Nostalgia has been the prevailing theme of the early part of 2026, as trends explicitly calling back memories from 2016 have exploded across the internet. The memo has nearly reached the NFL, where the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks were just one year off and instead will face off in a repeat of the Super Bowl matchup from 2015.
In that epic 28-24 affair, which was decided by Malcolm Butler’s goal-line interception late in the fourth quarter, several reasonable long-shot prop bets would’ve hit, including Tom Brady 4+ touchdown passes, Chris Matthews 100+ receiving yards, and Brandon LaFell anytime TD scorer.
Of course, every player who featured on either team in that Super Bowl has since retired, with the exception of Bobby Wagner, who’s now with the Washington Commanders. Still, there are plenty of prop bets available on these new crops of Seahawks and Patriots talent. I’ll take you through my three favorites:
Super Bowl Prop Bets for Patriots vs. Seahawks
Sam Darnold 21+ Completions (-102)
Darnold exorcised his playoff demons in the NFC Championship Game, completing 25 passes for 346 yards and three scores. Though Jaxon Smith-Njigba was his primary target, he was able to distribute the ball well, targeting seven different players at least twice each and completing at least one pass to each of them. He was brilliant to nearly every zone on the field, and he was solid even when he was pressured. Advanced stats corroborate the eye test: the NFL’s Next Gen Stats estimated that Darnold completed his passes at a rate 6.8 percentage points higher than expected in the Conference Championship Game.
New England has a good but not elite secondary. This season, the Patriots allowed opponents to complete short passes and make tackles in open space, as they forced opponents into the 10th-shallowest average target during the regular season while missing the fewest tackles. As a result, opposing quarterbacks have completed passes at the ninth-highest rate. New England got pressure at the league’s ninth-lowest rate during the regular season, and Darnold’s completion percentage rose by 23.7 percentage points when he didn’t face pressure. To be fair, none of the Patriots’ opponents so far these playoffs have completed 21 passes, but Justin Herbert, C.J. Stroud, and Jarrett Stidham aren’t on Darnold’s tier.
Drake Maye 1+ Interceptions Thrown (-140)
This is nothing against Maye, who would be a deserving MVP winner if he ultimately claims it over Matthew Stafford, but he just hasn’t been great in his first playoff run, throwing one in two of his three playoff games and completing passes at a lower rate than expected in each game despite leading the league in that stat during the regular season. It hasn’t entirely been his fault — he’s faced difficult weather conditions, especially during the Conference Championship Game against the Denver Broncos, and New England’s opponents all had strong secondaries — but the playoffs are unforgiving.
Seattle will arguably be his trickiest test yet. While the Seahawks didn’t generate quite as many interceptions in the regular season (18) as the Los Angeles Chargers (19), they were excellent overall, allowing the fewest adjusted yards per attempt, generating the fourth-most expected points, and defending the second-most passes. They’ve also been among the best teams at generating pressure, and Maye’s turnover-worthy play rate nearly doubled when under duress. Plus, because Seattle has been so elite against the run, the Patriots probably won’t be very efficient via Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson runs.
Hunter Henry Anytime TD Scorer (+220)
Henry’s role in New England’s offense trended upwards towards the second half of the regular season, as three of his seven touchdown catches came in the last six weeks of the regular season and he averaged 57.7 receiving yards per game across that span. Subsequently, he had three catches for 64 yards and a score in the Wild Card Round. Though he had quiet games in both the Divisional Round and the Conference Championship Game, the whiteout conditions last Sunday made it virtually impossible for any receiver to succeed. He also leads all non-Maye Patriots skill players in snap share.
Defense against tight ends has been just about the Seahawks’ only weakness. During the regular season, Seattle gave up the sixth-most receiving yards to the position, as well as six scores — a roughly league-average number. During the NFC Championship Game, Stafford completed 74 yards’ worth of passes to tight ends, and though none of those passes found the end zone, the Seahawks looked vulnerable regardless. Plus, Seattle operates in zone at the league’s third-highest rate, and Henry has averaged nearly twice as many yards per route run against zone than man, scoring four of his seven touchdowns against such coverage.
