ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly from training camp through the Super Bowl with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them: What will happen in Super Bowl El Ex?
MICHAEL NAZAREK
The Seahawks defense will stifle the Patriots and make life very tough for Drake Maye. The Patriots will keep it fairly close, but WR/KR Rashid Shaheed will make an impact with a big return for a score. Final: Seahawks 24, Patriots 16.
Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc, celebrating 30 years online! His company offers a preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, a multi-use fantasy drafting program including auction values, weekly in-season newsletters, injury reports and free NFL news (updated daily) at its website, www.ffmastermind.com. He has been playing fantasy football since 1988 and is a four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a former columnist for SI.com. He's also won $40K in recent seasons of the FFPC High Stakes Main Event. Nazarek can be reached via email at miken@ffmastermind.com. Allan co-founded Fantasy Football Index in 1987. He is a member of the FSGA Fantasy Sports Hall of Fame and the Fantasy Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame.
SCOTT ENGEL
The Seattle Seahawks will win their second Super Bowl and get even for the last matchup against the Patriots. Defense made the ultimate difference in Super Bowl 49 and will do the same in Super Bowl 60. Ernest Jones IV and Devon Witherspoon will be MVP candidates, although Rashid Shaheed is my betting pick for MVP. He is a threat both as a returner and pass-catcher. AJ Barner will catch the first TD if the day, and that is another good wager. The Seahawks are simply the better team, and the Patriots don't have ample weaponry to mount enough of an offensive challenge.
Engel is an inaugural member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association's Hall of Fame. He is a 4-time FSWA award winner and a 13-time finalist. He is a sports betting writer at Advance Local and a fantasy writer at RotoBaller.com, Seahawks.com and The Athletic. He is also a host at SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio.
TOM KESSENICH
I think Drake Maye is this season's MVP but his struggles in the postseason have been impossible to ignore. Facing a Seattle defense that is likely to return to form after being pushed around by the Rams in the NFC Championship Game, I think Maye's ongoing issues will prove problematic in the Super Bowl. I don't trust Sam Darnold to play as well as he did in the NFC Title Game against a Mike Vrabel defense given two weeks to prepare against him but Seattle's defense and JSN on the Seahawks' offense are the two biggest advantages I see in this game. I think Darnold makes fewer mistakes, Seattle's D has the edge and JSN's playmaking ability is too much for the Patriots to contain giving the Seahawks the Super Bowl victory.
Kessenich is the Director of High Stakes Contests for SportsHub Games. He runs the NFFC, NFBC and NFBKC and is a fantasy sports Hall of Fame inductee.
IAN ALLAN
I think it's a compelling game. The Seahawks seem to be the better of the team, and they've gotten better as the season progresses. The running game came on in the second half of the season. Sam Darnold dipped in November and December, but he's been just fine in their two playoff games. So I think it's fair that Seattle is favored. I will go with the team in my hometown. But at the same time, I like the way New England's defense has played in the postseason. They've gotten after it pretty good. With that in mind, the point spread of 4.5 points seems high to me.
Allan co-founded Fantasy Football Index in 1987. He is a member of the FSGA Fantasy Sports Hall of Fame and the Fantasy Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame.
SAM HENDRICKS
The first quarter is boring as both offenses adjust to strong defenses. A Super Bowl commercial from Pepsi about a taste-testing Polar Bear gets the most adoration. Seattle edges in front with a JSN TD early in the 2nd quarter and NE evens up with a Rhamondre Stevenson rushing TD near the end of the half. A FG by the Pats in the last minute marks the end of the first half and a 10-7 score. Sabrina Carpenter garners the most love with a Pringles commercial in the 2nd quarter. Bad Bunny's halftime show is loved by 45% of the nation and hated by 45% with 10% not watching and not caring.
The Seahawks move ahead with authority as Sam Darnold proves his MVP worth with 2 more TDs in the third quarter spread out to Kenneth Walker and Rashid Shaheed, SEA 24-7 in what looks like a blowout. Budweiser unveils a 150th year anniversary commercial that has everyone crying including a sideline Klint Kubiak but it is later determined he was crying because he realized he would soon be the Raiders Head Coach. The fourth quarter sees a valiant Patriots come back to close within three as a TD from their defense and then another quickie run from Drake Maye gives us the final score of Seattle 24, New England 21. But the highlight of the game will be the Bud Light "Keg" (wedding) commercial with Peyton Manning and Post Malone!
Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at ExtraPointPress.com, at all major bookstores, and at Amazon and BN.com. He is a 30-year fantasy football veteran who participated in the National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th and 16th overall in the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC). He won the Fantasy Index Open in 2013 and 2018.
SCOTT SACHS
Seattle should defeat New England in a fairly close game through 3 quarters, with the Seahawks pulling away late, 31-23. Both teams have good Defenses, but whoever can break through in the passing game should prevail, with Darnold to JSN providing the difference. The Patriots run game will falter. Rhamondre Stevenson will put the ball on the ground and TreVeyon Henderson will be underutilized. While both QBs made the injury list, the most concerning status is to Seattle safety Nick Emmanwori. The Seahawks standout rookie tweaked his ankle during practice, but hopefully should be close to full strength by Sunday.
With 2 perfect seasons and multiple league championships to his credit, Sachs runs Perfect Season Fantasy Football, featuring LIVE Talk & Text Advice. He is a 3-time winner of the Fantasy Index Experts Auction League, as well as a previous winner of the Fantasy Index Experts Poll. Follow on X: https://x.com/ffbcoach
JASON WOOD
AFC fandom is apoplectic now that the New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. With a 23-year-old MVP candidate at the helm just seasons after the Belichick-Brady dynasty ended, it’s a bitter pill to swallow—especially for Bills, Ravens, and Bengals fans. But such is life.
The looming question for Super Bowl LX is whether New England’s struggling offensive line can protect Drake Maye against a fierce Seahawks defense. Conversely, can a Patriots defense that has been exceptional of late turn Sam Darnold back into a pumpkin? Ultimately, I’m leaning toward a "chalky" outlook: I expect the Seahawks to edge out a close, defensive-minded battle.
Wood is Senior Editor at Footballguys.com and has been with the company since its start in 2000. For more than 20 years, Footballguys has provided rankings, projections, and analysis to help fantasy managers dominate their leagues.
SCOTT PIANOWSKI
Although I think New England can win, I have to lean with Seattle in a close game. The Seahawks defense is the best unit in football, and Drake Maye's passing hasn't been sharp in the playoffs. The key for a Patriots victory is forcing mistakes from Sam Darnold, and that's doable. New England is a different team with defensive tackle Milton Williams in the lineup. Call it Seahawks 23, Patriots 20.
Pianowski has been with Yahoo Sports since 2008, covering a variety of sports. On the rare occasions when the computer is turned off, he enjoys word games, poker, music, film, game theory, and a variety of condiments. He lives in suburban Detroit. Pianowski was inducted into the FSWA Hall of Fame in 2021.
ANDY RICHARDSON
The quality of both defenses and special teams -- surely this is the first Super Bowl where each team comes in having 3 kick or punt return touchdowns? -- combined with the relative inexperience of both quarterbacks has me thinking there will be some big plays on that side of the ball, involving turnovers or special teams. That's the biggest unpredictability. For conventional stuff, I think Seattle is a little better -- wide receivers, running back, defense. Two injuries to keep track of are Robert Spillane (Seattle ground game gets a boost if he's out or limited) and Nick Emmanwori (Patriots offense would look better if he can't go after injuring an ankle in practice yesterday). But I'll go with Seattle winning by 5-7 points, something like 24-17.
Richardson has been a contributing writer and editor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and www.fantasyindex.com since 2002. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual experts draft and auction leagues since their inception. He writes a weekly gambling newsletter, Index Bets, during the NFL season and also previews all the games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays.
