By Ross Kelly
The NFL’s version of the final four is upon us with the Championship Round on Sunday. The Denver Broncos will host the New England Patriots in the AFC Title Game, followed by the Seattle Seahawks hosting the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game.
There are four possible Super Bowl matchups, with varying levels of anticipation for them.
Granted, it’s the Super Bowl so everyone will tune in, but some of the potential meetings carry a little more excitement than others. Here’s how the four matchups might play out, from the least exciting to the most exciting for Super Bowl LX.
Broncos Versus Seahawks
This would be a rematch of Super Bowl XLVIII, in which Seattle’s Legion of Boom defense stifled Peyton Manning’s historic Broncos offense for the Seahawks’ lone championship.
Obviously, the loss of Bo Nix factors into Denver not necessarily being must-see TV, though backup quarterbacks from Jeff Hostetler to Nick Foles have provided historic moments in The Big Game. This matchup would be extremely defense-oriented, which is not exactly what the casual football fan wants to see.
Seattle owns the No. 1 scoring defense and has allowed just one total touchdown over its last three games. Meanwhile, Denver has the No. 2 total defense and led the NFL regular season with 68 sacks. Thus, both yardage and points would be at a premium in Super Bowl LX if these two meet up, in addition to them not being among the biggest markets.
Seattle is 12th in NFL market size, while Denver is 16th; every other potential Super Bowl matchup contains at least one top 10 market.
Broncos Versus Rams
This is the only of the four possible Super Bowl matchups that has never previously taken place in The Big Game, which adds a little extra appeal. It would also present a “Best versus Best” matchup, with the Rams’ passing offense versus the Broncos’ passing defense.
With MVP favorite Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles leads the NFL in scoring offense, total offense, passing yards, and passing touchdowns. Meanwhile, Denver leads the NFL in sacks and allows the fewest net yards per pass attempt, while ranking second in completion percentage allowed and passing touchdown percentage given up.
Rams vs. Broncos is also the only potential matchup that would pit two starting quarterbacks from the same state versus one another, with that state being Texas. Stafford is from Dallas, while Stidham was born about 100 miles southwest of Dallas in Stephenville, so the Long Star State would likely have a little extra juice for Broncos vs. Rams.
Patriots Versus Seahawks
These two previously met in the Super Bowl XLIX contest, which New England infamously won thanks to a late Russell Wilson pass intercepted by Malcolm Butler. The Seahawks would love to get revenge, while the Pats would love to end their losing streak versus Seattle, as New England has lost all three regular-season meetings with the Hawks since that Super Bowl matchup.
Seahawks vs. Patriots would also be the most balanced hypothetical matchup, on both sides of the ball. Both teams rank in the top four of the NFL in both scoring offense and scoring defense, so it would be strength versus strength no matter which units are on the field. The quarterbacks—Sam Darnold and Drake Maye—are both former No. 3 overall draft picks with Darnold being selected in 2018 and Maye taken in 2024. The two also lead big-play offenses, which adds some extra flair to this matchup. Maye leads the NFL with 8.9 yards per pass attempt, while Darnold sits second at 8.5.
Patriots Versus Rams
This is a Super Bowl matchup we’ve seen twice before, with New England winning in both Super Bowl XXXVI and LIII. Only one other matchup has taken place in the Super Bowl three times—Cowboys vs. Steelers—so that’s one bit of history that could be matched if both the Pats and Rams advance. This also would likely draw the biggest viewership as it’s the only matchup with two top-10 NFL markets.
On the field, it doesn’t get much better than Stafford versus Maye at the quarterback position. The 37-year-old Stafford turns 38 the day before the Super Bowl and is the regular season MVP favorite. The 23-year-old Maye could become the youngest starting QB to win a Super Bowl and is Stafford’s biggest challenger to winning the NFL MVP award. Stafford leads the NFL in both passing yards and passing touchdowns, while Maye tops the league in both passer rating and completion percentage.
However, the success of these teams goes beyond the star quarterbacks as both teams excel on the offensive side of the ball, which is what fans like to see in the Super Bowl. The Rams lead the league in points scored, while the Patriots rank second, so it has the elements needed to be the most entertaining of the four matchups.
The lowest-scoring Super Bowl of all-time was the last meeting between these two in 2019. The Patriots prevailed 13–3, so, perhaps, the teams running it back can make amends for that defensive battle.
