Mark Daniels

Monday

Jan 21, 2019 at 6:08 PM


KANSAS CITY — Tom Brady’s legacy started with a signature win against the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI 17 years ago. Once again, the Rams are standing in his way as he attempts to add another championship trophy to his Hall-of-Fame career.


 


The Patriots' rematch with the Rams, now based in Los Angeles, in Super Bowl LIII will be one of the many storylines over the next two weeks.


 


Vegas odds on Sunday night had the [...]

KANSAS CITY — Tom Brady’s legacy started with a signature win against the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI 17 years ago. Once again, the Rams are standing in his way as he attempts to add another championship trophy to his Hall-of-Fame career.

 

The Patriots' rematch with the Rams, now based in Los Angeles, in Super Bowl LIII will be one of the many storylines over the next two weeks.

 

Vegas odds on Sunday night had the Patriots as 1-point underdogs, but that changed by Monday night when they were 2-point favorites. The Patriots were underdogs in the 2002 Super Bowl against the Rams of Kurt Warner and Marshall Faulk.

 

This year's matchup features two of the best offenses in the NFL — the Rams ranked second in scoring and the Patriots were fourth — but it’s also a story of young vs. old.

 

This game will have one of the best coaches in NFL history in Bill Belichick, 66, going up against one of the brightest young coaches in the NFL today, 32-year-old Sean McVay. McVay is 24-8 in his two seasons with the Rams, who finished 13-3 in the 2018 regular season.

 

The Los Angeles offense is led by 24-year-old Jared Goff, who will oppose the 41-year-old Brady.

 

Goff, the 2016 first overall pick, threw for 4,688 yards and 32 touchdowns this season. Goff has two 1,000-yard receivers at his disposal with Robert Woods (86 catches for 1,219) and Brandin Cooks (80 receptions for 1,204). This also marks the first time Cooks will face the Patriots after they traded him to the Rams last offseason for a 2018 first-rounder, which was used to select Isaiah Wynn.

 

When he was in New England, Cooks became a favorite of Brady’s, but the Pats moved on due to his contract nearing its end. Cooks signed a five-year, $81-million extension with the Rams after the trade.

 

The star of the Rams offense has been running back Todd Gurley (256 carries for 1,251 yards and 17 touchdowns). Gurley also caught 59 passes for 580 yards and four TDs this season. A knee injury to Gurley late in the season brought C.J. Anderson into the fold. Anderson led the Rams in rushing in the NFC Championship Game (44 yards) and in the AFC divisional round (123 yards, two touchdowns)

 

On defense, the Rams are led by All-Pro Aaron Donald. The defensive tackle was the best pass-rusher in the NFL this season, leading the league with 20.5 sacks, 41 quarterback hits and 25 tackles for loss. Donald was dominant in 2018 and the frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year.

 

Donald plays alongside defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who the Patriots know well from his time in Miami. Suh was second on the Rams with 4.5 sacks and 19 quarterback hits this season. A midseason trade also brought defensive end Dante Fowler into the fold. He has 1.5 sacks in the playoffs.

 

In the secondary, former Patriots Pro Bowler Aqib Talib (one interception in eight games) starts at cornerback along with former Pro Bowler Marcus Peters (three interceptions).

 

Safety John Johnson led the Rams in interceptions (four) and was second on the team in tackles (119). Cory Littleton had a Pro Bowl season as a special-teamer, but the linebacker finished with 125 tackles, four sacks and three interceptions.

 

The Patriots' road to Super Bowl LIII hasn’t been easy, and the path to their sixth franchise championship won’t be a walk in the park. The Feb. 3 matchup in Atlanta is shaping up to be another barn burner.

 

Would you expect anything less?