A Super Bowl for the Ages

On Sunday, January 24, 2020, the world witnessed the four best teams in the National Football League (NFL) face off against each other with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Ageless wonder and future Hall of Famer Tom Brady led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against fellow future Hall of Famer and 2020 NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) front-runner Aaron Rodgers and National Football Conference (NFC) leading Green Bay Packers. On the American Football Conference (AFC) side, the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs beat Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills, who were playing in their first AFC championship game since 1994.

With the Championship games over, the stage is set for Super Bowl LV. The 14-2 Kansas City Chiefs will face off against the 11-5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Florida. The Super Bowl is played at a random stadium every year that is chosen prior to the season. For the first time  in NFL history, a team will play in the Super Bowl at their home stadium.

Tampa Bay, led by Head Coach Bruce Arians, came into the postseason ranked 5th seed in the NFC. This success was due mostly to landing Brady in the offseason once he left the New England Patriots, where he played his entire career up to that point. In addition to bringing in Brady, the Buccaneers signed Brady’s former teammate Tight End Rob Gronkowski, Running Back Leonard Fournette, and controversial Wide Receiver Antonio Brown. These players joined an already talented offense, with wideouts Mike Evans and Chris Godwin and Running Back Ronald Jones II, paired with one of the top-ranked defenses in the NFL. 

The only team that stands in the way of Brady’s 7th Super Bowl victory is the Kansas City Chiefs. Led by Head Coach Andy Reid, the defending champions came into the postseason with the best record in the NFL. Just before the season started, Quarterback Patrick Mahomes signed the largest contract in NFL history (10 years, $503 million), putting pressure on him to perform well. Along with him, the Chiefs have a pair of 1,000-yard receivers with All-Pros Wide Receiver Tyreek Hill and Tight End Travis Kelce. To go with this high-powered offence, the Chiefs have a talented defense that has looked better every game throughout the playoffs. 

CBS Reporter and longtime Quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys Tony Romo said, “This is the biggest game Patrick Mahomes will ever play in for the rest of his career.” This matchup between two stellar Quarterbacks has been hyped up, even before it was confirmed, as an exciting possibility. CBS ranked it as the greatest QB matchup in Super Bowl history, saying, “This is a matchup of the best quarterback of all-time against the NFL’s best quarterback today — who’s well on his way to being an all-time great.”