Doug Flutie has watched enough football history to know when something’s about to repeat itself — and heading into Super Bowl 60, he swears he can feel 2001 in the air.
Doug Flutie has watched enough football history to know when something’s about to repeat itself — and heading into Super Bowl 60, he swears he can feel 2001 in the air.
Flutie has never shied away from stepping out of the pocket, and on the SportsCage, Flutie didn’t blink when asked for his Super Bowl LX prediction.
He’s rolling with the New England Patriots.
That’s right, despite the oddsmakers and most analysts leaning toward the Seattle Seahawks, Flutie sees something familiar brewing ahead of Sunday’s showdown.
Flutie told the SportsCage this matchup reminds him of the 2001 Patriots, the team that shocked the football world by grinding their way to the big game and then slowing down the high-flying “Greatest Show on Turf.”
“Seattle’s supposed to be the better team — they deserve to be favoured,” Flutie said.
“But this feels like that first Tom Brady Super Bowl. Ugly win in the snow, fortunate bounce or two, and suddenly the underdog is the one dictating the terms.”
Sound familiar?
Maybe it should — because the Patriots have been here before. Often. If the Patriots are going to pull the upset, Flutie says it starts with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
Flutie was with Tom Brady and McDaniels during their New England days and says the offensive coordinator’s true power lies in his willingness to adapt.
“He knows what his quarterback does well and builds around that. He’s open, he’ll compromise, and he’ll let the QB guide things — especially someone like Tom.”
That same flexibility, Flutie says, is what turned things around this year with Patriots phenom Drake Maye.
“It took him a little while to get a feel for what Drake was doing well. Drake’s mobility opens up things he couldn’t do with Tom. Josh adapts —, and he’s fearless with his play-calls.”
Flutie even shared a behind-the-scenes story from the Patriots’ Super Bowl week of an undefeated season, remembering McDaniels excitedly walking him through a bag of trick plays like a kid showing off fireworks.
“Throwback to the quarterback, double-pass — he loves that stuff.”
If the Patriots pull one out of the hat Sunday, don’t say he didn’t warn us.
The subject then shifted to the Hall of Fame debate around Bill Belichick and the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and Flutie didn’t mince words.
“Ridiculous. Eight Super Bowls — no one else is in the ballpark. Anyone who didn’t vote for him should have their vote removed.”
On Deflategate? Flutie called it a non-story based on simple physics. On sign-stealing? He laughed.
“Everybody steals signals. Always have. That’s part of the game.”
Classic Flutie — irreverent, blunt, and absolutely sure.
In one of the more entertaining turns, Flutie dove into the history of NFL football preparation — including how Peyton Manning and Brady pushed the league to allow quarterbacks to prep balls during the week.
Flutie says the old days were no fun.
“Brand-new out-of-the-box balls. Film on them. Slippery for the first half of the game.”
And he claims that in Denver, Colorado, the visiting kickers had it even worse.
“They’d slip brand-new kicking balls in on the road team. Slick as ice. Cost you once in a while.”
No wonder we’re seeing 65-yard field goals now — the balls finally behave.
It’s not shocking that most experts are backing Seattle. They’ve earned it. They’re physical, balanced, and deep.
But something about this matchup feels familiar — not just to Flutie, but to football fans who’ve lived through twenty years of New England refusing to go away quietly.
And if this turns into one of those chaotic Super Bowls where a trick play, a late turnover, or a moment of magic decides it?
Well… Flutie’s already told you who thrives in that environment.
His pick: Patriots over Seahawks.
Just like 2001 — when nobody saw it coming.