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Key Super Bowl intel through the lens of NFL Next Gen Stats

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Key Super Bowl intel through the lens of NFL Next Gen Stats


  • DJ Bien-AimeFeb 7, 2026, 06:00 AM ET

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      DJ Bien-Aime covers the Houston Texans for ESPN. He joined ESPN in July of 2022 after covering the New York Jets for the New York Daily News. He’s a former athlete who finished his college career at Louisville. You can catch DJ on ESPN Radio on his show “Talkin’ Texans.”

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Rewind to the beginning of September, when there were 32 NFL teams gearing up for a run to Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California — home of Super Bowl LX.

Now, only two remain — with the Seattle Seahawks set to take on the New England Patriots on Sunday for the Lombardi Trophy.

The last time the Seahawks played the Patriots in a Super Bowl 11 years ago, Malcolm Butler intercepted Russell Wilson to effectively end the game, a play that would go down as one of the most memorable in Super Bowl history.

Most of the players from that game are retired, but the ripple effect remains.

This year’s Seahawks defense is similar to that 2014 Super Bowl team — with both teams allowing the fewest points in the NFL in the regular season. On the other side of the ball, Seattle has leaned throughout the playoffs on quarterback Sam Darnold, who has diced up defenses to the tune of a 122 passer rating.

For the Patriots, they are led by second-year quarterback Drake Maye. His regular-season success that led to him being an MVP finalist hasn’t fully translated to the postseason — where he has four touchdowns in three games and a 55% completion percentage, and he has also been sacked 15 times. In the regular season, Maye had 35 total touchdowns while leading the league in completion percentage (72%).

In the postseason, the Patriots defense has more than done its part. It has allowed 8.6 points per game in the playoffs — with the Los Angeles Chargers being the next closest team after giving up 16 points in their opening-round loss to New England.

Here’s a look at some NFL Next Gen Stats that could reveal what will decide the Super Bowl:

Darnold under pressure

Throughout the playoffs, the Patriots have generated pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Against the Houston Texans in the divisional round, quarterback C.J. Stroud went 2-of-16 passing for 13 yards with an interception when pressured.

In the wild-card round, the Patriots held Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert to three completions on eight attempts with six sacks. In the AFC Championship Game against the Denver Broncos, quarterback Jarrett Stidham completed one pass for 4 yards on 10 attempts when under pressure.

Darnold, though, has avoided turnovers and remained poised under 21 pressured dropbacks through two postseason games. He has gone 7-of-16 for 117 yards and four touchdowns (five sacks). In the NFC Championship Game against the Los Angeles Rams, he threw three touchdowns under pressure (5-of-11 for 102 yards).

It has been a completely different tale from the regular season, as Darnold committed a turnover on a league-high 7.2% of his pressured dropbacks — including six interceptions and five fumbles lost. The Patriots have generated four turnovers caused by pressure through three postseason games after causing three such turnovers during the regular season (third fewest).

But protecting Darnold has been effective. Despite facing the second-highest blitz rate this season (35.1%), the Seahawks allowed just a 29.2% pressure rate (fifth lowest) and 38 unblocked pressures (seventh fewest). Every Seahawks starting offensive lineman finished in the top 12 at their position in pressure-rate allowed.

Protecting Maye

Maye was sacked on five of his 11 pressured dropbacks in the AFC Championship Game, resulting in his second-highest pressure-to-sack rate in a game in his career (45.5%), trailing only his 62.5% rate in the divisional round against the Texans (eight pressures, five sacks).

Maye has been sacked 15 times this postseason, which is the most by any player to reach a Super Bowl since the AFL-NFL merger 1970. He has taken a sack on 48.4% of his pressured dropbacks this postseason, more than double his 20.3% rate during the regular season.

Patriots left tackle Will Campbell allowed five pressures on 30 pass blocks in the AFC Championship (16.7%) and has now allowed four or more pressures in every game this postseason. Campbell has been tasked with difficult matchups, going against both Broncos pass rusher Nik Bonitto (four pressures allowed) and Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (three pressures allowed, two sacks) 14 times each. Bonitto generated the second-highest pressure rate in the NFL during the regular season (20.2%, minimum 250 pass rushes) while Anderson ranked third highest (19.5%).

However, it won’t get easier against the Seattle defense which is ranked tied for seventh in sacks (47).

JSN’s dominance from all over the field

Having an answer for Seahawks wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba has been tough for teams this season. The All-Pro wide receiver led the NFL in receiving yards (1,793); when aligned out wide, he also led the league with 1,378 yards after he led the league with 956 yards when aligned in the slot last season.

In the NFC Championship Game, Smith-Njigba totaled 153 receiving yards, including 105 from out wide, and he also caught his first career touchdown when aligned in the backfield. The Patriots will be on high alert trying to figure out where he is.

Smith-Njigba aligned out wide on 81.3% of snaps this season, but he was in the slot at a season-high 42.1% rate in the NFC Championship Game. This could be a factor if Seattle offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak decides to have his star receiver avoid All-Pro cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

Key matchup: Pats jumbo vs. Seahawks’ nickel personnel

The Patriots’ offense has used jumbo personnel on 18.4% of its snaps since Week 11 (115 of 624, including the playoffs). New England scored a league-high 13 touchdowns from the grouping during the regular season, while averaging 6.1 yards per play (third most). The biggest beneficiary is Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson. He ran for 225 yards and scored four touchdowns on 23 carries out of jumbo sets this season.

Stevenson’s 9.8 yards per carry out of jumbo was a full three yards more than any other player in 2025, and the most by any player with at least 20 such carries in a season during the Next Gen Stats era (since 2016). The Patriots rushed for 10 touchdowns out of jumbo as a team, two more than any other offense (Steelers, eight).

The Seahawks rarely faced jumbo personnel throughout the regular season (26 plays, fourth lowest). But they matched jumbo looks with nickel personnel on 46.2% of those snaps.

More Maye

Maye’s downfield passes were among the best this season (10 or more air yards), leading the league with 112 completions while also posting a league-high 61.2% completion percentage. He also threw 19 touchdowns on downfield passes, tied with Darnold and Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford for the most.

But in the playoffs, Maye is 9-of-26 on passes traveling over 10 yards (34%). If Maye can’t let it rip, expect him to run — as he recorded the third-most scramble yards this season with 423. He was especially effective when tucking to run on early downs.

On first- and second-down scramble rushes, Maye led the NFL with 46 carries, 330 yards and 16 first downs (tied for the most with Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes). His scramble run rate of 10.7% on early downs was actually higher than his 9.1% rate on third down, making him one of 14 qualified quarterbacks to take off and run more often on first and second down than third.





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FIFA clears Fulham’s Diop, Ajax’s Bounida to play for Morocco

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March 27, 2026

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FIFA clears Fulham’s Diop, Ajax’s Bounida to play for Morocco


Mar 27, 2026, 11:55 AM ET

Morocco got FIFA permission to select Fulham defender Issa Diop and Ajax midfielder Rayane Bounida among seven players recruited this month by the 2022 World Cup semifinalist ahead of the next edition in North America, and 16 in total since last March.

The 29-year-old Diop was a France youth and under-21 international and Bounida is among six players aged 20 or under changing eligibility this month to represent Morocco after playing youth games for Belgium or the Netherlands.

All have direct family ties to Morocco that allow them within FIFA rules to change national eligibility, typically when players have not played a senior competitive game for the first country they represented.

Diop and Bounida are in new coach Mohamed Ouahbi’s squad for World Cup warmup games against Ecuador on Friday in Madrid, and Paraguay on Tuesday in Lens, France.

At the 2026 World Cup Morocco is in a group with Brazil, Scotland and Haiti playing games, respectively, near New York, Boston and in Atlanta.

Morocco gets direct entry to the 2030 tournament as a co-host with Spain and Portugal, plus single games to be played in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.

The Morocco federation, under the leadership of Fouzi Lekjaa, an increasingly influential figure in soccer politics, has actively recruited players from a diaspora in Europe.

The squad which made World Cup history in Qatar as the first semifinalist from Africa included stars such as Hakim Ziyech and Sofyan Amrabat who had been Netherlands youth internationals.

The eligibility changes FIFA approved in March include Bounida and Genk midfielder Saif Eddien Lazar who had represented Belgium.

Players switching to Morocco from the Netherlands were Benjamin Khaderi and Sami Bouhoudane, both aged 18 from PSV Eindhoven, 20-year-old Utrecht defender Oualid Agougil and 18-year-old Ayoud Ouarghi from Feyenoord.

FIFA also approved nine more players changing eligibility from March to December last year, from France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway.



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Tiger Woods involved in rollover crash in Florida less than 2 weeks before Masters: reports

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March 27, 2026

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Tiger Woods involved in rollover crash in Florida less than 2 weeks before Masters: reports


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Tiger Woods was involved in a car crash in Florida on Friday, according to multiple reports. 

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office told ESPN that the crash happened on Jupiter Island on Friday afternoon. Woods’ condition was not immediately known. 

Woods competed in the TGL championship earlier this week with his girlfriend, Vanessa Trump, and her daughter, Kai, in the stands. It was his return to competitive golf after rupturing his Achilles last year, just ahead of the Masters.

Tiger Woods of Jupiter Links Golf Club looks on before the match against the Los Angeles Golf Club at SoFi Center on March 23, 2026, in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.  (Adam Glanzman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images)

The 15-time major winner, five of which have come at Augusta, was noncommittal about playing at this year’s Masters. President Donald Trump said on “The Five” on Thursday that he would be at Augusta but not play.

Woods has had trouble behind the wheel in the past. In 2021, he got into a wreck that resulted in serious leg injuries that kept him off the golf course for months.

This is a breaking story. Check back for more updates.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.





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Illinois defense gets tough, ousts Houston to reach Elite Eight

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March 27, 2026

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Illinois defense gets tough, ousts Houston to reach Elite Eight


Mar 27, 2026, 12:39 AM ET

HOUSTON — David Mirkovic had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and third-seeded Illinois flexed its defensive muscles to eliminate last year’s national runner-up from the NCAA tournament, beating Houston 65-55 in the South Region semifinals on Thursday night.

Next up is a meeting Saturday with ninth-seeded Iowa to see which Big Ten team will advance to the Final Four. It will be the 11th Elite Eight appearance for Illinois (27-8) and its second in three seasons under Brad Underwood.

In the Sweet 16 for a seventh consecutive time, the second-seeded Cougars (30-7) were thrilled to be playing just over two miles from their campus. But their poor shooting gave Houston fans little to cheer about and delighted the orange-clad Illini faithful who made the long trip to Texas.

“At the beginning of the game Houston fans were a little louder, but as game was going, [our fans] started being louder in their city,” Mirkovic said. “So it’s just really important for us, I would say just like a wind to our back. They pushed us, and thanks for them.”

Star freshman point guard Kingston Flemings, who is expected to be an NBA lottery pick, had 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting. Milos Uzan made just 2 of 11 shots.

But they were far from the only Cougars who struggled offensively. The team shot just 34% in its lowest-scoring game of the season.

Underwood was asked about his team’s defensive performance.

“I think it’s a mental focus,” he said. “We’ve been very good at times defensively. It’s just sustaining it. We’ve got very capable defenders, we’ve got size and length, and we just got to make shots difficult.”

Illinois finished well under the 84.7 points a game it averaged entering Thursday. But its offense was still plenty powerful enough to send Houston back to its nearby campus. Keaton Wagler had 13 points and a team-high 12 rebounds for the Illini; he and Mirkovic became the first pair of freshman teammates to each have a double-double in the same NCAA tournament game since freshmen became fully eligible in 1972-73, according to ESPN Research.

“Coaches were telling us before the game: ‘It’s going to be a guard game to get rebounds. We need 10-plus out of the guards,'” he said. “So I took that challenge on. I went in there, tried to play as tough as I could, not let them get any second-chance rebounds. I went in there and tried to get every rebound I could.”

Andrej Stojakovic — with his dad, three-time NBA All-Star Peja Stojakovic, in the stands — also scored 13.

By the time the final seconds ticked off the clock, many Houston fans had cleared out and the Illinois supporters stood and cheered as their team celebrated.

“I was proud of our kids’ effort,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said. “We just didn’t play good enough.”

The Illini were up by one early in the second half when they broke it open with a 17-0 run for a 44-26 lead with about 12 minutes left. Jake Davis scored five points during the burst, including a 3-pointer, and Mirkovic and Ben Humrichous capped it with consecutive 3s.

The Cougars missed seven consecutive shots as Illinois built its lead. When Uzan finally ended Houston’s drought with a 3-pointer with 11:20 left, it had been almost seven minutes since the team had scored.

“We were getting stops and we were limiting them to one shot, and to tough shots as well,” Wagler said. “Making them shoot tough middies or contested at the rim, 3-pointers, all of that, and then we were going in and grabbing the rebound and offensively we were getting the shots that we wanted, we were knocking them down.”

Consecutive 3-pointers by Chase McCarty got Houston within nine with about six minutes left. But Wagler and Tomislav Ivisic made 3-pointers to fuel an 8-0 run that extended the lead to 58-41.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



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