NFL 2022 Preview: ‘Expert’ Super Bowl Picks As New Season Kicks Off
Another Lombardi Trophy headed to Kansas City?
The 2022 NFL season is upon us, and while every team begins the season with renewed optimism, we think it's a pretty limited race for the Lombardi Trophy.
It has become an annual tradition for the NESN.com staff to make its Super Bowl picks, and with the new campaign ready to kick off, the pigskin prognosticators are back. If our predictions are any indication, parity -- Super Bowl parity, at least -- is dead in the National Football League.
Here are the NESN.com staff Super Bowl picks, with betting odds from DraftKings Sportsbook.
KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (+1000)
Keagan Stiefel -- Chiefs over Los Angeles Rams
This may seem like a square choice, but you can't go wrong betting the NFL's most talented team will face off with its most talented player. Patrick Mahomes is still a wizard and the Rams defense is still stacked with generational talents. (An offense with Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson isn't half bad either. In a one-on-one meeting here, I like Mahomes to be Mahomes and dunk on the Rams' dynasty dreams.
Jason Ounpraseuth -- Chiefs over Rams
Patrick Mahomes remains a top three quarterback in the NFL and should adjust fine without Tyreek Hill -- the trio of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdez-Scantling and Skky Moore will prove to surprise the league. As long as the defense can remain average, there's very little reason to doubt the Super Bowl 54 MVP against the defending champion Rams.
Dakota Randall -- Chiefs over Tampa Bay Buccaneers
People once again are sleeping on the Chiefs. Perhaps that's because Kansas City and Patrick Mahomes are the current-day version of Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, in that people talk themselves into believing they're not that big of a threat. But I'm picking the Chiefs to win it all, as I believe the addition of JuJu Smith-Schuster will help offset the loss of Tyreek Hill and that Mahomes and Andy Reid will figure it out. As for the Bucs, every time I think, "There's no way that Tom Brady does that," he winds up doing it. So, I'm predicting he makes it to the Super Bowl in his age-45 season, then gets so ticked off by the loss that he returns for another season -- in a Miami Dolphins uniform.
Adam London -- Chiefs over Philadelphia Eagles
Given all of the chaos that ensued across the NFL over the offseason -- particularly in the AFC West -- it feels like everyone is overlooking Kansas City. Yes, the Chiefs lost one of the most dynamic playmakers in football, but the loss of Tyreek Hill could be alleviated by a handful of high-upside new arrivals. Patrick Mahomes and company have plenty of Super Bowl experience and it should be motivated as ever following an embarrassing season-ending loss at home.
Greg Dudek -- Chiefs over Los Angeles Rams
It seems people are sleeping on the Chiefs, who have made four straight conference championship games. Kansas City and Patrick Mahomes will use that as motivation to win their second Super Bowl title in the last four seasons. Squarely in the prime of his career, Mahomes will prove once again that he?s the best quarterback in the NFL and lift up the Chiefs to great heights.
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (+700)
Ben Watanabe -- Buccaneers over Los Angeles Chargers
An All-LA matchup is tantalizing ? and also lazy. So I?ll go an even lazier route and predict an unheard-of-eighth Super Bowl title for Tom Brady. Don't expect any hangover from the preseason absentee drama. If Deflategate and Spygate couldn't knock Brady off track, a little unexplained hiatus in August hardly registers as a blip. I'm not all that high on the Chargers' many defensive additions. I think Justin Herbert and the many weapons he's surrounded by will be just that good.
Scott Neville -- Buccaneers over Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals appeared to be one of those lightning-in-a-bottle teams that had magical run but one that didn't make sense on paper. Typically I'd then call for regression but they beefed up their line and made enough additions to warrant the back-to-back Super Bowl appearances. The Buccaneers are in their third season with Tom Brady under center and should be fairly unstoppable in a weakened NFC almost regardless of injuries to the offensive line. In the end, Tom Brady goes out with a win, which feels almost guaranteed to happen based on his mystical career.
GREEN BAY PACKERS (+1000)
Sam Panayotovich -- Green Bay Packers over Buffalo Bills
Buffalo is the highest power-rated team in the NFL per the oddsmakers and that makes sense. But the Bills aren't invincible by any means. I like Green Bay to get hot down the stretch and ride a top five defense into the Super Bowl, where Aaron Rodgers will apply the finishing touches.
LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (+1400)
Sean McGuire -- Chargers over Packers
The Chargers know the time to spend is now given they have a quarterback on a rookie contract, and greatly improved their defense with the additions of J.C. Jackson and Khalil Mack. Potential MVP candidate Justin Herbert will continue to take another impactful step forward after an impressive sophomore campaign, and has the talent around him to do so.
BUFFALO BILLS (+550)
Mike Cole -- Bills over Green Bay Packers
It feels like the entire world is on the Bills, despite the fact Josh Allen and Sean McDermott have yet to reach even a conference title game. But Allen's upward ascent should be reaching its crest, while McDermott's system and culture are well established. Buffalo survives the AFC gauntlet and wins it all over a Packers team that just can't keep up with the Bills' high-powered offense in Arizona.
Ricky Doyle -- Bills over Packers
Elite quarterback play. Excellent skill-position players. A top-tier defense with talent at all three levels. What's not to like about the Bills this season? Buffalo has been knocking on the door under Sean McDermott and finally feels ready to break through, with last season's crazy divisional-round loss to the Kansas City Chiefs serving as extra motivation. The Packers, meanwhile, will ride an impressive D -- not just Aaron Rodgers -- to football's biggest stage before falling to the more well-rounded team.
Zack Cox -- Bills over Packers
This feels like the year of ascendancy for the Bills, who return a stacked roster and an MVP front-runner in Josh Allen. The beefed-up AFC will be a gauntlet this season, but I like Buffalo's odds of finally breaking through after back-to-back playoff heartbreakers in Kansas City. As for the Packers, I am concerned about their ability to replace all-world wideout Davante Adams. But I trust Aaron Rodgers to elevate the weapons around him, and that coupled with a strong defense gets Green Bay to the top in an NFC that has no obvious favorite.
