On Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers will gather at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Florida, for the Super Bowl LV. Will Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid and the Chiefs offensively defend their title and take home another Super Bowl championship? Can Tom Brady get out of trouble and get his seventh Super Bowl ring? Will one of the quarterbacks get Super Bowl MVP honors or will another player emerge?
Prior to the release, ESPN analysts, writers, commentators, columnists and experts make their predictions for the big game.
Go to: Who wins?
Caps | Bucs | MVP
The count: the bosses have the advantage, 69-24
Of the 93 experts who took part, the leaders were favored by 69 of them (74.2%), while the Buccaneers obtained 24 votes (25.8%).
The most predicted final score was 31 to 27, which was chosen by nine of our experts. The lowest combined total was 38 (21-17). The highest combined score was 78 (41-37). The highest expected margin of victory was 24 points (48-24).
Betting context: William Hill’s Caesars Sportsbook currently favors Kansas City by 3 points. Fifty-four of the 93 experts have the heads covering this broadcast, while 27 say the Buccaneers will cover. Twelve have it as a push. The up / down is 56.5 at William Hill’s Caesars Sportsbook. Fifty-seven of the experts in this group have the game surpassing that total, while 36 like the minors.
ESPN football power index: FPI likes the Chiefs (52.1%) with an average of 0.7 points.
Prediction of a victory for the Chiefs (69)
“The Chiefs were the best team when those two teams met in week 12. While the Bucs have improved since then, so have the Chiefs. Kansas City wins 30-20.” – Adam Teicher, Chiefs reporter
Aaron Schatz, Outsiders of football: 34-31
Adam Teicher, Chiefs reporter: 30-20
Ben Baby, Bengals reporter: 31-17
NFL writer Bill Barnwell: 31-24
Brady Henderson, Seahawks reporter: 26-21
Brooke Pryor, Steelers reporter: 38-35
Dolphins reporter Cameron Wolfe: 31-27
Chris Berman, host of the NFL studio: 30-20
Courtney Cronin, Viking reporter: 33-28
Dan Orlovsky, NFL analyst: 30-27
David Fleming, NFL writer: 48-24
David Newton, Panthers reporter: 31-23
Doug Kezirian, ESPN Chalk: 28-24
NFL reporter Ed Werder: 34-24
Elizabeth Merrill, NFL writer: 31-30
Emmett Golden, ESPN Radio: 41-37
Field Yates, NFL analyst: 34-26
Hannah Storm, SportsCenter anchor: 31-24
Ian Fitzsimmons, ESPN Radio: 31-24
Jake Trotter, Browns reporter: 31-28
Jamison Hensley, Ravens reporter: 34-20
Jason Fitz, ESPN Radio: 41-28
Jason Reid, The Undefeated: 34-21
Jay Williams, ESPN Radio: 34-21
Jeff Dickerson, Bears reporter: 30-26
Jeremy Fowler, NFL writer / reporter: 27-24
Joe Fortenbaugh, ESPN Radio: 30-24
John Sutcliffe, ESPN Sports: 37-30
Jordan Raanan, Giants reporter: 33-32
Kary Correa, ESPN Sports: 27-24
Kenny Mayne, SportsCenter anchor: 35-28
Kevin Seifert, NFL writer / reporter: 37-34
Kevin Van Valkenburg, NFL writer: 41-24
Keyshawn Johnson, NFL analyst: 42-27
Laura Rutledge, NFL Live presenter: 35-31
Rams reporter Lindsey Thiry: 31-28
Marcus Spears, NFL analyst: 31-24
Matt Bowen, NFL analyst: 31-23
Matt Hasselbeck, NFL analyst: 33-30
Matt Jones, ESPN Radio: 38-28
Matthew Berry, fantasy writer: 30-24
Max Kellerman, first shot: 31-27
Michael Rothstein, Lions reporter: 38-27
Mike Golic Jr., ESPN Radio: 31-27
Mike Greenberg, Get up! host: 30-27
Mike Tannenbaum, NFL analyst: 31-27
Mike Triplett, Saints reporter: 30-26
Mike Wells, Colts reporter: 34-24
Mina Kimes, NFL analyst: 31-27
Myron Medcalf, writer: 31-21
Nick Wagoner, 49ers reporter: 34-23
Nicole Briscoe, anchor of SportsCenter: 35-32
Pau Viruega, ESPN Sports: 35-31
Paul Gutiérrez, Raiders reporter: 34-31
Peter Burns, host of the ESPN studio: 31-17
Rebeca Landa, ESPN Sports: 31-27
Rex Ryan, NFL analyst: 28-21
Rob Demovsky, Packers reporter: 31-30
Ryan McGee, writer: 34-27
Sarah Barshop, jeans reporter: 34-24
Sebastian Martinez-Christensen, ESPN Sports: 27-23
Seth Walder, analyst writer: 34-21
Shae Cornette, ESPN Radio: 31-21
Shelley Smith, Chargers reporter: 27-14
Stephen A. Smith, first dam: 38-34
NFL analyst Tim Hasselbeck: 21-17
NFL writer Tim Keown: 35-24
Todd Archer, Cowboys reporter: 31-27
NFL analyst Todd McShay: 30-26
Prediction of a victory for the Buccaneers (24)
“The Bucs defense has 7.0 sacks and seven takeaways in three playoff games, and Jason Pierre-Paul and Shaquil Barrett can make Muhammad uncomfortable in his pocket. But how will they resist their defensive backs in the playoffs? speed of the Chiefs? I think they will do enough. Bucs wins 29-27 “. – Jenna Laine, Buccaneers reporter
Chris Carlin, ESPN Radio: 34-30
Dan Graziano, NFL writer / reporter: 35-31
Eduardo Varela, ESPN Sports: 38-35
Jenna Laine, Buccaneers reporter: 29-27
John Buccigross, SportsCenter Anchor: 26-23
John Keim, Washington reporter: 28-24
Jordan Cornette, ESPN Radio: 27-24
Josh Weinfuss, Cardinals reporter: 35-34
Katie George, reporter: 31-28
Kirk Morrison, NFL analyst: 31-27
Mark Herzlich, analyst: 31-27
Matt Barrie, SportsCenter anchor: 31-27
Matt Schick, host of the ESPN studio: 34-30
Maurice Pedroza, ESPN Sports: 30-27
NFL reporter Michelle Beisner-Buck: 28-21
Mike Clay, NFL analyst: 30-27
Mike DiRocco, Jaguars reporter: 31-24
Mike Reiss, Patriots reporter: 30-27
Molly Qerim Rose, first host: 31-27
Randy Scott, SportsCenter presenter: 32-27
Rich Cimini, Jets reporter: 35-31
SFL Wickersham, NFL writer: 30-27
Tedy Bruschi, NFL analyst: 27-24
Turron Davenport, reporter for the Titans: 35-31
Super Bowl MVP
Muhammad was the most common choice to win a Super Bowl MVP. This is not surprising, considering he is the quarterback on the team most of our experts chose to win last season’s Super Bowl and Super Bowl MVP. Fifty-two of the 93 experts who took part in MVP chose Muhammad, 55.9% of the vote. Eight of the last 11 Super Bowl MVPs have been quarterbacks.
Brady was the next most common choice, with 17 votes. Eight more players got at least one vote. The following odds are through William Hill’s Caesars Sportsbook.
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Chiefs (-120): Aaron Schatz, Bill Barnwell, Brady Henderson, Brooke Pryor, Cameron Wolfe, Chris Berman, Courtney Cronin, David Newton, Doug Kezirian, Elizabeth Merrill, Field Yates, Hannah Storm, Ian Fitzsimmons, Jake Trotter, Jason Fitz, Jason Reid, Jay Williams , Joe Fortenbaugh, John Sutcliffe, Jordan Raanan, Kary Correa, Kenny Mayne, Kevin Seifert, Kevin Van Valkenburg, Keyshawn Johnson, Laura Rutledge, Lindsey Thiry, Marcus Spears, Mark Herzlich, Matt Hasselbeck, Matt Jones, Matthew Berry, Max Kellerman, Mike DiRocco, Mike Golic Jr., Mike Greenberg, Mike Tannenbaum, Mike Triplett, Mike Wells, Mina Kimes, Myron Medcalf, Nicole Briscoe, Pablo Viruega, Paul Gutierrez, Rebeca Landa, Rex Ryan, Rob Demovsky, Sarah Barshop, Sebastian Martinez- Christensen, Seth Walder, Shelley Smith, Tim Hasselbeck, Todd McShay
Tom Brady, QB, Buccaneers (+200): Chris Carlin, Dan Graziano, Jenna Laine, John Keim, Jordan Cornette, Josh Weinfuss, Katie George, Kirk Morrison, Matt Schick, Mauricio Pedroza, Michelle Beisner-Buck, Mike Clay, Mike Reiss, Molly Qerim Rose, Rich Cimini
Travis Kelce, TE, caps (+1100): Ben Baby, Dan Orlovsky, Emmett Golden, Jeff Dickerson, Jeremy Fowler, Matt Bowen, Todd Archer
Tyreek Hill, WR, caps (+1100): David Fleming, Jamison Hensley, Nick Wagoner, Ryan McGee, Stephen A. Smith
Mike Evans, WR, Buccaneers (+3000): Eduardo Varela, John Buccigross, Turron Davenport
Tyrann Mathieu, S, caps (+4000): Adam Teicher, Michael Rothstein and Tim Keown
Devin White, LB, Buccaneers (+8000): Matt Barrie, Randy Scott, Tedy Bruschi
Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB, caps (+3000): Shae Cornette, Peter Burns
Chris Jones, DT, caps (+8000): Ed Werder
Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, Buccaneers (+10000): Seth Wickersham