Super Bowl Discussion: Who Are Your Seahawks ‘x-factors’ Against The Patriots?

Jan 17, 2026; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas (42) tackles San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) during the first half in an NFC Divisional Round game at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Ng-Imagn Images | Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

The Super Bowl showdown between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots is just three days away, and the anticipation/anxiety is starting to build up. While much of the attention is understandably focused on the major names like Sam Darnold, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Drake Maye, Leonard Williams, and Milton Williams, there’s often a quality but less heralded or outright unheralded player who shines on the NFL’s brightest stage.

Seahawks fans needn’t look further than the team’s previous three trips to the big game. Kelly Herndon almost flipped Super Bowl 40 against the Pittsburgh Steelers with his interception off Ben Roethlisberger, helping turn a possible 21-3 deficit into an eventual 14-10 score. In Super Bowl 48, Malcolm Smith (debatably) won MVP. Chris Matthews shocked everyone with his Super Bowl 49 performance, although he unfortunately got upstaged by another unheralded player on the other side.

Who will be that Seahawks “X-factor” at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday? On offense, I think A.J. Barner could play a big role as a receiver after being more of a blocker through the past three games. Defensively, the downhill nature and sound tackling of weakside linebacker Drake Thomas is something I’ve really appreciated since he replaced Tyrice Knight in the starting lineup. We might see him get a sack on a blitz amd/or some key TFLs in the run game.

Have your say in the comments section and tell us who you think will be keys to the game without necessarily being the superstars!