What do you need to know about this year's Super Bowl match-up? WGBH News' Esteban Bustillos highlights player stats, team history, and what to watch for in this year's game.
1. This is the second time the Patriots and the Rams will face off in the Super Bowl
Back in 2002, the Patriots won their first Lombardi trophy against the Rams, a team then housed in St. Louis, Missouri. The Rams relocated to Los Angeles in 2015, but the same organization will go head-to-head with the Pats and a man named Tom Brady.
The repeat match-up is not the only deja-vu you might experience in this game. Super Bowl XXXVI fell on the same Sunday date 17 years ago: February 3.
2. According to NFL trends, we can expect a lot of passing
The league has changed in many ways since that first Rams vs. Patriots Super Bowl match-up. With a better understanding of the game’s impact on players' health, physical moves like chop-blocks and horse-collar tackles have been banned from the league. These shifting rules are one of several influences on the current trends of passing and rushing in the NFL. Regardless of the reason, the NFL is now a pass-dominated league.
The past nine seasons have the highest average passing yards per team game — a trend reflected in the performance of this year’s Super Bowl quarterbacks.
The starting quarterbacks of both teams have thrown a hefty amount in the 2018 regular season. Brady threw 4,355 yards — seventh-most in the league. Jared Goff threw 4,688 yards — the second-most in the league. These high numbers could mean a lot of fireworks through the air during Sunday’s game.
3. Both teams are also dangerous on the ground
The NFL is a pass-crazy league, but that doesn’t mean rushing yards have disappeared. Both the Rams and the Patriots have strong running backs that support a dynamic offense.
Led by Patriots James White and Sony Michel, the team has gained 2,037 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns this season. But the Patriots will be competitively matched. The Rams have racked up 2,231 rushing yards. They’ve also rushed 23 touchdowns this season — the second-most in the league.
4. In this game, age is just a number
In 2002, Brady was an unknown second-year quarterback, winning his first Super Bowl at age 24. At the time, Brady was the youngest Super Bowl-winning quarterback, a record only broken by Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger in 2006.
Now, Goff is 24 and Brady is 41, making this year’s match-up the largest age gap between starting quarterbacks in Super Bowl history.
Age may just be a number, but “youth” verses “experience” doesn't just apply to the quarterbacks in this game. Rams Coach Sean McVay is the youngest head coach in modern NFL history. He was also the youngest person to win the AP NFL Coach Of The Year Award, which he won last year.
At 33, McVay is only in his second season as an NFL coach, while the 66-year-old Bill Belichick has 24 years of experience as a head coach in the league.
5. Sweet, sweet …17
In all of these game statistics, years, and numbers, a curious repetition is noticeable.
It was 17 years ago to the day that the Patriots and the Rams first faced off in the 2002 Super Bowl. In that game, the Patriots beat the Rams 20 to 17. Fans might even remember a nail-biting touchdown by Rams Ricky Proehl that tied the game 17 to 17 late in the fourth quarter.
And that age gap between Tom Brady and Jared Goff? You guessed it – 17 years.
For the superstitious fans, 17 might just be the number to watch for.
