It’s an exciting day today as the New England Patriots are set drop their Super Bowl LI banner and then duke it out with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Here are some Prime Time Sports Talk over and unders for the game:
Patriots offense gains 445 yards: Under
While they’re a lot of targets on this team, the Patriots are still playing their first game without Tom Brady’s favorite target Julian Edelman.
The Patriots “next man up” philosophy makes it seem like the Edelman injury will not hinder the offense in any way, The Chief’s defense would disagree.
Home to a defensive line with names like Chris Jones, former Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman Bennie Logan, this team can rush the passer and get by linemen in the trenches.
To make matters worse, residing in the second level of the defense is linebackers Derrick Johnson and Justin Houston. Backed up by cornerback Marcus “Lockdown” Peters as well as hard-hitting safeties like all-pro Eric Berry and Ron Parker.
Growing pains may surface for this team and honestly it could go either way but it will most likely go under.
Brady throws for 300 yards: Over
Tom Brady has way too many weapons and this offense will most likely revolve more around his passing. That being said, while the offense won’t go over 445 yards, that doesn’t mean that the proclaimed G.O.A.T won’t account for most of the offense tonight.
Gronkowski hits the endzone once: Over
Rob Gronkowski is now Brady’s go-to guy with Edelman out for the season, and is one of best if not the top red zone weapon in the National Football League today. If you have Gronkowski on your fantasy lineup, you’re in line for a big day.
Kansas City scores 17 points: Over
The Chiefs will score points tonight, and the most likely total will be 17. The Chiefs will indeed score first tonight if they get the ball, but for all 60 minutes, they will not be able to keep pace with the Patriots.
Hill catches six passes: Over
Tyreek Hill is arguably the fastest player in the game today and is a focal point to the Chiefs offense and special teams. Though cornerback Malcolm Butler’s strength is covering small fast receivers, Hill will get away from him and cornerback Stephon Gilmore more than a few times tonight.
New England will possess the ball for at least 30 minutes: Over
If Chiefs starting running back Spencer Ware was starting tonight then it would be a different story. Rookie Kareem Hunt and Charcandrick West have potential with breakaway speed, but aren’t running backs who will take time off the clock.
With that being said, the Patriots have the better backfield with their offense and will have the ball a very long time as they balance the run with the pass and control the clock.
Hightower records seven tackles: Over
Dont’a Hightower is undoubtedly the leader of this defense with retirement of Rob Ninkovich and will be bouncing all over the place as a run stopper and a pass rusher. The broadcast team Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth will be calling his name many times tonight.
50 total points are scored: Over
34-17 is our predicted score of the game and mathematically that indeed does pass 50 points. There is a strong possibility that the Chiefs will score more and the Patriots will score less. It would be stunning to see if there isn’t a decent amount points scored in what will be strong opening day for the NFL.
