“I’ll be back!”

These were the words of the Superbowl 55 MVP Tom Brady as he hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in triumph following the 31-9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. The then 43-year-old led the Buccaneers to its franchise’s second Superbowl. As the 2021 NFL season commences, many questions still need answered, such as will Tom Brady and the Buccaneers repeat as Superbowl champs? Or will the Chiefs get their revenge? Or will another team claim the glory at SoFi stadium this February? I went around BHS to ask the students’ opinions on this upcoming season.

A trend on the American Football Conference (AFC) side of things is that it is the Chiefs’ conference this year, as they held 52% of votes by BHS students. The Chiefs boast

However, some opposed the Chiefs’ narrative and brought up other teams that could dethrone them, including the Browns, Colts, Ravens, Bills, Pats, Chargers and even the Raiders.

“Baker Mayfield, dark horse MVP. He’ll lead [the Browns] to the Superbowl!” senior Nick Ponti said.

This prediction has some merit behind it as last year the Browns took the Chiefs to the limit in the AFC Divisional Round (albeit without Patrick Mahomes for much of the second half), and they look ready to challenge them on the mountaintop this year with key signing, Jadeveon Clowney to help aid the pass rush, alongside Myles Garrett and the return of Odell Beckham Jr. who missed the majority of last season due to an ACL injury.

As for the NFC, the defending champs, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, held the top spot among the BHS students; however the Los Angeles Rams and other teams are nipping at the champ’s heels. The Rams, the second most popular BHS choice from the NFC, might be the most viable contender as they held the NFL’s best defense led by last year’s AP Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald and the lockdown corner of Jalen Ramsey. Furthermore, they added Matthew Stafford from Detroit who always had the stats but the team around him never panned out. Stafford has boasted the most fourth quarter comeback drives since 2014 and has been praised for his ball placement as well as his field awareness.

The students of BHS also had some hot takes to go along with their predictions. Sophomores Garret S. and Jayden J. both agreed that the Eagles will be the surprise team of the season and that Jameis Winston will step up and shock the whole NFL. Others such as juniors Jayden Whittaker and Nick Berry said, “the MVP candidates are going to be Carson Wentz and Russell Wilson.”

As the 2021 NFL season will be “the biggest season ever” according to the NFL, we can only wait and watch for the madness to ensue and see who will be holding the Lombardi Trophy this February.