Has the answer been in front of our eyes the whole time?
We now know the matchup for Super Bowl LX, which will feature the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks battling for the Lombardi Trophy at Levi’s Stadium on February 8.
But some conspiracy theorists think the NFL actually revealed the matchup back in September.
The Patriots are headed to the Super Bowl after a “long” six year drought that no doubt had to be tough on fans who were used to appearing in the big game every year. It’s the team’s first year under new head coach Mike Vrabel, who was fired by the Tennessee Titans following the 2023 season, and the first full season for Drake Maye as starting quarterback.
It didn’t look good for the Patriots early on in the AFC Championship Game against the Denver Broncos, but heavy snow began to fall on Mile High Stadium in the second half that made moving the ball difficult and scoring nearly impossible. The Patriots managed to get a field goal on their opening drive of the third quarter, which ended up being the difference in the game as New England would go on to secure their spot in the Super Bowl with a 10-7 win over Denver.
On the other side of the league, the NFC Championship Game was a high-scoring shootout between two powerhouse offenses, with the Los Angeles Rams and the Seattle Seahawks combining for 58 points. Ultimately though, a muffed punt by Los Angeles led to a quick Seattle score that proved to be the difference in the game, with Sam Darnold throwing three touchdown passes to lead the Seahawks to a 31-27 victory.
The Super Bowl appearance is a redemption of sorts for Sam Darnold, who was drafted by the New York Jets in 2018 and since then has played for the Carolina Panthers, the San Francisco 49ers and most recently, the Minnesota Vikings.
But fans quickly noticed that the NFL may have leaked the script at the beginning of the season.
Back in September, the league posted this graphic with players from all 32 teams standing in front of the Lombardi Trophy:
And who were the two standing side by side, the closest to the Super Bowl? Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold and New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.
Naturally, many think (or joked) this is further proof that the NFL is rigged and that the matchup for the Super Bowl had been set the entire season:
I mean, it’s a pretty big coincidence that the two players at the front of the picture, both quarterbacks for teams that missed the playoffs entirely last year, just happen to be going to the Super Bowl this year and standing side by side in the graphic.
It’s a tough break for the NFL (assuming it’s just a coincidence). The popular logo conspiracy theory, which claimed that you could tell which teams were making the Super Bowl based on the color of that year’s logo, seemed to be dead this year. But after fans found this graphic, they’re stuck dealing with the “scripted” allegations yet again.
The NFL could have avoided this by putting the Jets and the Browns together at the front. There’s no chance either of those teams were making the Super Bowl, and if they did, it would have CONFIRMED that the league is rigged.
