You
know what's great about your team winning one of the best Super Bowls ever?
Replays of that game will be shown forever. And every time they show the
replay, your team wins. It's awesome. I can't deny it. Is heroin like this? It
would certainly explain its popularity.
Hey,
look! There’s another replay on the NFL Network!
I
ordered TGTG:4 yesterday. Can't wait. Still considering whether or not to upgrade
the first three "Three Games To Glory" DVD to Blu-Ray. We'll see how
the standard DVD look; maybe a little marathon when 4 arrives.
The
greatness of Super Bowl XLIX is starting to set in for me. (I'd like to think
I'd say the same if the boot was in the other crotch but I'll freely admit it's
a lot better being the kicker than the kicked.) This was a fabulous Super Bowl
for so, so many reasons.
An Incredible Ending…
The
play in which Malcolm Butler intercepted the ill-fated slant pass from Russell
Wilson needs a catchy name. "The Slaint?" (The Slant that wasn't.
It's got "int" in it. Can't spell slaint without i-nt-!) Or maybe
"Least Mode." (A nod to the expectation of every sentient being on
the planet the Seahawks would run Marshawn Lynch on 2nd and Goal… but they
didn't.) "The Butler Did It" will probably win the day. (Doesn't this
game deserve something better than that?) Maybe it will be something simple
like “2nd and Goal” or "0:20" and we'll all think "Super Bowl
XLIX" when we hear it.
"The
Result?"
Okay,
that's terrible.
On
to the next paragraph!
The
final sequence of plays in this game – the Jermaine Kearse falling down
juggling catch after Butler actually gets a hand on the ball that put Seattle
on the New England 5-yard line, the Pats just barely stopping Lynch on 1st and
Goal, followed by Butler’s incredible, amazing, nut punch interception – cannot
be matched for its combination of astounding athleticism and emotional dynamics.
Despair. Disbelief. Elation. The Butler interception is a signature moment,
like David Tyree's helmet catch or John Riggins on 4th and 1. Those moments demand
space in your brain if you're a football fan. They're flagged with the
#donotdelete tag. We conjure them up in those desperate times when we need to
believe anything is possible.
If
it had been a movie, you wouldn't have believed it.
The Stakes…
The
Seahawks were trying to become the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls
since… the New England Patriots. This was Seattle's opportunity to solidify
their place as the best team in the NFL, to create a foundation for the NFL's
next dynasty. With the best young quarterback in the game and all of the key
parts of the Legion of Boom under contract, Super Bowl XLIX would be part 2 of
3. Back-to-back? How about back-to-back-to-back? They were coming off one of
the most improbable comebacks in NFL history with their NFC Championship
victory over the Green Bay Packers. A two-point conversion, a fake field goal
for a TD and an onside kick recovery? The Seahawks were clearly a team of
destiny, poised to write their names large in the history books of professional
football.
The
Patriots were playing for honor and respect, for redemption and validation. In
the two weeks between the AFC Championship and Super Bowl XLIX they had been
subjected to the venom and vilification of not only pigskin pundits and
bobbleheads but the national news media as well. They were tried, convicted,
pilloried and demeaned as Deflategate pushed the latest crisis
in the Middle East below the fold. Tom Brady was called a cheat, attacked and
humiliated in a press conference that was one of the most surreal moments in
Patriots history and then called a liar for denying his cheatiness. Fair or
not, a loss in the Super Bowl would validate the hate: The Patriots can only
win when they cheat! Any mishandling of the ball – dropped passes, fumbles,
off-target passes – would “prove” Tom Brady had deflated game balls to gain an
unfair advantage against the Colts and everyone else from 2001 on. Where did we
put that bag of asterisks? We're going to need a lot of them.
A
win, on the other hand, would restore at least some luster to the legacy of the
New England Patriots, head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady. Belichick
and Brady would accomplish something unprecedented given the span of time
between their first championship, Super Bowl XXXVI, and their fourth, Super
Bowl XLIX. They would put Spygate in the rear view and back up the tough words
from Belichick and owner Robert Kraft regarding Deflategate. The undeniable
accomplishments of Belichick and Brady would need to be enumerated, addressed,
measured and considered in the context of the greatest who ever coached or
played the game.
Hey.
No pressure.
Tom
Brady won his fourth Super Bowl, his third MVP, set a record for completions in
a game and TD passes in career Super Bowls. He led the Patriots back from the
biggest 4th Quarter deficit in Super Bowl history with two TD drives, giving
New England a 28-24 lead with 2:02. He did it with the weight of the franchise
on his shoulders and his own career hanging in the balance. He did it against
the best defense in the NFL and arguably one of the great defenses in NFL
history.
Brady
also extended many of his own career Super Bowl records (attempts, completions,
yards). He's now won 21 playoff games. That's more wins that total playoff
games played by Terry Bradshaw, Roger Staubach, Joe Montana or Joe Flacco. He
tied Mike Lodish for most Super Bowls played (6), tied Terry Bradshaw and Joe
Montana for most wins (4) and tied Montana for most MVP awards (3). The Patriots
also set a new record for most 1st downs passing (21).
Let's
just say that if Tom Brady was a Twinkie, he'd be 35 feet
long and weigh approximately 600 pounds.
Also,
punter Ryan Allen set a Super Bowl record with his 64-yard punt in the 3rd
quarter.
12 Rounds for the Championship Belt
This
game played out like a great heavyweight fight with both teams landing
haymakers along the way. First one team seemed to have the advantage and then
the other. The game was good from the opening series and just kept bringing it.
It came down to the final round, the final punch, a knockout blow that nobody
saw coming.
1 on 1
And
perhaps that shouldn't have been a surprise with the #1 seeds from the AFC and
NFC squaring off. The NFL playoffs are a single elimination tournament. Have a
bad day at the wrong time and it doesn't matter if you're the #1 seed; you're
gone. The Seahawks and Patriots were arguably the two best teams in 2014. Both teams
overcame slow starts in the regular season and were challenged by the best in
their own conferences in the playoffs; Seattle's remarkable comeback win over
Green Bay and New England coming back from 14 points down not once but twice
against Baltimore. Both of these teams earned it.
I
know it's cold comfort if you're a Seahawks fan but for me as a Patriots fan,
this win is so much more special because my team beat the very best the NFL has
to offer in Super Bowl XLIX.
Best
Super Bowl ever?
Maybe.
It's
certainly in the conversation.
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