Seattle Seahawks’ Richard Sherman celebrates after the NFL football NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers in Seattle. The Seahawks won 23-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVIII.The Seattle Seahawks certainly will be a small underdog according to Vegas and the “villain” team in this Super Bowl matchup for two reasons: (1) the feel-good story that is Peyton Manning, his comeback and his chase for history and (2) the Richard Sherman smack-talk after Seattle’s win over San Francisco.
We know that Manning, the media darling that he is, was nearly perfect, going 32-of-43 for 400 yards and leading his Denver Broncos to points on six consecutive drives in Sunday’s AFC title win over New England.
We know that this game will be a major feather in the cap of Manning’s legacy, considering he did that against his nemeses Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, and he did it in the AFC championship game. If Manning and Co. can win the Super Bowl, well, the argument that Manning is the best ever will be tough to counter.
We also know that Manning carries with him to the Super Bowl the greatest single season for a quarterback ever. A Super Bowl win will cement it as the best single season for an individual in football history. It could very well rank with Wilt Chamberlain averaging 50 points a game and Babe Ruth hitting more homers than every other American League team in 1927 as the best individual campaigns in the history of team sports.
We know the Broncos are a slight favorite in the Super Bowl, and with Manning as the centerpiece, the hype will be monstrous.