Super Bowl: Unlikely combatants on cusp of glory as Seattle and New England close in on NFL title

No one believes in us.

It’s one of the tried-and-true motivational themes in US sport. A way to inspire a chip-on-the-shoulder mentality to help inspire players to prove the pundits wrong.

Often, it’s far from the actual truth, with teams who have no shortage of admirers tapping into the underdog motif.

But as we prepare to crown a Super Bowl champion, there’s not just one, but both combatants who can accurately say the outside belief has been well and truly lacking, all season long.

Seattle and New England enter US sport’s biggest occasion on Monday morning (WA time) pitted in one of the unlikeliest Super Bowl match-ups of all time.

The Seahawks missed last season’s playoffs and brought a new quarterback in Sam Darnold into the fray for his fifth NFL home in as many years.

But after a stunning season – in concert with star wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the league’s Offensive Player of the Year – the journeyman saw his persistence rewarded.

“I knew I could do this at a high level, and that’s what kept me going,” Darnold said in the lead-in to this week’s game.

“I knew at some point, an opportunity would arise.”

The Patriots’ rise has been even more remarkable. A dismal 4-13 record last campaign saw a change of coach over the off-season, and new mentor Mike Vrabel wasted no time in maximising the talents of rising young quarterback Drake Maye to help restore the famous franchise as an NFL powerhouse.

“From Day One, he set that standard, that culture,” Patriots linebacker Harold Landry said of Vrabel.

“It’s crazy how quickly everyone bought in and when you have a group like we have in our locker room that’s not only talented, but everyone is bought into the same thing with one goal in mind, anything can happen, as you can see.”

Such is the coach’s attention to detail, the Patriots reportedly spent one of their final practice sessions before the Super Bowl taking in a 14-minute break in the locker room while Bad Bunny songs blared out in the stadium – to simulate what they’ll experience during the half-time show.

Despite outsiders having doubts about their credentials, the Patriots and Seahawks are now full of more belief than ever as they enter Monday’s game. And one of them is about to pull off an unbelievable triumph.