The tortoise and the hare. The 1980 United States Olympic hockey team vs. the Soviets. David beating Goliath. These are just some great upset stories that saw a team or individual overcome improbable odds to defeat their opponent. The Philadelphia Eagles have a similar hill to climb this Sunday in Super Bowl 52 against the New England Patriots. Can the Eagles pull off such a feat?

The simple answer is no, no they cannot and no they will not. The Patriots will win their second consecutive Super Bowl this Sunday for a multitude of reasons, the first being the man they have at quarterback: Tom Brady.

For the past 17 years, New England has been led at the sport’s most important position by one of the sport’s greatest players in Tom Brady. Brady has taken his Patriots to the playoffs in 15 of those 17 years, while also being named to the Pro Bowl 13 times and winning the NFL’s MVP award twice. In the playoffs, the future Hall of Fame quarterback has carried New England to five Super Bowl titles (tied for the most of any single player of all time) and was won the game’s MVP award an NFL record four times. In his last two Super Bowls, Brady has posted a total of 794 passing yards and six touchdowns.

Tom Brady has proved himself as one of the greatest playoff quarterbacks in the history of football and has as much experience as anyone else in the game, and will now be opposed by Nick Foles on Sunday. While he did have the game of his life against Minnesota in the NFC Championship Game with 352 passing yards and three touchdowns, Foles has only played in three playoff games in his entire career. In contrast, Brady has started nearly three times as many Super Bowls (eight) as Foles has playoff games. In the game’s most high-pressure and important position, a game of such magnitude can likely come down to which quarterback can better handle their nerves. In this case, it appears that the Patriots have a significant edge over the Eagles.

The next area in which the Patriots have the upperhand is the offense vs. defense battle. Philadelphia boasts one of the strongest defenses in the league, holding their two playoff opponents to a combined 17 points. In the regular season, the Eagles gave up the fourth fewest yards (306.5) and points (18.4) per game with star defenders such as Fletcher Fox and Malcolm Jenkins leading the way.

The Eagles defense is as strong as any in the NFL, but it still won’t be enough to overcome the Patriots’ high powered offense and the tactical masterminds in charge of the play calling. New England has a strong history of topping some of the league’s top defenses when the games matter most. In 2015, the Patriots overcame the Seattle Seahawks’ infamous “Legion of Boom” putting up 28 points on one of the league’s greatest defenses. More recently, the Patriots managed 24 points against Jacksonville’s elite unit in the AFC Championship Game.

New England’s success in this area has been due to not only the talent at both quarterback and on offense, but in large part due to the coaching duo of Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels. The two have helped lead New England to a top five offense (in terms of PPG) every season since 2012. This is mainly thanks to Belichick and McDaniels’ ability of getting the most out of all of their skill players (such as Danny Amendola and James White) everytime they step out on the field, making it difficult for even the league’s top defenses to plan for the Patriots’ attack.

On defense, the Eagles have the edge over the Patriots. But New England has a sizable advantage on offense, the coaching staff, and, most importantly, in experience. All of these factors can allow the Patriots defense, which is still one of the strongest in the AFC, to not have to be perfect on Sunday and is why the New England Patriots will win their sixth Super Bowl.

Final Score Prediction: New England Patriots win 31-24 over the Philadelphia Eagles

Super Bowl MVP: Tom Brady