Trump picks Patriots over Rams in Super Bowl

President Trump predicted that the New England Patriots would top the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday in Super Bowl LIII.

“They have a very special owner and coach, and certainly they have, I guess, the greatest quarterback of all time,” Trump said in an interview with “Face the Nation,” referring to Robert Kraft, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, respectively.

“So I would say they would win,” he added. “As the expression goes, who knows. I hope it’s a great game.”

{mosads}Trump will view Sunday’s game from a watch party at his Mar-a-Lago resort in West Palm Beach, Fla., for the third consecutive year. The game kicks off in Atlanta at 6:30 p.m. The Patriots are favored by 2.5 points.

A CBS News poll released Sunday found that 31 percent of those surveyed want the Rams to win the Super Bowl, compared to 19 percent who are rooting for the Patriots. Half of respondents said the outcome does not matter to them. 

The president has a well-documented soft spot for the Patriots. He has been friends for years with Kraft, Brady and Belichick. Each member of the Patriots’ trio offered praise for Trump during the 2016 campaign.

Both Brady and Kraft were critical of the president when he called in 2017 for players who protested during the national anthem to be fired. Brady denounced the comments as “divisive,” while Kraft said he was “disappointed” in the remarks.

The Patriots were the first professional sports franchise to visit Trump at the White House after the team won the Super Bowl in 2017.

“People love to come to the White House,” Trump said in Sunday’s interview. “So the Patriots were here two years ago, and I’m sure they’ll be back.”

The president last year disinvited the Philadelphia Eagles after it became clear many team members would not attend, with some citing the president’s comments about the anthem protests.