“Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles and an immature mind” – Alex Karras

At this point in the NFL season with the Super Bowl approaching, there is no physical advantage that either the New England Patriots or Seattle Seahawks hold over each other because both teams are incredibly physical and talented.

Instead, this game is almost assuredly going to come down to which team has the best football mind as the Super Bowl is unquestionably the most rigorous test of the football mental game that exists.

Forget the fact that an estimated 120 million people are going to be watching this game around the world, both teams will be confident and comfortable in front of the 63,400 people in attendance at the University of Phoenix Stadium.

Instead the Super Bowl game is all about the football mental game because of the two weeks of hype, the dedicated media day, the distraction of procuring tickets for family, and most importantly playing with football confidence while knowing that one mistake on the biggest stage will change your life.

This year’s Super Bowl matchup is perhaps the best display of football confidence that the NFL could ask for. It’s highly unlikely that the Seattle Seahawks will wilt under the big lights considering the fact that they were in this same situation only a year ago.

One could have expected the young Seahawks to have their game exploited a year ago against the Denver Broncos’ veteran coach John Fox and MVP legend Peyton Manning, both who had been to the big game before.

On the other side of the field it’s unheard of that Bill Belichick or Tom Brady are going to get rattled under the hot lights of the biggest game in sports considering this is the duos 6th trip to the Super Bowl. That being said, there could be some doubt setting in the minds of New England players considering the once insurmountable Belichick and Brady combo have lost their last two Super Bowl visits.

The Psychology of football is on display at it’s finest as it will be Sunday February 1st. Both teams are in shape, relatively healthy after an extra week off, and focused on their responsibilities for the game.

Patriots / Seahawks : Two Mentally Tough Combatants