5 Super Bowl contenders after Week 13 of 2021 NFL season
Another week is over and we are finally beginning to see clearer signs of who the Super Bowl contenders are and who they are not. Some teams that had caught fire at the beginning of the campaign, which had led to many pundits calling them Super Bowl contenders, have faded away.
Others have come back after a slow start to put themselves in the mix to be considered bonafide Super Bowl contenders.
We have ranked those who we think are the top five Super Bowl contenders at this time. We have divided these prospective Super Bowl contenders based on their conferences. Let's have a look at the teams here.
Super Bowl contenders from the AFC
#1 - New England Patriots
By the end of last season, as Tom Brady won the Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a quasi consensus had been reached that Bill Belichick was not all that he was made out to be. When the New England Patriots began the season with a 2-4 record with a rookie quarterback, the cacophony reached a peak and they were discounted from all Super Bowl considerations.
In fact, people had their doubts about whether they would make the playoffs at all.
They have since then silenced their critics, and how! They are currently the top seed in the AFC after having won seven games in a row and now have a 9-4 overall record.
The much vaunted Buffalo Bills, who were supposed to be genuine Super Bowl contenders and were supposed to pip the New England Patriots in the division, have since slipped to a 7-5 record and trail the Patriots in the AFC East. In Week 13, they lost 10-14 to the Patriots.
Started 1-3 and 2-4 and, yet, they’re still the first AFC team to 9 wins and head into a Week 14 bye-week with sole possession of the top spot in the conference.
What a run for the New England @Patriots
The New England Patriots have also scored 350 points and allowed only 200. Both are second best in the AFC after the Indianapolis Colts and the Buffalo Bills respectively, and point to a team well balanced on both sides of the ball.
They are primed to go all the way.
#2 - Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs began the season as Super Bowl contenders but midway through the season, with a 3-4 losing record, discussion had turned to whether they had been exposed or not. Their own fanbase was in rebellion, leading to certain players labeling them toxic.
But nothing works better as a detoxifier than winning, and that is what the Kansas City Chiefs have recently been doing. They have won 5 straight games and sit with a 8-4 record.
They defeated the Denver Broncos 22-9 in Week 13 and their performance was no fluke. They had beaten better offenses like the Packers, Cowboys and Raiders in the preceding weeks, limiting all of them to below 15 points.
Just a reminder that since *Week 6* the defense that has allowed the fewest points in the NFL is the Kansas City Chiefs.
And that is what has turned them into legitimate Super Bowl contenders. While the Kansas City Chiefs have been known for their offense over the last few seasons, it is their defense that is stepping up to the plate now and making their mark.