Super Bowl LI: Ryan vs Brady to determine who wins it

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  • Post published:February 3, 2017

The two best teams in the National Football League will battle it out in one of the biggest sporting events in the world on Monday morning (SA time). JUANDRE JOUBERT reports.

The Atlanta Falcons, who have never lifted the Lombardi Trophy, will take on four-time winners, the New England Patriots, for the title of Super Bowl champions and a coveted ring.

A Pats victory will make Tom Brady the quarterback with the most wins in Super Bowl history, and Bill Belichick the coach with the most.

Brady, one of the greatest quarterbacks to have ever played the game, will go up against Matt Ryan, who is having one of the best seasons of his career.

Brady was suspended for the opening four games of the season, but has still managed over 3,500 yards. He has thrown 28 touchdown passes and only conceded two interceptions, which is an NFL record in terms of touchdown/interception ratio. The 39-year-old led the Patriots to 14-2 record in the regular season and a sixth straight AFC Championship game.

Ryan has had an amazing season, passing for almost 5,000 yards, including 38 touchdowns, 10 more than Brady. He led the Falcons to the Super Bowl as the No 1 scoring offense in the league, with Atlanta setting a franchise record for most points in a single season (540).

One notable stat is that Brady has never lost against the Falcons. But come Monday, stats will count for nothing. It might come down to a fumble, a missed field goal, an interception or a referee decision.

Belichick is a master tactician, who will have studied every aspect of the Falcons’ game leading up to the Super Bowl and found a way to beat them. Atlanta coach Dan Quinn would have done the same in an attempt to stop the Brady bunch.

PREDICTION: The Patriots to win a fascinating clash 31-21, with Brady and Belichick cementing their names as the greatest duo in NFL history.