One would think that the defending champion Seattle Seahawks, looking to become the first back-to-back champions since the Patriots in 2003-04, would rule the headlines before this Sunday’s Super Bowl. Throw in a miraculous comeback in the NFC Championship Game and a vocal leader such as cornerback Richard Sherman, and it seems like a sure bet that Seattle would be in the spotlight.

Kristyna Wentz-Graff | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | TNS

However, it is Tom Brady and the New England Patriots who are attracting most of the media attention. It can’t be said that this is solely due to the oft-cited East Coast bias as Deflate-gate certainly has shifted the media’s attention even more toward the Patriots. Sunday’s game is also important to Brady’s legacy, since the three-time Super Bowl winner hasn’t won it all in a decade.

But what about Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson? The quarterback who is now 10-0 against Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks and has orchestrated 15 game-winning drives in just three seasons? Wilson is developing into an all-time great right before our eyes, yet the media circus has primarily focused on Brady and how Deflate-gate impacts his legacy.

I’m not saying that the media has neglected the Seahawks by any means, as the Super Bowl always has plenty of coverage. More than enough articles have been written about running back Marshawn Lynch avoiding the media’s questions and facing potential fines. During Super Bowl Media Day on Tuesday, Lynch responded to 29 different questions with some variation of “I’m here so I won’t get fined.” The press also had a field day when Sherman responded to a reporter’s question with “I don’t really answer preschool questions, so you improve your line of questioning, and we’ll talk.”

Still, this is a Seahawks team that is once again being overlooked by the national media, and, if last year was any indication, this is the time when the Seahawks soar the most.

Last season, it was Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos dominating the headlines before the Super Bowl. Manning had one of the best statistical seasons by a quarterback in NFL history as he tossed a record 55 touchdown passes and threw for a record 5,477 passing yards, so nobody was surprised when he was awarded his fifth MVP award. Manning was also looking to win his second Super Bowl title, which many believed would cement him as one of the all-time greatest quarterbacks.

But it was the Seahawks who commanded the headlines after the Super Bowl and their 43-8 thrashing of the Broncos. Seattle’s top-ranked defense snatched two interceptions, including one that was returned for a touchdown, against a puzzled and downtrodden Manning. Meanwhile, Wilson turned in an efficient offensive performance to lead the Seahawks to a shockingly easy Super Bowl title.

With another top-ranked defense and a potent running game, the defending champions have used a similar recipe to reach another Super Bowl. Sherman has once again anchored a defense that allowed a league-low 185.6 passing yards per game and only 15.9 points per game in the regular season. Offensively, Wilson rushed for 849 rushing yards while Lynch “BeastModed” his way to 1,306 rushing yards.

At the beginning of the season, the Seahawks didn’t look like Super Bowl contenders in the slightest. Seattle limped out of the gate to a 3-3 record and appeared to have a post-Super Bowl hangover, but they pulled it together to finish with a 12-4 record and are currently on an eight-game winning streak.

Granted, a hard-fought win over the barely average Carolina Panthers and an extraordinary comeback victory against the Green Bay Packers won’t have impressed anyone. But the Seahawks have showed their intangibles during this playoff run. They were lucky in their win over the Packers, but as Eli Manning and David Tyree of the Giants have shown, luck must be on your side if you hope to beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl.

Of course, I’m not suggesting that the Seahawks will win by anywhere near as much as they did against the Broncos because the media has gravitated away from them and toward their opponent. After all, these are the Patriots, a team that has played in five Super Bowls decided by four points or fewer in the Brady era. Expect another classic this Sunday.