"It's the Masters vs. the Apprentices...": Super Bowl LIII

32 teams. 266 games. One Super Bowl match-up. We've been treated to another thrilling NFL season since week one. But ultimately, it's tonight that is the only match that really matters. Super Bowl LIII.

It's the New England Patriots against the Los Angeles Rams. The Masters vs the Apprentices. The game that started the Patriots famous dynasty could be the one to end it. Doubt it, but it could be.

This is a very interesting match up for many reasons. McVay, the Rams' wonderfully offensive minded coach, is be hailed as the future of the sport, and he comes up against the man who has redefined coaching in the NFL; Bill Belichick. McVay has come in and made changed the franchise around. Two years ago, they were a laughing stock of the league. Goff looked far from the talent that was promised and, the then coach, Jeff Fisher couldn't seem to get them out of the rut.

McVay has given the offence a new light and look about it. Todd Gurley III was outstanding through the regular season, and was on course to break the touchdown record at one stage. Goff is playing at MVP level, shame that there are players playing even higher than that, and he has an abundance of receiving threats, including former Patriot Brandin Cooks, that gives an exciting and unpredictable look to the Rams most weeks.

Though the defining contest of this Super Bowl is going to be played at the line of scrimmage. How will the Patriots O-Line cope with the threat that comes from the Rams D-Line, and vice versa?

In Aaron Donald, the league's Defensive Player of the Year, the nasty Ndamukong Suh and Michael Brockers, the Rams have arguably the most intimidating defensive line in the league. They'll be aiming to get to Brady all day long and force him out of the pocket, something Brady isn't used to doing. Brady will prefer to be staying in the pocket, and stepping up and out to look down field - and even if he gets it down field, his receivers will be more than likely met by Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters, two of the best corners in the league.

Aaron Donald has been tipped by most to be the best defensive player in the NFL of the past 20 years. He fell just short of the sack record this regular season, due predominantly to some teams being forced to double team him to just soften his threat. The Patriots will have set a more sophisticated plan in place to deal with Donald, but his pass rush is so good, despite his apparent lack of size, that any attempt to top him could easily be in vain.

Ndamukong Suh is far from the player you want coming at you either. In his Detroit Lions days, Suh, after knocking Aaron Rodgers to the ground, was seen to be intentionally standing on the Packers' QB. You can bet that, given half the chance, Suh will look to land a hit on New England's aging QB; legally or not. The Patriots have dealt well during the play-offs to any pass rush, but they are yet to face anything like they will face in Atlanta.

New England's coaching staff will be scheming to try and force Goff into playing the majority of the game. Rams boast two quality running backs in Gurley III and Anderson who are known to slice through defences like they aren't even there, so Belichick and, Dolphins-bound, Brian Flores will be aiming to nullify the running game.

Goff is only young and still has a whole career in front of him. When Brady played the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI, the current Rams QB was only seven-years-old. It's clear where the experience lies in this game, but with McVay talking in his ear, something the Saints' fans tried to takeaway in the Championship Round, Goff is able to compete with the best. But when he's forced to play away from what was set in front of him, he isn't as comfortable and he begins to look a little like the young player he is. This is why New England will try and place the whole game on his shoulders and force him into passing more than he'd like.

And despite all the positives said about the Rams, it's hard to argue against the New England Patriots. To argue against Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. Quite simply, it's hard to argue against a title town like Boston.

If you were to put the two teams on paper and takeaway any link to their franchises, the Rams would probably hold the better roster overall. 

But, once you stick that 'Flying Elvis' on their helmets, they just seem a different prospect. The regular season wasn't the usual slick football we were used to seeing from New England, and made many believe that we had seen the end of the franchise, but the play-offs have shown us that this is where they thrive. They dominated the other side of LA - L.A. Chargers - and produced a very professional performance against a young and exciting Chiefs team, which was led by the NFL's MVP Pat Mahomes.

Brady's clutch gene is second to none, and could quite easily win you a game of this magnitude on his own. It's the thing that sets him aside from being a very good quarterback, to the G.O.A.T. The offence has been built to help Brady succeed. The running game could challenge the Rams now, Michel, Burkhead and White, and the receivers become a different class when he is on the field.

The defence has been spoken about as being weak for a couple of years, but there's a reason why Brian Flores is going onto a head-coaching job post-Super Bowl. They switched, after a stuttering start to the season, to amoeba defensive fronts - named due to it's shapeless, every-changing appearance - which confused offences and was best on show in the first-half shutout in Kansas City. 

The likes of Trey Flowers and Stephon Gilmore will have a massive say in the final result of this game. Well versed in the pressures of playing on the biggest stage, they will make this a nightmare for the Rams offence.

This dynasty has been fascinating to witness, and is going to be something that will talked about long after we've all gone, but there's something in every NFL fan that wants to see a new winner. Not just for the excitement of that season, but for the hope it gives all fans that, despite how the team may look now, we'd could be playing on the biggest stage with the right leadership in place.

I actually witnessed the Rams @ Patriots in Foxborough a couple of years ago and, believe me, that game gave no inclining that we were going to see the Rams in this position any time soon. The Patriots looked classic Patriots that day. Comfortable, unflashy, and solid. The Rams looked nervous, inexperienced and on the verge of nothing. Just shows what a good coach and good recruiting can do.

As great as it would be to see the Rams win and gives us a new Super Bowl winner in recent years, and as much as try to steer myself to saying the Rams will win, I can't help but have my head turned back in favour of New England. How can you bet against this dynasty? How can you bet against Bill? How can you bet against Tom?

It'll come down to just a few points, but the experience and clutch gene that the Patriots bolster outweighs all the talent that the Rams hold.

My heart says Rams. My head says Patriots.

What do you think of the Super Bowl match-up? Who do you think will claim the 53rd Super Bowl? Share and comment.



You can read my other blogs ScriptEye and I Can't Write Words here.