 showdown between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots. Both teams entered the regular season with an outside shot at making it to the season finale, but have proved their mettle by taking it all the way.
What pitfalls lie ahead, though?
Chris Simms Questions Seahawks Depth Ahead of Super Bowl 60 vs. Patriots
The Seahawks’ offense has been a force to be reckoned with this season. Quarterback Sam Darnold runs a show featuring star running back Kenneth Walker and wideout Jaxson Smith-Njigba, as the Seahawks rank third in scoring offense at 28.4 points per game. The team quietly took the NFC West before exploding with a sensational win over the LA Rams.
But while the NFC Championship victory was impressive, former Denver Broncos quarterback Chris Simms has some concerns about the team’s depth, particularly on offense.
“If you ask me about one weakness that I do think has to get delved into here in the next two weeks — it can’t just be Jaxson Smith-Njigba in the pass game,” he said on “Up & Adams” on Monday. “There’s gotta be somebody else.”
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel is a three-time Super Bowl champion under the great Bill Belichick, who is renowned for his tactical masterclass on defense. Vrabel should most likely clamp down on Jaxson Smith-Njigba, given his prominent role in the Seahawks’ offense (ranked 9th in PFSN’s Offense Impact).
The Patriots also sport a defense that features stars like Christian Gonzalez, Marcus Jones, and Carlton Davis, who’ll force Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald to look beyond Smith-Njigba.
“You’re crazy if you think Mike Vrabel — school of Bill Belichick — is gonna go into the Super Bowl with two weeks of preparation, and a corner like Christian Gonzalez, and go, ‘You know, we’re just gonna treat Jaxson Smith-Njigba like he’s nobody — no big deal,'” Simms added.
The Seahawks certainly have a lot of potential on their roster — it just comes down to the play-callers and coordinators to properly utilize weapons, especially on offense. Stars like Smith-Njigba and Walker can open up the game for other players, such as Rashid Shaheed and Cooper Kupp.
“They have to find — and this is to me where they’re dropping the ball — they have to find ways to get Rashid Shaheed the ball more as a receiver,” Simms concluded. “So, that’s one area where they should improve in the next two weeks.”
It’ll be fascinating to watch the psychological warfare during the big game, centered on Smith-Njigba’s usage. Macdonald is a shrewd strategist, and Vrabel’s defense is capable of shutting down the best of the best. February 8 will be an exciting day.
