The 2020 football season has officially begun. Super Bowl LIV will be held Sunday, Feb. 2, 2020, in Miami, Florida. Here at The Rambler we could think of no better way to celebrate the new season than to poll students around school to see which team they think is going to win the Super Bowl this year.
Below, junior editor Ryan Kirby breaks down the responses and why there is a reasonable chance they make it to the big game this year.
Pittsburgh Steelers (16 votes)
The Steelers are an obvious favorite as we do live in Erie, but they do have a solid chance. With a young defense loaded with potential and recently acquired Minkah Fitzpatrick this defense can potentially morph into a top ten unit. The offense still has some stars in JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Conner, but the injury to quarterback Ben Roethlisberger tanks their odds significantly. After an 0-3 start, it won’t be easy, but in the end the Steelers’ Super Bowl chances boil down to whether or not Mason Rudolph is the real deal.
New England Patriots (14 votes)
The Patriots are likely the most realistic team to make it to the big game for another year. The duo of head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom can never be overlooked. They have appeared in nine Super Bowls and have won six of them since Brady took over starting quarterback duties in 2001. As of week two, the Patriots have the 2nd highest scoring offense in the league. Despite the loss of Antonio Brown, their receiving corps remains solid with Julian Edelman, Josh Gordon and Phillip Dorsett. The Patriots defense usually start slow and picks up later in the year, but this year the Patriots came out hot holding the aforementioned Steelers to only a field goal in week one.
Chicago Bears (8 votes)
The Bears are an odd team to judge right now. The Bears received eight votes in the poll, but with Chicago it is hard to say which way the season is going to go. After Week 3, Chicago has the number three scoring defense in NFL, led by All Pros Khalil Mack, Eddie Jackson and Kyle Fuller. Chicago’s offense, however, ranks near the bottom of the league in total yards and scoring. Quarterback Mitch Trubisky is struggling as is the offensive line, and the only bright spots have been rookie running back David Montgomery and wide receiver Allen Robinson. Last season Chicago had the worst offense in the NFL until week 4 when everything turned around. The Bears’ Super Bowl chances rely on whether they can do that flip again.
Cleveland Browns (7 votes)
The Browns are an interesting choice because of the amount of potential on this roster. The Browns have a stud quarterback in Baker Mayfield, a dynamic one-two punch at wideout with Odell Beckham, Jr. and Jarvis Landry, and Nick Chubb running the ball. Plus, they have an absolutely star-studded defense. With all this talent they should be a lock, except this team is not used to winning and has not played even slightly up to their potential as of Week 3. Yes, they beat the Jets, but it was against third string QB Luke Falk. The Browns need to show they can consistently be great if they want to max that potential and become a Super Bowl caliber team.
Kansas City Chiefs (5 votes)
The last notable team that was voted for is the Chiefs. The Chiefs have arguably the best offense and quarterback in the NFL so that makes them an easy choice. Patrick Mahomes is the next Hall of Fame quarterback and a face of this generation of football. After an MVP season last year, he is actually on on track for a better statistical season than the 50 touchdowns and over 5,000 yards he threw for last year. That’s just scary for the rest of the league. As long as Mahomes is under center the Chiefs have a great chance of being Super Bowl champions.
