Welcome back to The Blog of Ben. I know I have put up a lot of posts this week, but hopefully this one will not be nearly as loaded as the last 1 1/2 posts. I hope you enjoy this preview for Super Bowl 47.
Sunday Sunday Sunday. This coming Sunday, the Harbaugh brothers will be the first pair of brothers to go against each other in the Super Bowl. That is also all that ESPN seems to care about. My thought is 'who actually cares?' but I guess that ESPN cares because it gives the plenty of headlines to talk about other than Ray Lewis and a long list of baseball players using PED's, which apparently deer antler extract falls under the category of. I just don't see how deer antler extract can enhance one's performance. Anyway, let's get started on this preview.
Key Player for Baltimore: Whoever ends up covering Vernon Davis
Vernon Davis is one of the best Tight Ends in the NFL right now. His combination of size, strength, speed, and good hands make him a huge threat to any defense. I'm not too familiar with Baltimore's defense, otherwise I would actually name the player who will most likely be covering him. However, whoever does end up covering Vernon Davis better do a good job if Baltimore wants to win.
Key Player for San Francisco: Justin Smith
Justin Smith is the glue that keeps San Francisco's defense together. Without him, Aldon Smith would not have 19.5 sacks this year. Justin Smith has been hurt since about four weeks before the end of the season, and that has really hurt Aldon Smith's production as he has not had a sack since. San Francisco needs Justin Smith to be healthy if they want Aldon Smith to put Joe Flacco into the ground.
Key Match-up: Baltimore's front-7 vs. San Francisco's Read Option
I was going to be really corny and let the key match-up be Jim Harbaugh vs. John Harbaugh, but I just could not bring myself to do it. Anyway, the read option has taken the NFL by storm the last two years (more so this year) and San Francisco is REALLY good at it. It's going to take every bit of discipline that Baltimore's front-7 has to shut down this read option offense.
3 Bold Predictions:
1. Ray Lewis will not put up any stats besides tackles (no sacks, INT's, forced fumbles).
2. No offensive touchdowns will be scored in the first half.
3. Baltimore will do what Atlanta did in the NFC Championship game and focus on stopping Collin Kaepernick resulting in a huge game (at least 150 rush yds. and two TDs) and Super Bowl MVP for Frank Gore.
Final Prediction:
San Francisco: 24
Baltimore: 20
There was no way I was not going to pick San Francisco in this game. I did so mainly because I absolutely cannot stand Baltimore, and I cannot bring myself to root for a killer who has been portrayed as a demi-god by ESPN (aka Ray Lewis). I also was not going to bet against San Francisco's Super Bowl record (5-0). I hope you enjoyed this blog. Thanks for reading and God bless!!
