Everyone assumes there's just one fan base rooting for the Patriots in Super Bowl 52 — that of course being the New England faithful. All other NFL fan bases have seen enough of Robert Kraft, Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and Co. hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
But for this Super Bowl, one more locale and fan base has emerged as pro-Patriots: the state of Minnesota and Vikings fans.
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An anti-Eagles fervor has gripped Minnesotans since Nick Foles, Fletcher Cox and the Eagles whipped the Vikings 38-7 in the NFC championship game amid the abhorrent behavior of too many Philadelphia fans. We've all heard the horror stories, from dumping beer on Vikings fans to picking fights with them and throwing bottles at the team buses, along with a Philly fan arrested for punching a horse.
That's not a good way to get Minnesotans excited about supporting their NFC conquerors just two weeks later, even if the Eagles’ opponents are the Patriots and their entitled fans.
But in another interesting story line, Minnesotans have adopted Brady as their favored son after the QB said he was looking forward to coming to Minneapolis. He said he has fond memories of his summers spent as a child with his relatives in his mother Galynn's hometown of Browerville, Minn.
"I've always felt a connection to Minnesota," Brady said the day after the AFC title game. "It's just a great place. It's really special to go back there. My mom grew up there. My grandparents lived there, and we would go back in the summer and spend weeks, milk the cows with my grandpa and just kind of tend to the farm and go ice fishing in the winter. It was a great experience for me, being born in California."
He was "Little Tommy" to his family back then, and Brady still has uncles and cousins living in Minnesota. He was in Browerville, 132 miles northwest of Minneapolis, for his grandfather's funeral last year.
Brady expects lots of extended family to be at the Super Bowl, supporting him and the Patriots, as was the case when he last played in Minnesota against the Vikings in 2014. But he faced a hostile Metrodome crowd that day. This time, his supporters will be far more than just family members and New Englanders who have made the trek.
And those supporters, Minnesotans included, will be happy with Sunday's result if my game prediction holds true.
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Brady and the Patriots beat the Vikings handily, 30-7, in his last visit. While Sunday's Super Bowl figures to be a closer game, I expect the Pats to come out on top with Brady being the difference-maker as he was in last year's Super Bowl.
The first problem for Philadelphia: Belichick and his coordinators who on their way to head coaching gigs, Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia, have had two weeks to analyze the Eagles and devise their strategy. That's never good news for the Patriots' Super Bowl opponents, save for the Giants.
Belichick and Patricia are going to bet Foles can't repeat the performance he put forth against Minnesota's usually stout defense. Eagles coach Doug Pederson and his offensive coordinator Frank Reich crossed up the Vikings by having Foles throw downfield much more than he had done in previous starts.
Belichick and Patricia will first seek to stop the run game, led by a good offensive line and backs Jay Ajayi and former Patriot LeGarrette Blount. They'll have their defenders ready for the long and short passing game, but they are facing a much better receiving corps with the Eagles (led by Alshon Jeffery and Zach Ertz) compared to that of the Jaguars. The key will be whether they can pressure Foles with a pass rush that generated 11 combined sacks in the playoff wins over the Titans and Jaguars, and they probably can.
Offensively, look for McDaniels and Brady to emphasize the hurry-up offense in an effort to tire Eagles pass-rushers and limit their ability to substitute. Brady runs the up-tempo, spread-the-field passing game to perfection, and the expected return of Rob Gronkowski (from his concussion in the Jacksonville game) will certainly help the Patriots' cause.
Even without Julian Edelman, the Patriots have too many weapons for Brady. Wide receiver Danny Amendola has elevated his game in this year's playoffs. He made 11 catches for 112 yards against Tennessee, and then made the big plays in the fourth quarter with two touchdown receptions and a huge punt return to set up a score against Jacksonville.
Adding to the Patriots’ arsenal are wideouts Brandin Cooks and Chris Hogan along with dual-threat running backs Dion Lewis and James White.
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It will be a huge challenge for the Eagles defense to pressure Brady as they were able to do against the Vikings' Case Keenum. Their problem will be that Brady gets rid of the ball so quick and is a master at finding an open man and/or his hot receiver against the blitz. Philadelphia wants to rush four and cover with seven, so the onus is on Cox and the Eagles’ front four.
If the game is on the line late in the fourth quarter, there's nobody better than Minnesota's new favorite son calling the signals for the Pats.
In the end, the pro-Brady Minnesota fan base should be happy to the tune of a Patriots win, 26-20.
Jeff Diamond is a former president of the Titans and former vice president/general manager of the Vikings. He was selected NFL Executive of the Year in 1998. Diamond is currently a business and sports consultant who also does broadcast and online media work. He is the former chairman and CEO of The Ingram Group. Follow Jeff on Twitter: @jeffdiamondNFL.
