Most Likely Teams to Dethrone the Bucs as Super Bowl Champs
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are Super Bowl LV champions. Tom Brady now has seven Super Bowl titles and, somehow at age 43, doesn't seem ready to slow down. He didn't say whether he would retire or not after the game, but the odds are TB12 will be back to play in 2021.
With or without Brady, the Bucs will be a different team in 2021. Leonard Fournette and Antonio Brown, who both scored in the Super Bowl, and several other key players are free agents. While you always like to "run it back," the allure of money will undoubtably lead to some players leaving in free agency.
So who can dethrone the Bucs in 2021? Here are the five most likely teams.
Kansas City Chiefs
Yes, the Chiefs were just embarrassed by the Bucs in the Super Bowl. But don't think for a second Patrick Mahomes and Co. won't be out for vengeance in 2021. The injury bug crushed their offensive line in the playoffs and that played a big role in their season-ending loss. They'll need to retool the defense, especially the secondary, but the Chiefs aren't going anywhere.
Green Bay Packers
If it wasn't for a last-second Hail Mary just before halftime, the Packers might have been playing in this Super Bowl instead of the Bucs. The Packers didn't even do much to help Aaron Rodgers heading into this season. Imagine if they stack that offense in the draft and free agency. The Packers have issues in the secondary they need to address and the RB situation will be important to monitor with Aaron Jones hitting free agency, but this team has several key ingredients of a Super Bowl contender. It's just about finishing the puzzle.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams went all-in with the Matthew Stafford trade. They will likely try to swing a few more moves to bolster their offense. But their defense has championship-caliber talent and now they have a competent to above-average quarterback who could help them take the next step. Depending on what they do in the draft (even without a first-round pick) and free agency, this could be a dark-horse team to win the whole thing in 2021.
Buffalo Bills
The Bills have taken steps each of the last two years toward building a championship squad. For them to dethrone the Bucs, they would have to do it in the Super Bowl. Well, the Bills are good enough to do just that. Josh Allen finished second in the MVP voting. Stefon Diggs proved to be elite. Their defense was strong too. The one thing they need to figure out is how to run the ball. If they do that, they could win it all.
New Orleans Saints
You're probably saying, but isn't Drew Brees retiring? Yeah, most likely, and that could be a good thing for the Saints. Brees wasn't himself after breaking 100 ribs and couldn't throw the field down field in the playoffs. That's why the Bucs beat the Saints. With Jameis Winston or Taysom Hill or some combo of them both taking over, the Saints might actually have a more dangerous offense. Sean Payton remains one of the best minds in football and that defense is solid. They have some cap issues to work out, but never count out the Saints, with or without Brees.