An NFL season marred by scandal culminates on Sunday with Super Bowl 49 as Seattle and New England meet in a clash that has the makings of a classic.
Each team can cement a place in Super Bowl lore with a victory.
The Seahawks hope to become the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls since the Patriots did so a decade ago, while New England can become the sixth team to win four or more titles - a list led by Pittsburgh with six.
It's a dazzling matchup of old guard versus new as New England quarterback Tom Brady takes on Seattle signal-caller Russell Wilson, and an intriguing clash of coaching styles as the Patriots' Bill Belichick takes on Pete Carroll of the Seahawks.
But this season, the NFL's championship spectacular - the game that has made Super Bowl Sunday an unofficial US national holiday - follows a season of turmoil for a league accused of complacency or even conspiracy in its handling of issues ranging from domestic violence to concussion dangers.
Even as the hype-machine rattled into high gear in Arizona this week, the murder trial of former Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was opening in Massachusetts.
The Patriots themselves will take the field trailing a whiff of scandal, the league still investigating whether they purposely deflated footballs to gain an advantage in their playoff triumph over Indianapolis.
For critics, "Deflategate" is just further proof that Belichick's glittering post-season resume has been built on the back of rules bent to breaking point.
But even those put off by Belichick's gruff demeanor must find it hard to argue with his five Super Bowl rings - two as the defensive coordinator for the New York Giants and three as head coach of the Patriots.
Carroll, on the surface, is the warm and fuzzy opposite of Belichick, but has produced Seahawks teams the Patriots coach admires for their "relentlessness."
Now Carroll's Seahawks will try to usurp the Patriots' throne as the league's dominant team, gained with Super Bowl titles in 2002, 2004 and 2005.
The Patriots will be playing in their eighth Super Bowl overall, and seeking to reassert themselves after falling in the title game in 2008 and 2012.
Brady can join his boyhood idol Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw as the only quarterbacks with four Super Bowl wins.
The 37-year-old's legacy is secure no matter the outcome on Sunday, with a league-leading 49 touchdowns and 7,017 passing yards in the post-season.
His excellence has belied his unheralded entrance into the league in 2000, when New England took him in the sixth round of the entry draft, 199th overall.
Wilson, Brady's opposite number in Seattle, has also outstripped expectations since being drafted by Seattle in the third round in 2012.
Considered by many NFL experts too small at 1.80m to play the position effectively, he outshone Denver's future Hall-of-Famer Peyton Manning in last year's Super Bowl.
To be sure, Wilson was aided then, as he will be now, by the Seahawks' punishing defense, which has proven capable of dismantling the league's finest attacks.
Nevertheless, the Seahawks still bring the fire of underdogs, even a Super Bowl triumph failing to erase the sting of being overlooked on draft day.
"It's not necessarily proving people wrong," said Doug Baldwin, who like fellow Seahawks receiver Jermaine Kearse was undrafted. "It's more so proving ourselves right."
PATHS TO THE SUPER BOWL:
Seattle Seahawks
Regular-season record: 12-4, won NFC West division
Playoff progress
First round: bye
Second round: bt Carolina 31-17
NFC Championship game: bt Green Bay 28-22 (OT)
New England Patriots
Regular-season record: 12-4, won AFC East division
Playoff progress
First round: bye
Second round: bt Baltimore 35-31
AFC Championship game: bt Indianapolis 45-7
LIST OF THE PAST 10 SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS:
YEAR Teams Host city
2014 Seattle Seahawks 43 Denver Broncos 8 New York
2013 Baltimore Ravens 34 San Francisco 49ers 31 New Orleans
2012 New York Giants 21 New England Patriots 17 Indianapolis
2011 Green Bay Packers 31 Pittsburgh Steelers 25 Dallas
2010 New Orleans Saints 31 Indianapolis Colts 17 Miami
2009 Pittsburgh Steelers 27 Arizona Cardinals 23 Tampa
2008 New York Giants 17 New England Patriots 14 Phoenix
2007 Indianapolis Colts 29 Chicago Bears 17 Miami
2006 Pittsburgh Steelers 21 Seattle Seahawks 10 Detroit
2005 New England Patriots 24 Philadelphia Eagles 21 Jacksonville
MOST TITLES BY CLUB:
6 - Pittsburgh Steelers
5 - San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys
4 - Green Bay Packers, New York Giants
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