I have been watching College and NFL football for over 40 years. The first Super Bowl I ever watched was between the New York Jets and the Baltimore Colts in 1969. Even though the Colts were the heavy favorite over the fledgling AFL. I was rooting for them anyway. Why was I on board with the Jets? One reason was because of Joe Namath and his guaranteeing a win. The second was my grades school Jimmy Cheek was a huge Colts fan and had been bragging all week that the Colts would destroy the Jets. Well, we all know the outcome of that game. Jets 16, Colts 7. One of the biggest upsets in sports history. Even to this day, I root for the Jets even though my favorite team is and always will be the Green Bay Packers.
Over the years, I have watched what I would think are hundreds of NFL football games. However, during the recent years I have come to the conclusion that the game has deteriorated into predictability which has made games less exciting. I know many of you may not agree, but this is how I feel. It almost seems like the regular season and it's results are a foregone conclusion as to who makes the playoffs. If you think about it, over the years, it seems like the same teams have appeared in the playoffs. These teams include the Cowboys (33), Packers (I'm thankful) (33), Giants (32), Steelers (31) and the Vikings (30). These are actually staggering numbers since the NFL has had 54 years of playoffs during the Super Bowl Era and these 5 teams have made the playoffs 56% of the time.
So, what does this mean? Well, it could mean that these 5 teams have very good organizations, draft well and nurture great players. With the 5 teams I listed above, this is true. However, I am not sure this rings true today. It seems like year after year there are a few chosen teams that make their way to a Super Bowl win with the help of the officials and the NFL itself. In many games that I watch, the officials throw very few penalty flags for most of the game and when there is critical moment, the laundry comes out. It's usually a questionable Pass Interference, Defensive Holding or an Offensive Holding call. These infractions occur all game in every game but are not called all the time.
So what is the Bottom Line here? The NFL is fixed! It's rigged to have certain popular teams and players to win. This means more money to the NFL in Super Bowl ticket prices, commercial prices and merchandise sales. This year is a great example. Tom Brady (The NFL's Chosen One) and the Tampa Bay Buc's who beat the Saints and the Packers in the playoffs. Of course there were questionable calls in pivotal times during both games to secure a Tampon Bay win. As for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, I hate to say it, they were the best team in the AFC. With this being said, I have no dog in this fight so I really don't care who wins as long as I hit some numbers on my 3 pools.
My Super Bowl Prediction: Tampa Bay 31, Kansas City 30. A controversial late penalty call in favor of the Buc's will propel them to the win. Don't be surprised if it's a roughing the passer call.
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