Jones Lang LaSalle and Roger Staubach predicting Ravens as Super Bowl XLVII Champs

For the third straight year, the commercial real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle and its executive chairman of the Americas Roger Staubach are making a bold prognostication for the Super Bowl, picking the Baltimore Ravens to outshine the San Francisco 49ers in this year’s big game. While sports experts and Las Vegas oddsmakers look to point differentials, quarterback ratings and other on-the-field stats, Roger and the JLL team are once again sticking with what they know best — commercial real estate — to determine their pick. According to the firm’s analysis of the last dozen season finale games, teams based in cities with the higher office vacancy rate (i.e. more space available for lease) have won the Lombardi Trophy. While the hypothesis didn’t hold true last year when the New York Giants upset the New England Patriots, it does still have a 58 percent accuracy rate. This year, according to JLL research, the overall vacancy rate in San Francisco stands at 11.8% due to a burgeoning demand from the technology sector compared to 15.5% in Baltimore -- making the Ravens the firm’s statistical favorite to win the crown. While JLL Super Bowl VI MVP Roger Staubach’s mind agrees with JLL’s hypothesis, his heart might not. “I know commercial real estate and football. While I can tell you that our hypothesis is right more than it’s wrong, I really like the chances of the Forty-Niners.”