Fansided

Super Bowl 49 from A to Z

By Will Osgood

Jan 22, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; General view of the NFL Experience at the Phoenix Convention Center in advance of Super Bowl XLIX between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 22, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; General view of the NFL Experience at the Phoenix Convention Center in advance of Super Bowl XLIX between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 18, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks free safety Earl Thomas (29) leaves the field after an injury during the second quarter against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 18, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks free safety Earl Thomas (29) leaves the field after an injury during the second quarter against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports /

T

Tickets

The Super Bowl has long been a marquee event. In the last decade-plus it has turned into a virtual national holiday. Of course, there are many who dream of one day attending a Super Bowl. If that’s you, and you don’t already have tickets, it will cost you your life savings, most likely.

According to TipIQ, the average ticket price on the secondary market was $4,833.25, as of January 23. The site began tracking Super Bowl ticket prices and has not seen the average price exceed $5,000 per ticket, but some are expecting that it will.

Then again, as of Friday, the least expensive ticket was $2,395, so there may be some relative deals available on Stubhub or the NFL’s official secondary ticket exchange, NFL Ticket Exchange (powered by Ticketmaster).

Thomas, Earl

Earl Thomas III is a diminutive, yet ball-hawking safety who is the heart of Seattle’s secondary. You won’t get many bone-crushing hits from Thomas, as with Kam Chancellor, nor much talk, like with Richard Sherman. Instead, you get a safety who truly plays center field in the Seahawks’ base cover 3 defense.

In his fifth season, Thomas has been named a Pro Bowler and All-Pro four times already. He has 16 interceptions for his career, one of which he returned for a touchdown. This season, Thomas was credited with eight passes defensed, an interception, four forced fumbles and a fumble recovery to go with a career high 80 tackles.

Pro Football Focus recorded him as giving up just 51 passing yards when teams threw into his coverage, or 0.2 yards per snap in coverage.

In two postseason games, Thomas has been just as good, knocking two passes away, forcing a fumble and recording nine tackles.

Thomas began this season as the Seahawks’ punt returner, an experiment which lasted just two attempts before he was pulled from that role. Nonetheless, Thomas is crucial to the success of the Seahawks’ success, especially against the often pass-happy Patriots.

Thomas injured a shoulder in the NFC Championship Game but returned after just one series. He is expected play near full strength on February 1.

Next: A little info about the host

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