Patriots and Falcons to Face Off in Super Bowl LI

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Chris Hilsinger-Pate, Staff Writer

The New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons will be competing in Super Bowl LI (51) in Houston, Texas on February 5th; NRG Stadium will host the historic event.

Super Bowl LI will feature two teams with very different stories. Coming into the season, some experts expected the Falcons to be no more than a “.500” team due to their offensive woes. In the 2015 season, the Falcons offense only averaged 21.2 points a game despite being seventh in total offense; the offense rebounded in 2016 in a big way as they led the league with an average of 33.8 points a game. Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan’s play-action based system has allowed the players to prosper; quarterback Matt Ryan had the best year of his career as he threw for 4,944 yards, 38 touchdowns, and a completion percentage of 69.9%.

On the other hand, the Patriots have been the most dominant team in the NFL since 2001. In that time, they’ve won the AFC East 14 times. The Patriots offense averaged 27.6 points a game in 2016, and their defense only allowed an NFL-low 15.6 points a game. The legendary Bill Belichick managed to field arguably the most competitive team in the league despite trading away stars Chandler Jones and Jamie Collins.

As of now, Vegas is favoring the Patriots by three points and the over/under is set at 58.5.

It’ll be interesting to see how the Patriots defense combats the potent Falcons offense that boasts Julio Jones and Devonta Freeman. Another thing to watch is the brilliance of Tom Brady. Brady is regularly regarded as one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history, and the playoffs tend to bring out the best in him.

Tune in to Fox at 3:30 PM for what should be one of the most exciting sporting events in recent years.