Super Bowl 55 between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Kansas City Chiefs is fast approaching. Here’s what you can expect for this year’s big game. 

Tom Brady is unbelievably back in the Super Bowl for the 10th time. Prior to Brady’s first season in Tampa Bay, many were skeptical about his ability to play at a high level. The 43-year-old has lived up to high expectations, leading the Buccaneers to an 11-5 regular season record and two huge playoff wins over the New Orleans Saints and the Green Bay Packers.

However, Brady hasn’t been the only threat on the field for the Buccaneers. Mike Evans and Chris Godwin have led the receiving core with help from veteran tight end Rob Gronkowski who came out of retirement after a one year hiatus. The Bucs also have a strong defense, which ranked top ten in the league during the regular season. 

While the Bucs have been stout on both sides of the ball, the defending champion Chiefs are just as strong.

The Chiefs are led once again by the new face of the NFL, quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who led his team to a 14-2 regular season and took down the Cleveland Browns and the Buffalo Bills to make it back to the Super Bowl for the second year in a row. Wide receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce both totaled over 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns, torching defenses week after week. The red hot Chiefs passing offense could spell trouble for a Buccaneers defense that finished in the bottom half of the league in passing yards allowed, as well as passing touchdowns allowed.

The Chiefs also finished the regular season with a top ten defense and ranked just one spot behind the Buccaneers.

While the Chiefs are favored to repeat as Super Bowl champs, the many doubts surrounding Tom Brady are frankly surprising, to say the least. People often forget that this is the same Tom Brady that led the New England Patriots to nine Super Bowls and won six of them. While Brady is staring down one of his toughest opponents of all time, we shouldn’t be surprised if he finds a way to win, just like he has for the last 20 years.

For Patrick Mahomes, Sunday will present an opportunity to take Tom Brady’s spot as the king of the NFL. Mahomes has been called the future face of the league, and what better way to cement himself in that role than to take down the man who has controlled the throne for the last two decades? 

This year’s Super Bowl will be held in Tampa Bay, which means the Buccaneers will enjoy a home field advantage. However, this advantage will not be at full strength. The NFL is only allowing 25,000 fans into the stadium due to COVID-19, which will be the lowest attendance in Super Bowl history. Commissioner Roger Goodell recently announced that the league will be thanking some of the healthcare workers on the frontline by providing 7,500 tickets to vaccinated doctors and nurses. So while the Bucs won’t have the luxury of a full-strength home crowd, they will enjoy the short drive to the game, which is a luxury the Chiefs don’t have.

Whether you are tuning in to watch two of the greatest quarterbacks of our generation battle for another title, or just watching The Weeknd’s halftime show performance, Super Bowl 55 should provide us with some great entertainment this Sunday.