1 of 6 | New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft stands alongside players during Super Bowl LX opening night Monday at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, Calif. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo
Coach Mike Vrabel expects an “identity war” when his New England Patriots meet the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday in Super Bowl LX, he said Monday.
A minor earthquake hit San Ramon, Calif., on Monday morning, but additional soil shifted hours later south in the Bay Area when Patriots and Seahawks players kicked off Super Bowl week at opening night in San Jose.
Players from both teams fielded questions, which flew at them with the unpredictability of bouncing footballs. Fans flocked to the San Jose Convention Center just to catch glimpses of the NFL stars. Hundreds of reporters shouted questions, with content spanning from the mundane to bizarre.
But one thing was clear: the explicitly expressed identities of Vrabel’s Patriots and coach Mike Macdonald’s Seahawks. And neither coach is willing to budge ahead of their quest for a Lombardi Trophy.
“This will be a great identity matchup for us,” Vrabel said. “This will be an identity war on the biggest stage. They play hard. Their defense runs to the football. They cause a lot of turnovers.
“They are committed to running the football. It’s a physical football team. … This will be a huge challenge.”
Vrabel’s Patriots share similar characteristics. The Patriots and Seahawks each rank inside the Top 4 in points scored and points allowed. They also ranked inside the Top 8 in yards gained and yards allowed in 2025.
MVP candidate Drake Maye propelled the Patriots, who totaled the fourth-most passing yards in the NFL. The Patriots also ranked 6th in rushing.
Veteran quarterback Sam Darnold and the Seahawks ranked No. 8 in passing yards and No. 10 in rushing.
The Seahawks defense ranked No. 3 against the run and No. 10 against the pass. The Patriots ranked No. 6 against the run and No. 9 against the pass.
A key difference between the teams this season was the Seahawks’ strength in special teams, specifically returns. They ranked third in both kick and punt return average. That element, which aids field position, could be crucial in a game played between two tough defenses.
The team to establish dominance in their valued areas is likely to win Super Bowl LX.
“We are going to do everything we can to go out there and play a good football game,” Darnold said. “Execute the way we know how to execute.”
Neither coach would disclose specifics within their game plans, but Macdonald also plans to implement the Seahawks’ previously successful strategies.
“We are going to stick to our process,” Macdonald said. “The way we wanna play is we always want to be within our wheelhouse, but every game we are going to tailor things to our opponents.
“But at the end of the day, we have to do the things we are really good at. Right now, that’s our plan.”
Vrabel’s mere presence could be an advantage for the Patriots. The coach, who won three Super Bowls as a Patriots linebacker, took plenty of lessons from those runs. He expects that knowledge to pay off this week in the Bay Area, when players will be confronted with potential distractions.
“I think that all builds up to the end of the week, on things we can focus on that may be a little different with this football game; the warm-up time before the game, the length of halftime,” Vrabel said. “All of these things that are going to be a little bit different. We can try to draw on everybody’s experiences.”
The Seahawks and Patriots will practice this week at respective facilities at San Jose State and Stanford, which sit about 22 miles apart.
“It’s just another challenge,” Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez said. “We are playing the other best team in the NFL. We’re excited for it. Just ready to go out there and have one more with the guys on Sunday.”
The Seahawks are 4.5-point favorites. The least expensive price for a ticket for Super Bowl LX, as of Monday night, was listed for about $5,000 on the secondary market.
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