Super Bowl Fallout: Which Contenders Got Exposed?

New England Got Exposed on the Biggest Stage

That doesn't mean Maye is doomed. It means New England's offense (and especially its ability to handle pressure looks) becomes a prime offseason handicap point.

Bettors will be tempted to back the Patriots next year on the strength of "they made the Super Bowl," while the tape (and the recap) shows the exact blueprint that beat them.

New England's exposure in Super Bowl LX:

• Six sacks allowed (protection collapsed)
• Three turnovers (Maye under duress)
• Didn't score until fourth quarter (offense shut down)
• Blueprint exists: elite pressure breaks Patriots

If you're betting Patriots futures next season, you're betting they fixed the protection. If they didn't, any elite pass rush will exploit the same weakness Seattle did.

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San Francisco's 41-6 Collapse

Now zoom out to the rest of the bracket, because Super Bowl fallout isn't only about the loser. Sometimes it's about who didn't make it and why.

San Francisco's collapse in Seattle is the loudest single "exposed" moment of the postseason: the Seahawks beat the 49ers 41-6 in the divisional round.

When a presumed contender gets trucked by 35 in a playoff game, it usually points to either a matchup nightmare, a roster health issue, or a structural fragility that can't be patched by vibes.

San Francisco's 41-6 exposure:

• 35-point blowout in divisional round
• Matchup nightmare (Seattle's defense shut them down)
• Roster health issue (injuries exposed depth)
• Structural fragility (can't be fixed by offseason hype)

If you're betting 49ers futures at +1700 next season, you're betting the blowout gets memory-holed. The market will try to forget. Don't let it.

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Chicago Can't Finish

Chicago is another instructive case: the Bears lost 20-17 in overtime to the Rams in the divisional round, which is the kind of result that tends to create two opposite offseason narratives: "they're close" and "they can't finish."

The market often overreacts to whichever story gets louder in June.

Chicago's 20-17 OT loss exposure:

• Lost in overtime (couldn't close)
• "They're close" narrative (false hope)
• "They can't finish" narrative (real problem)
• Market will overprice or underprice based on louder story

If the offseason narrative is "Bears are close," the market will overprice them. If the narrative is "Bears can't finish," the market will underprice them. Your edge is knowing which narrative the market bought.

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Denver's Quietly Exposed Offense

Denver's postseason is the most "quietly exposed" story because they were the No. 1 seed in the AFC (bye week) and still lost 10-7 at home in the AFC Championship Game.

That exact kind of game is where contenders reveal whether their offense can manufacture points when weather, field conditions, and nerves collapse everything into a field-position fistfight.

The Athletic's AFC title recap emphasized the environment (deteriorating winter conditions, intensifying winds, treacherous field), while ESPN's recap described a "sloppy, snowy" game where New England handled it better.

Denver's 10-7 home loss exposure:

• No. 1 seed lost at home (bye week didn't help)
• 10-7 field-position fistfight (offense couldn't score)
• Couldn't win ugly (weather, conditions, nerves)
• Blueprint: Force Denver into low-scoring grind

Those descriptions matter because the playoff problem Denver must solve isn't just "get good," it's "win ugly when your A-game isn't available."

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Buffalo's OT Woes Continue

Buffalo is another fallout team, not because they were embarrassed, but because their loss type is psychologically expensive: the Broncos beat the Bills 33-30, and ESPN's bracket note explicitly framed it as "Bills' OT woes continue."

This is a narrative the market can either overprice (if everyone fades Buffalo reflexively) or underprice (if people dismiss it as noise).

Buffalo's 33-30 OT loss exposure:

• Lost in overtime again (narrative confirmed)
• "Bills can't win OT" becomes self-fulfilling
• Market will either overprice fade or underprice noise
• Your edge is knowing which way market overreacts

If the market fades Buffalo reflexively, they're underpriced. If the market dismisses the OT losses as noise, they're overpriced. Watch how the offseason narrative develops.

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Houston's Turnover-Filled Loss

Houston's elimination is also a clean "process vs results" lesson: New England beat the Texans 28-16 in a "turnover-filled" divisional game.

Turnover-filled losses are where bettors get trapped. Some people treat them as "fluky" and automatically buy the Texans next season, while others treat them as "undisciplined" and fade them.

The right answer depends on whether the turnovers were forced by scheme and pressure or self-inflicted.

Houston's 28-16 turnover-filled loss:

• Turnovers killed them (28-16 margin)
• Were turnovers forced (scheme/pressure) or self-inflicted?
• Market will buy "fluky" or fade "undisciplined"
• Your edge is knowing which interpretation is correct

If Houston's turnovers were forced by New England's scheme, the Texans are still good. If the turnovers were self-inflicted, they have a discipline problem. The tape tells you which.

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The Bottom Line on Super Bowl Fallout

Super Bowl LX didn't just crown a champion. It validated a specific thesis: defense can still win the title, and quarterback performance under pressure remains the postseason separator.

When you map that onto next season's early futures board, you should immediately be suspicious of contenders whose cases are built on regular-season fireworks but whose playoff exits came in low-scoring, high-pressure environments.

Denver's 10-7 loss is the archetype. No. 1 seed lost at home in a field-position fistfight. If you're betting Denver futures, you're betting they fixed the "win ugly" problem.

New England exposed: Six sacks, three turnovers, didn't score until fourth quarter. Blueprint exists for beating Patriots.

San Francisco exposed: 41-6 blowout in divisional round. Matchup nightmare or structural fragility. The market will try to memory-hole it.

Chicago exposed: 20-17 OT loss. "They're close" or "they can't finish." The market will overprice or underprice based on narrative.

Buffalo exposed: 33-30 OT loss. "Bills can't win OT" narrative continues. Market will either overprice fade or underprice noise.

Houston exposed: 28-16 turnover-filled loss. Were turnovers forced or self-inflicted? Tape tells you which.

The macro takeaway: Defense can still win titles. Quarterback performance under pressure separates contenders. Be suspicious of regular-season fireworks teams whose playoff exits came in low-scoring, high-pressure environments.