By Sean Gannon

1. Offensive Lines of Both teams

The offensive lines for both the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers will have to be on top of their game this coming Sunday. With great rushers on both sides of the defense, these offensive lines need to win the point of contact and the battle in the trenches. Tom Brady is, without a doubt, is the best quarterback ever to play the game; however, that does not mean that he is perfect all of the time. Brady struggles when there is a constant pass rush on top of him, making him uncomfortable and allowing their presence to be known every snap. Frank Clark and Chris Jones need to have big games against a solid Tampa Bay offensive line. Meaning rookie tackle Tristen Wirfs, veterans Ali Marpet and Donovan Smith need to play at their best protecting Brady every time he drops back to pass to one of his great wide receivers. The Buccaneers only gave up one sack in their first meeting earlier this year, and that is the kind of game they need to have yet again.

On the flip, the Chiefs offensive line needs to be ready. They will be out both their starting right tackled Mitchell Schwartz (back injury) and left tackle Eric Fisher (torn Achilles). They may also be without starting right guard Daniel Kilgore due to a close Covid contact (he still has a chance to play if he continues to test negative). The Chiefs offensive line is depleted, forcing second string guys to take over starting roles in the most significant moment of their careers. Mike Remmers will most likely be the starting left tackle after playing right tackle last week for Schwartz. Forcing right guard Andrew Wylie to right tackle and back up right guard Stefen Wisniewski to the starting role. This is a brand-new offensive line for Kansas City coming into this game with many changes. Patrick Mahomes is on his way to greatness, and protection needs to be there against the likes of Jason Pierre Paul, Shaquil Barrett, and Ndamukong Suh. These are excellent pass rushers; Barrett recorded three sacks in the NFC Championship game against Green Bay and is looking to get after Mahomes. Mahomes is more mobile than Brady, and we have seen him take off for big chunks using his legs, but if the pressure is frequently on him and in his face, it’s going to be that much harder to throw the ball deep downfield and find Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce. The offensive line for Kansas City gave up two sacks against the Buccaneers earlier this year, but with crucial starters missing, they will have their work cut out for them in the Superbowl. This game is going to be won in the trenches, and whichever offensive line holds the pass rush of their opponent.

2. Defensive Lines

We talked about the offensive lines in the first part now it comes to the other side of the ball to make big days. As mentioned, Brady struggles the most when there’s pressure in his face; getting after Brady cannot be stressed enough. Frank Clark is coming off of a two-sack game against the Bills in the AFC Championship and wants to build on that by getting more on the biggest stage. Neither he nor Chris Jones recorded a sack against Brady in their first meeting, which is not going to be acceptable in this game. Jones hasn’t notched a sack in the playoffs yet; that will change on Super Bowl Sunday. Getting after Brady and forcing him to make mistakes will allow the Chiefs high powered offense to put up points. The best players show out under the big lights and expect Jones and Clark to step up.

In the NFC Championship game, JPP and Shaq Barrett combined for five total sacks making MVP candidate Aaron Rodgers incredibly frustrated. They changed the momentum of the game at crucial points for Tampa Bay. The Chiefs’ offensive line is fragile coming into this matchup, and it’s time for the Buccaneers to take advantage of this weakness and get after Mahomes. Suppose it is not JPP and Barrett getting after Mahomes look to Vita Vea and Ndamukong Suh coming up the middle. Both Barrett and JPP got a sack in their first meeting and need to do it once again. Getting after Mahomes, getting in his face, and making him stay in the pocket as best they can, is going to be a key factor to a Buccaneers championship.

3. The Secondary

Both of these teams boast great quarterbacks and incredible receiving corps; at any moment, either one of these offenses can make a 50-yard play for a touchdown. The Buccaneers gave up 263 yards and three touchdowns to Tyreek Hill alone in their first meeting. It wasn’t until they brought over-the-top safety help consistently that Hill finally slowed down in that game. On the flip, Evans was able to catch two touchdown grabs against the Chiefs secondary. These secondary’s need to be ready for the matchups and stick to their assignments, not getting caught up in the play-action or any roll outs. If any wide receiver on either team gets away from the secondary, it could spell bad news for the opponents. We’ve seen both the Buccaneers and Chiefs score in a matter of seconds, and with two quarterbacks who have been in the Super Bowl, they will take advantage of any mistakes by the secondaries. Sean Murphy Bunting has stepped up for the Buccaneers getting an interception in every playoff game thus far. Tyrann Mathieu and Rashad Fenton for the Chiefs have stepped up, getting an interception against the Browns and Bills. These playmakers need to be ready to make a play on the ball and not let the receivers get away from them.