The Texans Fan's Rooting (and Betting) Guide for Super Bowl LX

The final day of the 2025 NFL season is upon us, and in just a matter of hours either the Seattle Seahawks or the New England Patriots will be crowned Super Bowl LX champions. If you're at all like me, then you enter this game either somewhat conflicted or completely ambivalent as it relates to your rooting interest, but hell, it's the last day of the season, so I think it's only appropriate we find some things to root for since we won't be able to do this again for another 7 months.

Let's start here: I don't have a dog in this fight. I'm a lifelong Chicago Bears fan who covers the Houston Texans for a living. Even at the absolute peak of their villainy, I never had hard feelings for the New England Patriots, and because the Bears are 2-0 in postseason games all-time against the Seattle Seahawks, I have no ill will toward Seattle the way I would against teams that are either in the NFC North (Green Bay, Minnesota or Detroit) or have knocked Chicago out of the Playoffs not once but twice in my lifetime (Philadelphia).

This means, first and foremost, I'll be rooting for a close game above everything else on Sunday night, and to be clear, my official prediction for the outcome is Seahawks 26, Patriots 21. I would suggest that we all root for a close game no matter what team you hope ends up getting their hands on the Lombardi Trophy, but if you want to give yourself a true rooting interest and just don't know where to start, I have some suggestions for you.

If you want to feel as good as possible about the Houston Texans going into the 2026 season... root for a comically low scoring game. That would serve as proof that A) Defense wins championships, B) Quarterbacks might not matter as much as they used to, and C) The Texans weren't too far off from making (and potentially winning) a Super Bowl.

If you were fond of Stefon Diggs' time in Houston and wish he could've returned to the Texans because you enjoyed his presence... root for the Patriots. Also, if you're a diehard Cardi B fan, you've gotta back New England. Not unlike how Taylor Swift fans morphed into Kansas City Chiefs fans because of her relationship with Travis Kelce, your allegiance needs to be with the Patriots if you're bumping to Cardi every time you get in your car.

If you want to see Mike Vrabel win a Super Bowl because he got his coaching start in Houston... root for the Patriots. This is also the case if you just want Titans fans to be miserable because they fired Vrabel and hired Brian Callahan, who went 4-19 in less than two full seasons as the head coach in Tennessee. From my experience, it's always fun when a rival fanbase is depressed, so Vrabel holding the Lombardi Trophy is the best possible outcome if you're a vengeful sports fan who wants to snack on schadenfreude tonight like it's an order of BBQ chicken wings.

If you're a fan of underdog movies and redemption stories... root for the Seattle Seahawks and put some money on Sam Darnold (+120) to win Super Bowl MVP. Yes, I know that the Patriots are underdogs, but the best 'Nobody Believes in Us' underdog story in play here is Sam Darnold, who went to Seattle because the Minnesota Vikings did not believe in him enough to bring him back after going 14-3 last season. Also, don't forget, Darnold's infamous "I'm seeing ghosts" performance came in a game against the New England Patriots.

If you're a lifelong Houston native and you still haven't gotten over the 1986 NBA Finals... root for the Seahawks, and then let go of that pain. Hakeem got his two titles in 1994 and 1995, so you don't need to lose any more sleep over the fact that the Rockets overachieved and pushed one of the greatest NBA teams ever to six games before bowing out in the Finals.

If you've got a sportsbook app on your phone and you're looking for some longshot bets and other obscure wagers you can make that will make things more interesting and hopefully win you big money in a hurry... ride with me on the following seven wagers: