Patriots Projected to Win Super Bowl LI

After an exhaustive computer simulation analysis, Football Weblog is projecting that the New England Patriots will defeat the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI by the score of 13 to 9.

Ok, so the analysis used was actually a computer game I stumbled across last night called Football for Windows 3.0 — an antiquated, simplistic game released in 1991 by TSOFT.  And the study was far from “exhaustive”.  It might better be described as a boredom-induced activity undertaken while waiting for Super Bowl LI to kickoff.

Football For Windows 3.0 splash screen

Football for Windows 3.0 is actually a decent little game if you and a friend are looking to kill a little time, and you can play online right now.  Click HERE to give it a try.  It’s boo-coo simple.  When a player’s team is on offense, he/she is given the choice of 12 offensive plays while the defense sits idly by.  The biggest strategy in the game is being football savvy enough to select plays that are applicable to the situation.  For example, when you’re trying to burn up the clock, you normally keep the ball on the ground.

Screenshot of Football For Windows 3.0

My “simulation” threw any kind of strategy out the window.  Plays for both the Patriots and Falcons were chosen totally at random.  That’s why the halfback pass was called a combined 17 times in the game — not exactly a likely outcome in an actual game.  The ball was punted on all 4th downs unless the offensive team was inside the 40 yard line; 4th down within 40 yards resulted in a field goal attempt.  Lastly, onside kicks were not permitted.

A 13 to 9 score sounds like a dog of a game, but if Super Bowl LI actually follows the scenario of my “simulation”, it will be drama filled.  The Falcons led the game the entire way, and clung to a 6 to 3 lead heading into the 4th quarter.  A Patriots touchdown late in the game — the only touchdown in the simulation — pushed the Pats over the top for the win.  I guess we’ll see how the actual game plays out!

Football Weblog Super Bowl LI Simulation Projected Statistics