Ex-professional Sebastian Vollmer
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“There isn’t one clear favorite for the Super Bowl”
Dusseldorf The NFL is in the hot phase: This weekend the playoffs start with the wild card round – and the race for the Super Bowl seems more open than ever. Ex-professional Sebastian Vollmer types the encounters.
A Hollywood director could not have written the screenplay of the final day of the National Football League (NFL) regular season more exciting. Until the last second it was unclear who would finish last in the play-offs. But where films usually end with a happy ending – as the Las Vegas Raiders and the Pittsburgh Steelers have now experienced – the NFL really begins.
The past 18 weeks have been a lame prelude to what will happen next weekend: The playoffs begin with the wild card round. Do-or-die, live or die. “Now it’s really getting started – it’s a one-game season and every game can be the last,” says Sebastian Vollmer. The Kaarster native should know, he won the Super Bowl twice with the New England Patriots in his NFL career. The title for which hundreds of professionals struggle every year.
Many teams had to torment until the last second of regulation time. The Indianapolis Colts even gambled away their participation in the playoffs on the last day of the game, and the Los Angeles Chargers also slipped out. Twelve teams are now fighting for the coveted title. “It was a really open, balanced season. Many teams are close together in terms of performance, and there isn’t one clear favorite for the Super Bowl,” says Vollmer, who began his career with the Düsseldorf Panthers and is a role model for many German players.
Still, the list of contenders is long. There’s the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the defending champions, with star quarterback Tom Brady, Vollmer’s former teammates. Or the Kansas City Chiefs, who triumphed in the Super Bowl two years ago. The Los Angeles Rams team is certainly a hot candidate. A lot of money was invested in the team this season in order to win the title if possible. In English one says: they went all-in.
But is that enough? Ex-NFL player Vollmer makes the wild card round check.
Cincinnati Bengals-Las Vegas Raiders: I’m guessing the Raiders. It’s impressive how they’ve dealt with the many setbacks this season. They also had this emotional win over the Chargers that got them into the playoffs.
Buffalo Bills-New England Patriots: I would give and wish it to my former New England team. But the Bills are talented. The Patriots need to establish their running game in Buffalo and hope for bad weather.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Philadelphia Eagles: It’s going to be a very clear thing for Tampa Bay. My former quarterback Tom Brady is back in his element.
Dallas Cowboys-San Francisco 49ers: Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is a good friend of mine, so I’d give him a chance to progress with San Francisco. But I don’t believe in it. The Dallas defense will show what they’ve got.
Kansas City Chiefs-Pittsburgh Steelers: This will be Big Ben’s farewell game. One can already ask oneself why he is still playing at all. He hasn’t had the very high level as a quarterback for a long time.
Los Angeles Rams-Arizona Cardinals: A few weeks ago I would have said that Arizona is the top favorite for the title. But they couldn’t keep the level. I think it’s the most interesting game. The Rams are the better team for me, have multiple guns on offense in Cooper Kupp and OBJ, they’ve gone all-in this year and have a claim to winning the Super Bowl.
Here is the photo gallery: This is how the expert tips the wild card round of the NFL
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