Fansided

The 5 most important players in the Super Bowl

By James Simpson II

Jan 18, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) celebrates after beating the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 18, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) celebrates after beating the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 28, 2014; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch (24) talks with a coach during the second half against the St. Louis Rams at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 28, 2014; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch (24) talks with a coach during the second half against the St. Louis Rams at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /

Marshawn Lynch

Other than maybe Rob Gronkowski, Marshawn Lynch (280 carries, 1,306 rushing yards, 13 TD runs in 2014) is the best non-quarterback offensive player in this game. Lynch is the Seahawks workhorse and has been the last few years. As good as Russell Wilson is, Lynch is the player that jumpstarts the offense and gets it into high gear. Seattle’s strength offensively lies in controlling the line of scrimmage with Lynch and feeding him carries as often as possible to wear opposing defenses down. They’ve leaned on that approach for the last couple of years and especially against Green Bay (25 carries, 157 rushing yards, 1 TD run) in the NFC Championship Game and I don’t see any reason they would stop in the biggest game of the year.

Offensively for Seattle, I don’t expect Russell Wilson & Co to play as poorly against the Patriots as they did against the Packers and getting Lynch 20-plus carries in the Super Bowl will go a long way in keeping the offense sharp. If Beast Mode is on his game and if he eclipses 100 yards on the ground, then the Seattle’s chances of repeating definitely increase.

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