Conspiracy theories regarding the participants in each year’s Super Bowl are nothing new.
And sure enough, some believe that the NFL’s scriptwriters planted a preseason Easter egg regarding the matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX.
In the aftermath of Sunday’s conference championship games, multiple social media sleuths were quick to recall a graphic that the NFL’s official X account posted on the first day of the regular season. In the cartoon image, players from all 32 teams are seen standing outside Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, which will host Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8.
“32 teams with February dreams. We’re so back,” the graphic reads.
32 teams with February dreams. We’re so back. pic.twitter.com/3myEdLhOG8
— NFL (@NFL) September 4, 2025
As for where the conspiracy comes into play, that has to do with the placement of the players in the image. While Saquon Barkley is the most visible player — which makes sense considering that the Eagles entered this season as the defending Super Bowl champions — Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold and Patriots quarterback Drake Maye are two of the players placed closest to Levi’s Stadium, where they’ll now meet in two weeks.
“Sam Darnold & Drake Maye at the front,” Barstool Sports’ official X account posted on Sunday night. “The NFL gave us the script at the start of the season.”
Barstool was hardly alone in making such an assessment. And as the conspiracy continued to spread on Monday morning, NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy felt compelled to weigh in.
“Re: the ‘controversy’ over this image – no,” he wrote.
Re: the “controversy” over this image – no. https://t.co/KHB55pDDvm
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) January 26, 2026
All things considered, this is clearly more coincidence than conspiracy. Especially when considering that neither Darnold nor Maye are any closer to Levi’s Stadium in the graphic than Malik Nabers, Baker Mayfield or Travis Hunter are in the graphic, meaning that there were several potential Super Bowl matchups aside from Seahawks-Patriots that could have qualified as curious.
Is it strange that one such combo did wind up making its way to Santa Clara? Sure. But coincidences do exist. And ultimately, that’s exactly what this is, placing this somewhere below the logo colors in terms of Super Bowl conspiracy theories.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.