Super Bowl LX: Top 3 storylines heading into the NFL’s championship game

Super Bowl LX represents the pinnacle of American football. It's tradition to gather together friends and family, eat finger foods and argue about the best halftime shows in Super Bowl History. This Sunday (8 February) will be no different.

From the first day of training camp, every team is chasing one goal: to lift the Lombardi Trophy in February. Now it all comes down to Sunday, as the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots meet on football's biggest stage at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

1. The tale of the quarterbacks

At the centre of every team is the signal caller. In the case of Super Bowl LX, there are compelling stories behind two quarterbacks with glaring similarities.

Sam Darnold, had been all but sworn off in his career to be reclassified as a glorified backup quarterback. Instead, he reaches his first Super Bowl after stops with five different NFL teams. Darnold spent the 2023 season with the San Francisco 49ers as Brock Purdy’s backup, where he started in only one game the entire season. The same 49ers whose stadium he now returns to, competing in the final game of the season on Sunday in a different uniform. Darnold, originally the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, has rebuilt and redefined his career through persistence and self-confidence.

Taking the field opposite Darnold is the sophomore sensation Drake Maye, similarly drafted third overall by the Patriots in 2024. He is highly regarded as the heir to retired Patriots legend Tom Brady and finished just behind Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford in MVP voting this season. At 23, Maye will be the second youngest quarterback to ever to start in a Super Bowl, with a chance to make history as the youngest to win one.

Both Maye (shoulder) and Darnold (oblique) entered Super Bowl week managing minor injuries. Maye has been removed from the Patriots' injury report and has been a full participant during this week's practices. All team reports indicate both quarterbacks will be ready to compete in Sunday's game (3:30 p.m. local time – Pacific - kickoff).

2. A historic rematch with redemption on the line

Eleven years after Super Bowl XLIX, the Seahawks and Patriots meet again. Cue the ominous music.

That night, Seattle reached the one-yard line with star running back Marshawn Lynch ready in the backfield, only for quarterback Russell Wilson’s ill-advised pass to be intercepted by Malcolm Butler in one of the most famous plays in Super Bowl history. New England escaped with a 28–24 win, and the moment has lingered ever since, especially for Seahawks fans who watched their team's bid for a second straight championship go down the drain.

Once again, Seattle enters the game favoured by many experts, while New England can never be counted out with the chance to become the winningest franchise in Super Bowl History. The Patriots are making their 12th Super Bowl appearance, chasing an NFL-record seventh championship as they are currently tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers at six.

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