watchingthesuperbowl

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl LII

KITTEN AND PUPPY BOWLS

Is this the first-ever Kitten Bowl to go to overtime? Tied at 28. Feline Manning throws deep. Macaroni grabs it in the end zone. Touchdown! 34-28 Panthers, final score.

I've never thought much of Feline Manning in the regular season, but you can't argue with his results in the Kitten Bowl.

There's a new Puppy Bowl stadium? This is embarrassing. The taxpayers are getting fleeced again.

OH HELL YES. THE REFEREE AT PUPPY BOWL IS A SLOTH.

Update: Puppy Bowl is tied at 14 after a quarter. It's anybody's game.

Dammit. Should have called it a pupdate.

Puppy Bowl is 24-21 in the second quarter. It's quickly becoming apparent that dogs can't play defense.

Pupdate: Fluff 28, Ruff 24. Presumably, we're deep into the second quarter.

Now it's 31-28 Ruff. Still in the second quarter. I'm sure Puppy Bowl XIV is on track to destroy the all-time record for total points scored in a single game.

Last second touchdown! Fluff pulls off a 52-47 win over Ruff!

PREGAME

Okay, I've got a beer, dinner is on its way, and I'm settling in to finish this project. The only reason I've finished this is that I'm a stubborn SOB. This hasn't been fun for about 6-7 months now.

A feature about Tom Brady's mom. She had cancer in 2016 and was only able to be at one of his games, Super Bowl LI. A nice story.

Oh, cool, now Dan Patrick asked Brady when he knew he could be great. It's no longer a heartwarming story about his mom, now it's about slurping on Brady.

Patrick comparing Brady to Michael Jordan. Brady says he doesn't think about that very often. Could never be compared to his childhood heroes.

Brady has no idea how he'll fill the void when he retires. Maybe coach his kids. He's happy his kids are old enough to see him play. His son didn't pick him in fantasy football. Took Cam Newton instead.

You know what NBC should do more of? Talk about Tom Brady. I wonder where they rank him on the all-time list.

Now it's a feature about the Eagles defense. Not a ton of big names, says Chris Long, but they have a bunch of good players.

And then they end it with more about Tom Brady. Good. More of that, please. I never get sick of it.

One thing I've noticed, in watching all these Super Bowls, is that the team with the better defense wins more often than you'd expect. If one team is offense-reliant and the other is defense-reliant, the defensive team wins a bunch of games. That would be the Eagles here.

Rodney Harrison: Patriots will run short passes and screen passes to avoid the Eagle pass rush.

Commercials. Zelle. Applebees has a quesadilla burger. George Washington crossing the Delaware Turnpike for Geico. Turbotax. Promo for a new NBC series, Good Girls. It's not about puppers, unfortunately. Promo for the Olympics.

NBC bumps in with a bunch of sound bites from Eagles and Patriots fans. The Patriots remain the worst. I hope this old guy gets to see an Eagles championship.

Rodney Harrison: Tom Brady gave me a hug, told me he loves me, and gave me a little wink. I've seen that wink before. That means he's going to have a big game.

Dungy and John Harbaugh talk about how loose and calm the Eagles seem. Harrison says the Patriots need to come out and start fast. Can't fall behind the Eagles like they did last year against Atlanta.

Harrison picks the Patriots. Harbaugh picks the Eagles, says they'll hold New England under 24. Dungy picks the Eagles, says he's fallen in love with Nick Foles. Dan Patrick doesn't pick anybody. It's good to be the host.

Commercials: HQ trivia. You can watch the game in Spanish on Universo. Local ad for Tim Hortons. Local ad for Columbus Cyberknife prostate cancer treatment. State Farm insurance. State of Ohio PSA saying you shouldn't drive drunk. YoutubeTV. The commercial for Youtube TV includes a bunch of NBC programming.

Time for the "Youtube TV kickoff show". Starts with a Carrie Underwood song. Great. This is where I need a fast forward button.

There's a rap breakdown in the middle of this Underwood song. They show Super Bowl legends including Roger Staubach during that part of the song. Staubach has been one of my absolute favorite players to watch in these Super Bowls, but he is the least "hip hop" person on earth.

Al Michaels: This is a league built for parity and the Patriots are on the cusp of their sixth championship in 17 years. Eagles have a history of success, but have never won a Super Bowl.

Cris Collinsworth: Everybody knows Tom Brady, but not Nick Foles. But Foles is capable of having a tremendous game. Had one of the greatest seasons in NFL history in 2013. Chip Kelly says you're welcome.

Commercials: A really long commercial for Mass Mutual that involves people singing a Pretenders song. Red Sparrow.

Eagles walk out to the field. NBC runs a montage of their players introducing themselves. "Donnie Bag of Bones Jones" is the punter.

Patriots now. "Chris Hogan, Penn State lacrosse." I wouldn't want to be associated with their football program either. (Also, he didn't play football in college.)

It's very clear very early who the fans in the stadium want to win. The Patriots are loudly booed as they take the field.

Commercials: Kraft, US Bank, Mercedes Benz, Terrell Owens for Pizza Hut, Winter Olympics Promo.

Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award. J.J. Watt, unsurprisingly. He did a ton of work to raise money for hurricane relief after Houston got leveled.

America The Beautiful. Leslie Odom Jr. I genuinely have no clue who this person is. He can sing, though. He nails it.

It turns out Leslie Odom Jr. played Aaron Burr in Hamilton. This would explain why I don't know who he is.

The Star Spangled Banner. Pink. She also nails it.

Commercials. I spaced out and may have missed one. The Quiet Place. Lionel Richie for TD Ameritrade. Big Mac.

Michaels: What's the most likely way the Eagles win this game? Collinsworth: The offensive line and defensive line. They need to be able to run the ball and they need to be able to pressure Brady without blitzing him. It's hard to imagine that this game could come down to anything other than Tom Brady.

Coin toss: Medal of Honor winners. Very cool. Herschel "Woody" Williams will toss the coin. Won the Medal of Honor for valor at the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.

The referee called him Willie Williams. Oof.

Now he called him Corporal Wilson.

Eagles call tails. It's heads. Patriots defer, Eagles will receive.

Michele Tafoya: Eagles coach Doug Pederson told Nick Foles "You're not Tom Brady. Be Nick."

Commercials. I spaced out again. Is there a new Jurassic Park movie? There was a thing for that. Also YouTube TV.

NBC bumps in from commercial with a bunch of sound bites from past Super Bowl heroes. Staubach, Namath, Hines Ward.

FIRST QUARTER

Okay, kickoff time

Line-drive kickoff. Clement takes it out to the 25.

First play, pass right to Agholor. 5 yard gain.

Agholor for 2 more yards on second down. Michaels says Foles completed 15 passes in a row at the end of the NFC championship game. It's 17 in a row now.

18 in a row. Foles buys time on third down and hits Alshon Jeffery for 15 yards or so.

Well, there's an incomplete pass. Torrey Smith can't come up with the ball on a 2nd and 12 downfield pass.

Smith more than makes up for the incompletion - goes up the ladder to make a 15 yard catch on 3rd and 12. Eagles approaching field goal range.

Eagles running a bunch of "RPO" plays. (Run-pass option.) Ajayi runs for six on first down. Next play is a screen pass to Corey Clement. Takes it to the New England 5. The Patriots were blitzing and got burned. First and goal.

2nd and goal from the 2. False start on tight end Zach Ertz. Ouch. Offensive penalties inside the 5 are brutal.

Yep, that false start penalty was a killer. After incomplete passes on second down and third down, the Eagles will attempt a field goal.

Got it. A chip shot field goal ends a 14-play game opening drive. 3-0 Eagles. NBC bumps out to commercial with "The Underdog" by Spoon, which is cool.

Commercials: Toyota supports the Paralympics. Sprint has a Westworld parody

Eagles kick off. It's a touchback. Then more commercials.

Commercials: Solo, a Star Wars story. With Donald Glover! Nothing brings it down quite like Dr. Oz in the next commercial. Ugh. Go away. Turkish Airlines. He is Turkish, so there's that. Promo for a new show called Rise. Looks like a musical. Great.

Stop me if you've heard this before. Brady completes a short, outside pass to James White for a first down. 15 yards. Next play is a pass to James White. Because all he does is catch passes in the Super Bowl. That play's wiped out after a 12 men on the field penalty on the defense.

Brady to Chris Hogan underneath, coming across the middle, for a gain of 28. They're inside the Philadelphia 30. Next play is an end around to Hogan for four yards.

Brady to Gronkowski coming across the middle. Another completion, another first down at the 14.

Oh, hey, it's a completion to James White. Gains six yards, down to the 8.

NBC is using a white line to mark the line of scrimmage which is horrible and I hate it. I can't tell which is the line of scrimmage and which is the 10 yard line. Brady throws behind Gronk on third down and the Patriots settle for a Gostkowski field goal attempt.

Yup. 26 yard field goal for Gostkowski. 3-3, late first quarter.

Commercials: Bud Light with a Dilly Dilly ad that I've seen before. M&Ms. The red M&M turns into Danny Devito, who walks down the streets of New York asking if people want to eat him. Promo for the halftime show. Justin Timberlake. Winter Olympics promo.

Kenjon Barner with a decent kickoff return. Kenjon is my dude. Thrilled that he's had an NFL career. Incredibly cool guy.

Big, big run for another Duck, LaGarrette Blount. 36 yard rumble into New England territory. Collinsworth says the Patriots asked Blount to take a pay cut, he said no, and went to the Eagles.

TOUCHDOWN! Foles deep to Alshon Jeffery, who makes an incredible grab in the end zone.

Ugh, they blew the extra point. 9-3 Eagles.

A good article about Barner. He studied, among other things, ballet dancing at Oregon.

Commercials: Ram trucks, Wendy's. Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

HEY, JEFFERY. NICE CATCH, JEFFERY.

Commercials: A Hulu show from Stephen King and J.J. Abrams. Heroes Arena mobile game. Olympics promo.

The Patriots look very human at this point. Which, yeah, it's the first quarter of the Super Bowl. Gronk false start, Brady overshoots Hogan, and it's 3rd and 7.

Hey, you guys? You might want to cover Danny Amendola. Amendola is wide open deep and Brady hits him. First down at the Philadelphia 29.

Collinsworth: Eagles defense led the league in highest percentage of threes-and-out in the regular season, but they're struggling with New England's fast-paced offense.

First quarter ends. Philadelphia 9, New England 3.

Commercials: Peter Dinklage for Doritos. Morgan Freeman for Mountain Dew Ice. Both are lip-synching rap songs. David Harbour for Tide. Skyscraper starring Dwayne Johnson.

289 yards of total offense in the first quarter between the two teams.

SECOND QUARTER

Third down, Brandin Cooks on a jet sweep. Tries to jump over a tackler but can't get that done.

New England botches a field goal attempt. Holder drops the ball, Gostkowski has to stop, then start, then drills it into the left upright. Big break for Philadelphia.

Foles with a nice move to avoid a sack on third and long. Probably could run for a first down but throws to Ertz. Incomplete. Donnie Bag of Bones Jones to punt.

Fair catch at the 37.

Commercials: Another Dilly Dilly ad for Bud Light. ETrade. A movie. I was looking away. Mission Impossible? Is there one of those? Olympics promo. After the game, "This is Us".

Brady to Cooks downfield for 23. Gets absolutely annihilated by Malcolm Jenkins and he's not moving. There was a bit of helmet-to-helmet contact. Commercial time.

Commercials: Rocket Mortgage. Avocados from Mexico. The Cloverfield Paradox.

We're back from commercial. Cooks has been taken to the locker room. There was no penalty on the hit because he was a runner and not defenseless.

Third down, the Patriots run a reverse/throwback play, a pass to Tom Brady. Incomplete - Brady dropped the ball. They go for it on 4th and 5 from the 35. Incomplete pass. Turnover on downs.

Commercials. Diet Coke with Mango, Jeep, Tide, WeatherTech. Halftime show promo.

Michaels: Patriots DB Malcolm Butler has played zero defensive snaps today. The team says it's "a coach's decision".

Foles downfield to Zach Ertz, First down at the New England 43.

Great throw and catch from Foles to Jeffery downfield. 22 yard gain.

Next play, LaGarrette Blount! Blows through the defense for a 21 yard touchdown. 15-3 Eagles. They go for two, which I absolutely hate. Incomplete pass. It's still 15-3.

Commercials: Pringles. Febreze. Chris Pratt for Michelob Ultra.

Anyway, back to the "going for two" thing. I wouldn't do it until I absolutely had to. The second quarter is not that time.

NBC graphic: Most championships by a coach/QB combo: Belichick-Brady and Lombardi-Starr are tied with five.

Cutaways: Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez. Mike Trout, who Al Michaels calls a California Angel. Missed it by a couple decades, Al.

Big play from Brady to Burkhead. A screen pass - he nearly breaks it for a touchdown. Gets it to the Eagles' 29.

Third and 8, the Eagles completely blow up a screen pass with backfield penetration. Brady throws it away. Gostkowski kicks a 45 yard field goal. 15-6. And that's why you kick the extra point. A ten point lead is so much better than a nine-point lead.

Um, hello? The screen has gone black. I don't know what just happened. No commercials. They go back to the stadium after 10-15 seconds.

Tafoya: Brandin Cooks will not return. He has a "head injury". Patriots now have a total of three wide receivers available.

Michaels: Foles nearly retired when he was released by the Rams. Decided there was only one coach he'd play for, Andy Reid of the Chiefs. Reid wanted him.

Collinsworth: I love what Nick Foles is doing. When the Patriots blitz, he's throwing the ball to the area vacated by the blitzer.

Big run from Ajayi on third and 4. Inside handoff, looks like he's in trouble, and he bursts through the hole to the New England 43.

Huge break for the Patriots. Alshon Jeffery makes a one-handed catch downfield inside the 10 but the ball squirts loose, hits him on the other hand, and bounces to a New England defensive back for an interception.

Commercials: Squarespace, Dodge Ram uses a Martin Luther King speech to sell trucks, which is unbelievably gross.

Gross.

Brady deep to Chris Hogan inside the 30. Next play, James White breaks about eight thousand tackles on a 26 yard touchdown run. Patriots doing Patriots things right before the half.

Gostkowski blows the extra point. 15-12 Eagles as we hit the two minute warning.

Nope.

Huge play for the Eagles on third and 3. Corey Clement runs a swing route down the right sideline and Foles lofts it to him for a 55 yard gain inside the 10.

Next play, Clement powers up the middle to the 2. Nice power run from a third-down back. Clement again on second down. Up the middle again, gets to the 1. Patriots call timeout. 0:40 left.

Good lord, Alshon Jeffery got tackled in the end zone before the ball got there. Incomplete pass. They'll line up to go for it on fourth and goal.

Timeout, Eagles. They want to think about this. The offense is back on the field.

OH WOW. OH WOW.

Direct snap to Clement, flips it to Trey Burton, who throws to a wide-open Foles in the end zone. Touchdown. 22-12 Eagles with 0:34 left in the half.

Once again, Al Michaels says Mike Trout plays for the California Angels.

Patriots have the ball at midfield with 0:03 left. They're lining up for a Hail Mary.

They don't run a Hail Mary. They throw a swing pass to Amendola, who gains 20 yards as the half ends.

At halftime: Philadelphia 22, New England 12

Eagles coach Doug Pederson on the fourth down call at the 1: Our guys marched downfield and I wasn't going to let them get stopped at the one.

HALFTIME

There are commercials happening, but I'm going to grab a snack and a drink. It's a local break anyway.

Commercials: "Unsolved" on USA Network. Pepsi.

Halftime show. Justin Timberlake. Opens with an unbelievably cool laser show under the stage. Now he's coming upstairs into the stadium. Not sure what's with the wardrobe choice. A black leather jacket with fringe and a bandana tied around his neck.

Justin Timberlake isn't my thing musically, but this has been a good halftime show. Better than the Coldplay/Beyonce thing. Better than the Black Eyed Peas. He seems to be changing stages for every new song.

Timberlake doing a "duet" with Prince, which is something Prince was pretty adamant about opposing when he was alive.

Mental note: Make a GIF of the saxophone guy Timberlake walked by just now.

I remembered. Look at sax guy on the left. He's the new Left Shark.

Okay, halftime show over. It was good. Not the best I've ever seen, but solid.

Commercials: A "Jack Ryan" series on Amazon, which seems like exactly the sort of show you'd make if you didn't want me to watch it. Verizon.

Dan Patrick: This is the first game in NFL history to be 22-12 at halftime.

Commercials: Promo for The Voice. Spectrum cable. Giant Eagle. This is obviously a local break. PSA about drinking and driving.

This is the first Super Bowl in history where both QBs were over 200 yards passing in the first half.

Tafoya: Asked Belichick why Butler wasn't playing. He said he makes decisions to give his team the best chance to win. Belichick says they need to do everything better in the second half.

THIRD QUARTER

First play of the second half, Brady misses a wide open Gronk.

They connect on the second play of the half. 25 yard completion downfield to the 50. Next play, Brady to Gronkowski again. 24 yards this time, to the Philadelphia 26.

3rd and 6, Gronkowski again. First and goal at the 8.

It's all Gronk, all the time. Brady zips it to Gronkowski in the end zone on second and goal. 22-18, pending the extra point.

This is not optimal defensive positioning.

Got it this time. 22-19 Eagles. Brady up to 344 yards passing with more than 12 minutes left in the third quarter.

Commercials. Anheuser Busch. Turbotax.

My dude.

Eagles called for a block in the back on the kickoff return. They'll start this drive inside their 20.

Third and 6, Eagles trying to avoid a three-and-out. Agholor with a catch underneath, breaks a tackle to pick up the first down.

A couple of nice runs from Blount and they're into New England territory.

Collinsworth suspects something's up with Jay Ajayi and maybe it is, but Blount has been great.

Ajayi looked okay on that run. Gains 9 on 2nd and 10 and gets to the New England 40.

3rd and 1, Foles to Ertz down the sideline. Gets to the Patriots' 26.

3rd and 6, Foles throws into the end zone. What. a. throw. Corey Clement double covered and the ball is perfect. Looks like Clement bobbled the ball. It's under review as NBC goes to commercial.

Commercials: Jeep. Westworld on HBO. Turbotax.

Ruling on the field stands. Touchdown. It was a close call. Collinsworth is flabbergasted. I don't know what a catch is anymore, to be frank, but I've seen worse calls than that. Extra point is good. 29-19 Eagles.

Commercials: Kia. Blacture.com. Eli Manning mumbling incoherently for something or other. Olympics promo.

Eagles called for defensive holding. Gronk sold it well.

2nd and 8, Dion Lewis up the middle for 6. 3rd and 2 from the Eagles 45.

Brady downfield to Amendola on third and 1. Amendola to the 26 yard line. Next play, Brady to Hogan, who falls into the end zone. Got it. Touchdown. 29-25 with the extra point to come.

Extra point is good.

Commercials: Avengers. T-Mobile. Jesus Christ Superstar promo.

Cutaways: Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton, Floyd Mayweather, Jimmy Fallon, Bradley Cooper.

Commercials: Toyota. Wix. Kraft. The Today Show.

Brady is 19-32 for 404 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT.

First play of the next drive, Folds downfield to Agholor. First down near midfield. Next play, Foles to Torrey Smith. 18 yard gain.

Jet sweep to Agholor for 9 on 2nd and 8. First down inside the New England 25.

NBC graphic: The two teams have combined for 955 total yards, the most in Super Bowl history. And it's still the third quarter.

Third quarter ends. The Eagles have a 3rd and 3 from the New England 15 yard line.

After three quarters: Philadelphia 29, New England 26

Commercials: NFL promo. ADT. Ohio Northern University. Obviously this is a local break. State Farm.

FOURTH QUARTER

Patriots blow up a swing pass to Agholor on third down. Eagles will presumably attempt a field goal after a loss of 8.

Jake Elliott drills a 42 yard field goal. Sets the record for the longest field goal kicked by a rookie in the Super Bowl. 32-26 Eagles. AND THAT'S WHY YOU DON'T GO FOR TWO IN THE SECOND QUARTER.

Commercials: Monster headphones. Michelob Ultra. Groupon.

It's a Rex Burkhead kind of drive for New England. Burkhead run for 5, then Burkhead for 9, then Burkhead for 4.

3rd and 3 for the Patriots. It's clear from motion that the defense is in man coverage, so Brady throws to Amendola. Because that's what he does in man coverage. First down. Next play is a pass downfield to Amendola. First down at the Philadelphia 20.

Hey, have I mentioned HOW BAD AN IDEA IT IS TO GO FOR TWO IN THE SECOND QUARTER?

Swing pass to Amendola for 9. Second and 1 inside the 10.

James White up the middle. First and goal at the Eagles' 3.

Brady is up to 453 yards passing. Throws incomplete on first and goal. Gronk. Brady into the end zone for his big tight end. It's tied at 32, which Michaels describes as the Patriots' first lead of the game.

Brady is now up to 457 yards and 3 TD.

Extra point is good. 33-32 Patriots.

Commercial: Amazon Alexa.

"So I said to myself 'We need that point. We have to get it back. We need to go for two.'"

2nd and 6, Foles throws deep to Smith on a one-on-one jump ball. It falls incomplete. Weird play. It's a huge third down here.

HUGE PLAY. Foles to Ertz for 7 on 3rd and 6. Nice throw.

Clock under 7:00 as Foles throws to Clement. Seven yard gain on 2nd and 8. It's third and 1.

Eagles throw on third and 1. Ugh. It's a swing pass and it's stuffed. Pederson will go for it on 4th and 1.

WHEW. They threw the ball and picked it up. Foles to Ertz for 2. Clock below 5:00. Eagles near midfield.

Philadelphia uses a timeout with 4:52 left in regulation. They have two left.

Commercials: Coke. Peyton Manning for Universal Parks and Resorts. The World Cup on Telemundo.

Nice play by Agholor. Foles escapes the pocket and hits Agholor on the run at the sticks. First down. 3:30 and counting. First and 10 from the New England 43.

Agholor again! Foles zips it to him across the middle. There was a tiny window to complete that pass and he did it. First down inside the 25. The clock is about to become a factor here - the Eagles are likely to take the lead, barring a turnover. The question is how much time Brady will have and how many points he'll need.

Foles is up over 350 yards now. It's pretty obvious that the winning quarterback is going to be the MVP.

1,081 total yards tonight. The most in any NFL postseason game, ever.

Foles to Agholor for 10 yards to the Patriots' 14. Forced out of bounds.

Ajayi for three yards up the middle. Patriots burn their second timeout with 2:30 remaining in regulation. It'll be 2nd and 7.

Incomplete pass on second and 7. Third and 7 here. 2:25 left. Brady's going to have some time, it looks like. If they can get 8 yards on this play, that would be perfect.

TOUCHDOWN! I think. Yeah, that's a touchdown. He had the ball, took a few steps, and dove into the end zone. Ertz took three steps before the ball hit the ground. It seems obvious that this is a touchdown. Collinsworth thinks they have to overturn it. I think he's insane.

I don't see how this is a close call. He caught the ball, started running, dove, got over the goal line, and then the ball popped loose. How is this a question?

What is Collinsworth smoking?

Yeah, they call it a touchdown. That was an easy one, I think. Collinsworth is silent.

Eagles up 38-33. They'll go for two.

Nope. Incomplete pass. AND THAT'S WHY YOU DON'T GO FOR TWO IN THE SECOND QUARTER. DAMMIT.

Brady has 2:21 to put together a touchdown drive.

Collinsworth is still talking about this?

Michaels: In all five Super Bowls Brady has won, he has come back to win them.

Brady to Gronk for 8. 2:16.

BRADY FUMBLES! HOLY CRAP! EAGLES RECOVER.

The game isn't over, but it's damn close. Start chilling nem bottles of champagne.

We reach the two-minute warning with 1:56 left. It'll be third and 5 from the New England 26. They'll run the ball, get the clock down to 1:20 or so, then either kick a field goal (if they don't pick up the first down) or take a knee (if they do).

Blount stuffed on third down. Clock will be down to 1:10 before the field goal attempt. Eagles take a timeout with 70 seconds left.

46 yard field goal, dead center from Jake Elliott. Eagles up 41-33 with 1:05 left. Hell of a clutch kick by a rookie.

Patriots try to run a trick play on the return, but Burkhead is stuffed at the 9. Brady needs to go 91 yards in 58 seconds.

1st and 10, incomplete to Hogan.

2nd and 10, incomplete to White. 0:48 left.

3rd and 10, Brady under pressure in his own end zone, gets the throw off. Incomplete. It's 4th and 10. Now or never.

Complete to Amendola for 12 yards. They spike it with 26 seconds left. They still need 78 yards.

Brady to Gronk. Gets out of bounds at his own 33. 0:20 left.

Brady to Gronk for another 16, gets out of bounds. Near midfield. 0:13 left.

Eagles take their final timeout to talk this over.

Incomplete pass on first down. 0:09 left.

Next play, Brady buys time, chucks it deep, and it falls incomplete in the end zone as time expires.

THE EAGLES HAVE WON THE SUPER BOWL.

THIS ONE'S FOR PHILLY BOY ROY.

Final score: Philadelphia 41, New England 33. Nem Eagles got it done.

POSTGAME

Commercials: Scientology.

Yes, I’m curious. Where’s Shelly Miscavige? Why has nobody seen her in public in more than a decade?

Tom Brady threw for 505 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. And lost.

Brandon Graham: We are the world champions because we worked our butts off.

The Patriots punted zero times. And lost.

Collinsworth: Nick Foles was unbelievable tonight.

Trophy presentation. Darrell Green carries the Lombardi Trophy to the stage. Weird that they'd have an NFC East great who didn't play for Phiadelphia do this. Apparently he had a big game in Super Bowl XXVI. I contend that game never happened, which is a shame because the Bills were supposed to be in it.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie: For Eagles fans everywhere, this is for them. This is the most unique, together, group of men I've ever been around. An incredible group of men, players and coaches. Attempts to dedicate the win. Dan Patrick blows through that, but Lurie somehow gets the microphone from him and dedicates this championship to Eagles fans around the world and especially to his mom and dad.

Doug Pederson thanks Jesus. Praises his players. Has the best players in the world, loves the coaching staff and the owner. Has the best fans in the world.

Pederson: Wanted to stay aggressive with Foles. That was the plan coming in.

Ertz: No doubt that it was a touchdown. No telling what would have happened in the city of Philadelphia if it had been overturned.

Nick Foles is the MVP. Jokingly says it was just another game. His infant daughter tries to grab the microphone. Foles says he's very blessed.

Commercials: Motorola with Amazon Alexa. H&R Block. Discover Card. McDonalds. Eagles championship gear at NFLShop dot com. Xfinity.

Dungy: Foles made big plays all night, but when he needed a touchdown, he went to Ertz.

Harrison: Said Graham would make a difference on defense for the Eagles, and he made the big play late in the fourth quarter.

Bill Belichick: I obviously didn't do a good enough job coaching. We missed a lot of opportunities in the first half. Not good enough on defense. Not good enough in the kicking game.

Harrison: If the Patriots are going to come back to this game, they'll need to improve that defense. Just not enough athletes.

Dungy: Foles knows this is Carson Wentz's team, but was ready to go tonight.

Michaels and Collinsworth awkwardly fist bump.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl lii #new england #new england patriots #patriots #philadelphia eagles #philadelphia #eagles

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl LII

What was the final score?

Philadelphia 41, New England 33

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

The vast majority of the game was close. Even when the Eagles had a double-digit lead, the game never felt out of reach for New England. The Patriots came back from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit in the AFC Championship game and had famously come back from a 25-point second half deficit in Super Bowl LI. Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are like the villains in slasher movies - try as you might, you can’t finish them off. And just when you think you’re safe, that’s when they get up and ambush you.

Philadelphia jumped out to a 15-3 lead in the second quarter, the largest lead either team would have in this game. New England responded by doing what they seemingly always do: They scored on their next two possessions and completely changed the complexion of the game. Instead of a two-touchdown deficit, the Patriots were within a field goal of tying the Super Bowl as halftime approached. It was a “here we go again” moment, where things looked eerily similar to the previous year’s game. The Eagles weren’t having any of it, though. Instead of playing conservatively and being satisfied to go into halftime with a slim lead, head coach Doug Pederson went all Leeroy Jenkins and decided to attack. It paid off with one of the most memorable touchdown plays in Super Bowl history and a 22-12 halftime lead. (More on this touchdown later.)

Eagles players and coaches discuss their final drive of the first half.

In the third quarter, the two teams traded touchdown drives. The Patriots took the opening kickoff of the second half and went 75 yards in eight plays to cut the lead to 22-19. Philadelphia replied with an 11-play, 85-yard touchdown drive of their own to regain a ten-point lead. New England shrugged it off and responded with another touchdown. The score was 29-26 Eagles after three quarters and neither defense had shown any capacity to stop their opponents.

So it was in that context that it felt like a huge win for the Patriots when Philadelphia’s next drive “only” ended with a field goal. That made the score 32-26 Eagles and provided an opening for Tom Brady to drive the Patriots downfield for a touchdown to take the lead in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. It felt as if we’d seen this all before when Brady did just that. The Patriots capped off another 75-yard touchdown drive with a short Brady-to-Gronkowski pass, giving New England a 33-32 lead.

Once again, the only people who didn’t have a feeling of resignation about another Patriot comeback were the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles got the ball with 9:22 left in the fourth quarter and burned more than seven minutes off the clock before regaining the lead. The drive that would turn out to be the game-winner ended with a short catch, run, and dive by Zach Ertz into the end zone. Somewhere, NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth is still wondering aloud whether Ertz caught the ball. (Spoiler: He did. And then he took three steps. And then he intentionally dove for the goal line. And then he got over the goal line. And then, after it didn’t matter anymore, the ball popped loose.) Over Collinsworth’s objections, the Eagles had a 38-33 lead late in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. They went for two and failed.

When New England got the ball back with 2:21 left in the game, it seemed obvious what we were about to see. Of course they were going to take the ball downfield and score a championship-winning touchdown with no time remaining. It’s who they are. It’s what they do.

But that’s not what happened. On the second play of the Patriots’ drive, defensive end Brandon Graham knocked the ball out of Brady’s hand as the quarterback prepared to throw. Graham’s Eagles teammate Derek Barnett fell on the ball at the New England 28 yard line. That set up a 46-yard field goal by Eagles rookie Jake Elliott to give Philadelphia a 41-33 lead with 1:05 left.

After a frantic desperation drive got the Patriots to midfield with less than 15 seconds left, Brady fired a Hail Mary pass into the end zone as time expired. Gronkowski couldn’t get to the ball and Philadelphia had hung on for a thrilling 41-33 win. (Score: 18 out of 20.)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

Both teams came back. New England rallied from a 12-point deficit to lead 33-32 in the fourth quarter. The Eagles regained the lead late in the fourth on a touchdown of their own. The Patriots had a couple of chances to come back in the final minutes of the game, but fell short. (Score: 13 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

Brady had perhaps the greatest performance of any quarterback in any Super Bowl. The future Hall of Famer completed 28 of his 48 passing attempts for an eye-popping 505 yards and three touchdowns. He was absolutely unstoppable for much of the night.

Speaking of unstoppable, Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski was utterly dominant in the second half. After a first half in which Gronk only had one catch, the big fella finished with 9 grabs for 116 yards and two touchdowns. Philadelphia had absolutely no answer for Gronkowski, who’s one of the toughest matchups I’ve ever seen. You can’t cover him with most defensive backs because they’re too short. You can’t cover him with most linebackers because he’s too quick and athletic. Essentially, you can’t cover him.

LeGarrette Blount was a beast for the Eagles’ offense. Blount might not be considered an elite running back by most people, but he ran for 1161 yards and a league-leading 18 touchdowns for the 2016 Patriots. When New England asked him to take a pay cut to stay in Foxboro for 2017 and beyond, Blount took his talents to Broad Street. They should have kept him. Blount blasted his way through the Patriot defense for 90 yards, a touchdown, and another Super Bowl ring.

Speaking of unconventional stars, Eagles quarterback Nick Foles was incredible. The MVP of Super Bowl LII, Foles threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns to go along with the touchdown he scored himself. Again, more on that later.

A digression: Foles has had one of the weirdest careers of anybody in recent professional sports history. A third-round draft pick in 2012, Foles was pressed into service in 2013 when Philadelphia’s starting quarterback Michael Vick went down with an injury. Completely out of nowhere, Foles completed 64% of his passes in 2013 to go along with an insanely great 27/2 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He looked like a future superstar, but it didn’t work out that way. After falling out of favor with coach Chip Kelly in 2014, Foles was traded to St. Louis after the season in a deal for Rams quarterback Sam Bradford. Foles had a terrible year with St. Louis in 2015, throwing more interceptions than touchdowns and completing just 56% of his passes. The Rams released him after the season and Foles strongly considered retirement at age 26. Foles decided the only coach he wanted to play for was Chiefs coach Andy Reid, and moved to the other side of Missouri to serve as a backup for Kansas City in 2016. After a year in KC, Foles headed back to Philadelphia to be a backup quarterback for Reid’s protege, Eagles coach Doug Pederson. Of course he wasn’t going to see the field for the Eagles; that offense was built around the team’s young star quarterback Carson Wentz. Wentz shredded his knee late in the 2017 season, and suddenly Eagles backup quarterback Nick Foles was the starter again. Foles apparently does his best work when he starts a season as the clear #2 on the depth chart in Philadelphia.

Back to the issue at hand: Generally speaking, the way to figure out whether someone had a good game in Super Bowl LII is to ask what position they play. If they’re on offense, they probably performed well. If they’re on defense, they probably didn’t. (Score: 13 out of 15. This would be about a 20 out of 15 if I were just rating offensive players, but I’m not so it isn’t.)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

As I write this on the Friday after Super Bowl LII, the jury is still out on the Eagles. They were the best team in the NFL in 2017, but an awful lot can change from year to year. This Philadelphia team has the capacity to contend for multiple Super Bowl championships, but they haven’t done so yet. I can’t call them historically great after one excellent season.

The Patriots, though. Holy moly. This is the greatest team in modern NFL history. (Score: 9 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

A lot of people made a lot of predictions about the keys to winning Super Bowl LII. Could the Eagles run the ball on a relatively porous Patriots front seven? Could the Eagles’ defensive front get pressure on Tom Brady without sending blitzes and weakening their downfield pass defense? Was Rob Gronkowski ready to play after suffering a concussion in the AFC championship game? Is Tom Brady ever going to age, or will he be shredding defenses into his 50s and 60s?

Absolutely nobody guessed that the game would turn on the ability of quarterbacks Tom Brady and Nick Foles to catch passes.

Late in the second quarter, with the Eagles facing a fourth and goal from the New England 1, running back Corey Clement took a direct snap from center and pitched it to tight end Trey Burton. Burton, who was a highly-recruited quarterback coming out of high school, threw the ball to a wide-open Foles in the end zone. It was an unbelievably gutsy call in a situation where most coaches would have settled for a field goal and a six-point lead.

That play, the “Philly Special”, has already been immortalized in a number of Eagles fans’ tattoos. When people are getting tattoos of a diagrammed football play, you know it’s kind of a big deal.

Earlier in the second quarter, with the Eagles leading 9-3 and New England driving into Philadelphia territory, the Patriots ran a trick play of their own. Brady took a shotgun snap on third down and handed the ball to running back James White. White ran to his left and pitched the ball to wide receiver Danny Amendola, coming from left to right across the field. Amendola threw a nearly perfect pass - as good a downfield pass as you could reasonably expect from a non-QB - and the ball hit Tom Brady in the hands before falling incomplete. Brady may not have scored a touchdown if he had caught the ball, but he easily would have had 15 or 20 yards and kept the drive alive. Instead, the Patriots faced a fourth and 5 from the Philadelphia 25, went for it, and failed.

The other memorable play was Graham’s strip sack of Brady late in the fourth quarter. That stopped the Patriots’ momentum in its tracks.

But the big one is the Philly Special. Decades from now, when people talk about old Super Bowls, this game is going to be remembered for that play. “Philly Special” has entered Super Bowl lore alongside things like “Montana-to-Taylor”, “The Helmet Catch”, and “Why In The Hell Didn’t You Hand The Ball To Marshawn Lynch?”. (Score: 10 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

It’s tough to know whether both teams’ offensive dominance came as a result of great offense or awful defense.

Yeah, “both” seems about right.

If we’re judging based on punts, penalties, and turnovers, this was as good a Super Bowl as you’re likely to see. There was a total of one punt, 40 penalty yards, and two turnovers in Super Bowl LII.  There were two missed extra points and a missed field goal. That’s all I can come up with in terms of negatives. (Score: 11 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

At this point, every time the Patriots make the Super Bowl, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are the biggest story. No head coach-quarterback combination has won more NFL championships than Belichick and Brady. (Vince Lombardi and Bart Starr won 5 together and are tied with Belichick-Brady.)

That’s not to say that the Eagles weren’t a great story. They went 13-3 and were the top seed in the NFC playoffs, but lost Pro Bowl quarterback Carson Wentz in December when he tore his anterior cruciate ligament. Without Wentz, the Eagles were the underdogs in all of their postseason games but won it all. The performance of Nick Foles in place of the injured Wentz was a big story. Foles had dominated the NFC championship game, completing 26 of his 33 passes for 353 yards and three touchdowns. He also had a big Super Bowl, of course.

This was a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIX, played 13 years earlier. The only player on either team that remained on his team’s roster for both games was, of course, Tom Brady. Two of the Eagles’ key players, LeGarrette Blount and Chris Long, had won Super Bowl LI a year ago with the Patriots.

Coming into Super Bowl LII, the Eagles hadn’t won an NFL championship since Dwight Eisenhower was president. Human spaceflight hadn’t happened yet when the 1960 Eagles won the NFL title. The Berlin Wall wasn’t a thing but the Brooklyn Dodgers were. The Rolling Stones didn’t exist and there was no such thing as a James Bond film. So it had been a while. It was a team that hadn’t won a title in nearly 60 years facing a team that seemingly wins everything all the time. (Score: 12 out of 15)

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

87 out of 100. This was an extremely fun game to watch. Watching it, I felt like it was terrific but not quite as good as the very best Super Bowls ever played. I’m pleased to see the rating system matches that impression.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-LII:

T1. Super Bowl LI - New England 34, Atlanta 28 (OT) - 91 points T1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points 3. Super Bowl XLIX - New England 28, Seattle 24 - 90 points T4. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T4. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points T4. Super Bowl LII - Philadelphia 41, New England 33 - 87 points 7. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 8. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T9. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T9. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T11. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T11. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 13. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 14. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 15. Super Bowl XLVII - Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 - 76 points 16. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 17. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 18. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T19. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T19. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T19. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T22. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T22. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 24. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 25. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 26. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T27. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T27. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T29. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T29. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 31. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 32. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 33. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 34. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 35. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T36. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T36. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T36. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T39. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T39. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points T41. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points T41. Super Bowl 50 - Denver 24, Carolina 10 - 48 points 43. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 44. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 45. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 46. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T47. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T47. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 49. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 50. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 51. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points 52. Super Bowl XLVIII - Seattle 43, Denver 8 - 34 points

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl lii #philadelphia eagles #philadelphia #eagles #new england patriots #new england #patriots

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Super Bowl LII Liveblog

#nfl #super bowl lii #super bowl #football #new england patriots #new england #patriots #philadelphia eagles #philadelphia #eagles

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl LI

PREGAME

Fox is making a big deal about how this game brings America together. I assume this is a reaction to people being upset that an incompetent racist who brags about sexual assault was just inaugurated as president. People are also upset about Colin Kaepernick quietly protesting racism. Maybe that's what triggered this.

Harry Belafonte and Simone Biles talk about 'murica.

Now a weird newly-produced video for "Ragged Old Flag" by Johnny Cash. Hooray for Johnny Cash, but I've had about enough of this whole American unity thing they're hamhandedly pushing. I tuned in for football, not a lecture on patriotism.

The open is a pre-produced segment with little kids re-enacting great Super Bowl moments. This is much better.

Oh, hey, Joe Buck has a beard now. That's different than previous Joe Buck Super Bowls.

Troy Aikman: This Super Bowl is unlike any other game. When Aikman played, he was extremely calm during pregame warmups, but got overwhelmed at the introductions.

Aikman: Belichick tries to take away what the opponents do best. For the Falcons, that's getting the ball to Julio Jones.

Erin Andrews: Jones has turf toe, but insists it won't affect him. Matt Ryan happy he was named league MVP last week - one less thing to worry about this week.

Chris Myers: Patriots say this Falcons offense is the best they've faced this year.

Mike Pereira: Officials can't just let them play because it's the Super Bowl. They need to call the game like any other. Both teams like to run pick plays, officials need to watch that.

Segment about great players from historically black colleges and universities. 28 in the Hall of Fame. Thumbs up, NFL. This is cool.

Now the league is honoring Hall of Famers from the HBCUs. Deacon Jones. Buck Buchanan. Bullet Bob Hayes. Walter Payton. Art Shell. Michael Strahan. Charlie Joiner. Jackie Slater. Jerry Rice. Many others. They get a nice ovation from the crowd.

Nice. shoes.

Pre-produced videos to introduce the teams. Ving Rhames introduces the Patriots. "Head down, do your job." Now the Falcons. Rhames again. "This team has been in the messing you up business all season long."

America the Beautiful: The Schuyler Sisters from 'Hamilton'. They do a fine job. 

Immediately after the song, there's a shot of Bill Belichick in his natural state: Scowling quietly.

Star Spangled Banner: Luke Bryan. He also does a fine job. No complaints here. It's a bit twangy, but that's what he does. He is who we thought he was.

Coin toss. George H.W. and Barbara Bush. Cool. They get a big ovation, as befits a president and his wife. They live in Houston and that's where this game is taking place.

Cutaway shot of Mike Pence. Wonderful.

Patriots call heads. President Bush tosses the coin. It's tails. Atlanta will defer. Patriots to receive the opening kickoff. The players shake President Bush's hand.

Joe Buck: This is the 51st Super Bowl and the 51st season of Atlanta Falcons football.

FIRST QUARTER

Opening kickoff downed in the end zone. Patriots get the ball at their 25.

First play: Pass over the middle to Edelman. Incomplete.

Second play is also a pass to Edelman. Nine yards, but LaGarrette Blount is chopped down on third and 1. Three-and-out on the opening drive for New England.

Big run from Davonte Freeman on the Falcons' first play. 37 yards on the carry.

You could literally drive a truck through this hole.

Falcons drive stalls near midfield. Matt Ryan sacked on third down and Atlanta will punt. 55 yard from Bosher, Edelman tackled inside the 10.

Patriots escape the shadow of their own goalposts. Brady to Amendola, out to the 25.

Now another 15 yards to Hogan. Patriots in business.

Third and 1, Brady to James White for 11 yards, to the Atlanta 40.

Two sacks and an incomplete pass, and the Patriots have to punt. Fair catch at the Atlanta 12.

Decent drive here from Atlanta. A run play, then a pass outside to a wide open Patrick DeMarco. Clock running down in the first quarter. Under 3:00.

As soon as I complement the Atlanta offense, they fail on third and 3. Ryan sacked and they'll punt. Less than 2:00 left in a scoreless first quarter.

Completion to Edelman, power run from Blount. Patriots near midfield.

Quarter ends. 0-0. Third and 2 for New England when the second quarter begins.

SECOND QUARTER

Third and short, so of course Brady throws downfield. Finds Edelman for a gain of 27.

Next play, Blount fumbles. There's a pile-up. Atlanta has the ball but there's a flag. Holding, offense. Declined. Falcons get the ball at their own 29.

Buck: Belichick said the Falcons are better at stripping the ball than any other team they've faced.

First play of the Atlanta drive, Julio Jones makes a terrific contested catch for 19 yards. First down at the Falcons 48. Next play, Ryan to Jones again to the New England 29.

There are at least three hands, maybe four, on the ball in this picture.

Good cutback from Freeman here. He's running right, but cuts left and gets inside the 15. Next play, another fantastic run from Freeman. 9 yards to the New England 5. Second and 1.

Coming up at halftime: Lady Gaga.

Goodness. After a New England timeout, Freeman breaks ankles for the third consecutive play. Wow. Takes it around left end. 7-0 Atlanta with 12:15 left in the first half.

Aikman: This is the first time the Patriots have trailed in a game since Week 12.

Patriots go three-and-out. Excellent tackle to prevent James White from getting to the sticks. Patriots punt. Not a great kick, Falcons start at their own 36.

Falcons still chewing up big yardage. Ryan to Gabriel for 24 yards downfield. Buck points out the Browns cut Gabriel.

Tough to cover a guy when you’ve been juked so hard you’re on your back.

Next play, what a throw to Julio Jones. An even better catch. Falcons already to the New England 20.

3rd and 9, Ryan to Austin Hooper in the end zone. Terrific throw, nice catch. There's a flag on the play, but it's pass interference on the defense. 13-0 Atlanta with 8:48 left in the second quarter.

Falcons botch the extra point. A Patriot jumped over the line and was in the kicker's face before he had a chance to kick it. There's a flag - New England called for an illegal defense because the guy who jumped the line went over the center. Former NFL VP of officiating Mike Pereira doesn't like the call. I don't either. Replay shows he went over the guard, not the center. Should have been no flag.

So they get another chance at the extra point. Got it this time. 14-0.

14 points is the largest deficit the Brady-Belichick Patriots have faced in a Super Bowl.

Buck: No team has ever come back from a two-touchdown deficit to win a Super Bowl.

Patriots get 9 on third and 10. Flag down. Brady got hit after he threw the ball. Roughing the passer? Nope, defensive holding. Five yard penalty and an automatic first down.

Third and 3 near midfield. Pass incomplete but there's a flag on the play. Defensive holding again.

Third and 9, Brady throws incomplete again. Falcons called for defensive holding on third down again.

Patriots with a long drive here, but they aren't doing anything spectacular. It's all the defensive holding calls. They're to the Atlanta 20.

Third and 6, no defensive holding call this time. It's a pick six. Robert Alford jumps in front of a Tom Brady throw and takes it to the house. Falcons up 21-0 with 2:21 left in the first half. It's an 82 yard interception return for a touchdown.

2nd and 7, Brady hit as he throws and the ball floats downfield. Somehow tight end Martellus Bennett grabs it for a 15 yard gain.

2nd and 10, Brady outside to James White, who makes a nice move and gains 28. First down inside the Falcon 30.

Now Brady to Hogan across the middle to the Atlanta 21. 0:40 and counting on the clock. Two timeouts.

Third and 2, Brady to White to the Atlanta 15. Timeout called with 0:23 left in the half.

Second down, screen pass to White. Gets out of bounds inside the 5, but a flag is down. Holding, offense. 0:12 left in the half, Patriots at the Atlanta 20.

New England calls a tight end screen that goes nowhere. Timeout called with 0:03 left in the half and we'll see Gostkowski for a 41 yard field goal attempt.

Gostkowski has made 20 consecutive postseason field goals. Make it 21. It's good. Falcons lead is now 21-3 with 0:02 left. I assume we'll get a squib kickoff.

Yep. First half ends on a squib kick. At the half, it's 21-3 Falcons.

HALFTIME

Howie Long: It all starts for Atlanta with their run game. Everything they do is set up by what they do on the ground.

Walter Payton Man of the Year Award Winners: Eli Manning and Larry Fitzgerald

Jimmy Johnson: Patriots need to protect better. They've had open receivers and Brady has missed them.

Bradshaw: Now you'll see Brady throw the ball on every play.

Strahan: When that happens, you'll see Brady grow in confidence.

Okay, halftime show. Lady Gaga. It starts with her literally standing on top of the stadium singing God Bless America. This Land Is Your Land. "One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Now she's lowered into the stadium . Edge of Glory. Poker Face. Gaga is doing aerial acrobatics as she "sings". Now she's lowered to the stage itself from a platform. The keyboard player has a setup that looks like Ron Swanson's round desk from Parks and Recreation. Born This Way. Telephone. Just Dance, featuring a keytar. Million Reasons. Bad Romance. She's wearing bedazzled shoulder pads.

At the end, Gaga throws her microphone off a platform, catches a football, and jumps off. It's kind of cool, but also seems like she's trying way too hard.

Fox goes to Katie Nolan in the studio to talk about Lady Gaga. It's nice to see what they think women's roles are in media. It's not weird and sexist at all to have 100% of your social media/pop music coverage coming from a female and 100% of your play-by-play, color commentary, and studio coverage coming from dudes. Nolan is more talented than many of the people actually covering football.

That halftime show was better than most of them that I've seen. Not as good as Katy Perry's halftime, but still good.

Aikman: Falcons only ran 19 plays in the first half. That seems crazy, but maybe it's true.

THIRD QUARTER

Chris Myers: Belichick says if you wait until halftime to adjust, you've waited too long.

It's been an hour and 8 minutes since the Falcons' last offensive play. They open the second half with a run to Freeman. Stuffed for a loss of three.

Erin Andrews: Falcons coach Dan Quinn says it is what it is (about the delay between offensive possessions).

Falcons open the second half with a three-and-out. Taylor Gabriel drops a ball he probably should have had.

Big punt return from Julian Edelman. 34 yard return into Atlanta territory.

Atlanta challenges, says Edelman stepped out of bounds during the return. They're right, he did.

Patriots lose two yards on the first two plays of the drive. Atlanta calls timeout before third and 12.

Edelman is open underneath on third down but drops the ball. The throw hit him right in the hands. New England will punt. Fair catch at the 15.

Buck describes Fox as "America's most watched network...(for the NFL)"

Busted coverage deep downfield on second down. Gabriel fakes Malcolm Butler out of the stadium. Butler falls over, Gabriel makes the grab and gets inside the 30. 35 yard gain.

Another Atlanta first down a couple plays later. Mohamed Sanu for 13 yards, gets to the 15. Freeman for eight yards. Falcons inside the 10.

That was weird. Handoff, Freeman has nothing, cuts, still has nothing, cuts again, and is tackled for a loss of 2.

Swing pass right to Tevin Coleman and he waltzes into the end zone. 28-3 Falcons. This is threatening to get out of hand. 8:31 left in the third quarter.

Cutaways: Mark Wahlberg, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Elton John, John Travolta.

Patriots putting together a bit of a drive. Brady to James White for 12. White has 6 catches for 67 yards.

Now Dion Lewis for 8. They're nearly at midfield.

Patriots dial up a trick play on third and 3. Backward pass to Julian Edelman, who throws deep downfield to Dion Lewis. Incomplete. Edelman was a quarterback at Kent State.

The Patriots go for it on fourth down and convert. Brady to Danny Amendola for 17 yards. They're inside the Atlanta 40 as the third quarter clock ticks under 5:00.

Wow, that was unusual. Third and 8, Brady scrambles, gets outside and breaks contain. 15 yard run to the Atlanta 20.

Martellus Bennett and Dwight Freeney just got their helmets stuck together. They both had to take their helmets off to separate them. That's not something I've seen before.

LaGarrette Blount to the 6. First and goal. Clock approaching 2:00 left in the third, Patriots still down 25 points.

Now they're down 19 points. Brady throws left to James White, who makes a nice spin move and gets into the end zone. And Gostkowski misses the extra point! That could be big if the Patriots get back into the game. 28-9 with 2:06 left in the third quarter.

That was Gostkowski's fifth missed extra point of the season. He missed a total of one in his first ten seasons.

Patriots opt for the onside kick. It bounces and hits Gostkowski in the leg before it goes ten yards. Falcons in great field position at the New England 41.

(annoyed grunt)

Second and 1 for the Falcons at the 32. Coleman stuffed, but there's a flag on the play. Holding, offense. Oof. Second and 11 from the 42 is a much different kettle of fish than Second and 1 from the 32.

Falcons call timeout with 0:59 left in the quarter.

Buck: You keep waiting because of their history, because of Brady's history for the Patriots to get back into this game.

Thid and 11, Ryan sacked at his own 49. That's big. Falcons to punt as the third quarter winds down. Nope. Delay of game. Falcons give away five yards. The punt will be the last play of the quarter. Ball will be snapped at 0:03. Nope. They ran the clock before the snap. Punt will take place in the fourth quarter.

FOURTH QUARTER

Buck: It would be unprecedented for the Patriots to come back and win this game.

Weird play. Patrick Chung receives the punt facing his own end zone over his shoulder. Kind of looked like a rugby play. He was avoiding a potential knock-on.

Brady to Malcolm Mitchell. 15 yards, first down. Brady to Mitchell again for 7. Clock under 14:00 as Brady hands off to James White. Gain of 6, across the 40 for a first down.

Second and 10, Brady to Mitchell again for about 15. First and 10 from the Falcons' 41. Now Brady to White for 9. Patriots are marching downfield pretty quickly here.

Third and inches, Brady downfield to Martellus Bennett for 25. First and goal from the 7. Clock under 12:00.

Brady crushed on first down. Grady Jarrett got him. Loss of 5 on the sack.

Third and goal, Brady sacked again. It's Jarrett again! Gostkowski for a 33 yard field goal. Got it. 28-12, 9:44 left. It's a two-score game.

Falcons unsurprisingly keeping the ball on the ground here. Coleman for 8. Clock under 9:00. Coleman for no gain. He's hurt on the play. Doesn't look great. Fox goes to commercial.

Ouch. Replay shows Coleman's left ankle got caught underneath another player and bent in a direction ankles aren't supposed to bend.

Next play, Ryan back to pass and absolutely decked with his arm in the air. It's a fumble and the Patriots recover. Atlanta's first turnover of the postseason.

Patriots start at the Atlanta 25. Brady sacked on first down by Dwight Freeney. Clock below 8:00. Second and 15 at the Falcons 30.

Brady over the middle to White for four yards. Third and 11. Clock will be near 7:00 before the next snap.

Big third down conversion. Brady to Malcolm Mitchell for 12 on third and 11. First and 10 from the 14. 6:30 left.

Swing pass to Amendola, who gets 7 yards but doesn't get out of bounds. 6:00 left.

Next play, same play. Amendola in the end zone, touchdown. 28-18 and the Patriots are going for two.

Trick play. Direct snap to James White while Brady feigns a snap over his head. White gets into the end zone. It's 28-20 with just under 6:00 left.

Wow, great kick and even better coverage by the Patriots. Falcons will start their next drive at their own 10.

First play, nobody covers Devonta Freeman. He's wide open in the flat for a 39 yard gain. Clock goes under 5:00 on the next play after a Freeman run for one yard.

Total major pro sports championships: Boston 36, Atlanta 1. Of course the one would come against Cleveland.

Second and 9, what an incredible catch by Julio Jones on the sideline. Ryan had no business making that throw and Jones had no business making that catch, but there it is. First and 10 from the New England 22. 4:11 left.

Aikman: Anything short of a perfect throw on that play is an interception. That was as good as it gets.

Clock reset to 4:40. First and 10 from the 22.

Second and 11. Ryan sacked. A huge sack, may have knocked Atlanta out of field goal range. Patriots use a timeout with 3:50 left.

Cutaway: Falcons owner Arthur Blank nearly (unintenionally) ripping his wife's arm off. They were holding hands and he flailed his arms to demonstrate frustration.

Ouch. Holding penalty on Atlanta. If they weren't out of field goal range before, they are now. 3rd and 33 from the Patriots' 45. 3:44 left.

Incomplete pass. Falcons will, presumably, punt on 4th and 33. The sack and the hold cost them three points.

Edelman with a fair catch at the 7 or 8. Brady will have 3:30 to tie the game.

Fox graphic: Teams leading by 19+ points after three quarters are 93-0 all time in the NFL postseason.

Brady hit as he throws on first down. He was lucky he didn't throw a pick. It landed in the middle of three guys wearing black and red.

Second and 10, Brady goes deep down the right sideline to Hogan. Decent throw, but it falls incomplete. 3rd and 10. 3:17 left.

Brady to Hogan for 16. First down, but he doesn't get out of bounds. Clock under 2:50. Ball at the 25.

Incomplete pass over the middle to Edelman. Deflected but falls incomplete. 2nd and 10 with 2:34 left.

Completion to Mitchell for 12. Got out of bounds. Fell down during the route, got up, and made a catch. Ball at the 36, 2:28 left.

And there's your crazy game-changing play a la David Tyree. Pass downfield, tipped up in the air, Edelman dives, the ball hits a defender on the shin, bounces into Edelman's hands, he drops it, but grabs it again before it hits the ground. That's a catch. A ridiculously great catch.

Falcons challenge the call, but the ruling on the field is confirmed. It's a good catch. Wow.

Brady downfield again to Amendola. Complete to the Atlanta 20 as we hit the two-minute warning.

First down, Brady underneath to James White. Complete and White scampers inside the 10. First and goal. 1:31 left. Brady is at 410 yards, second most all-time in a Super Bowl.

Brady to White again, down inside the 1. Second and goal. Clock at 1:00.

Handoff, James White, touchdown! It's 28-26 with less than a minute left. Patriots will go for a huge two-point conversion.

Patriots five-wide. Looks like Freeney jumped offside. Completion to Amendola, who just barely gets into the end zone. It's a tie game. Penalty is on the defense. We're tied at 28.

Yep, he got in.

Brady has 416 yards, the most ever in one Super Bowl.

Zilch on the return for the Falcons. They start at their own 13. 0:52 left. Fox runs the obligatory "no overtime Super Bowls" graphic.

This is the last time anyone will be able to run this graphic.

First down, completion to Sanu for 12. Clock running, ball at the 23. Falcons throwing underneath down the middle. That's not helping. 3rd and 6 with 18 seconds left.

3rd and 6, Ryan throws deep. Nearly picked off but Harmon lands out of bounds. 0:11 left, Falcons will punt from their own territory. Patriots call timeout just to make sure Harmon landed out of the field of play.

Aikman expects the Patriots to go for the block here. Doesn't look like that'll happen.

Nope, they're setup for a return. Fair catch. Three seconds left, Patriots will have one play. Do they kneel or throw it deep? I'd throw it deep but wouldn't blame someone for kneeling. They kneel. Nope, they don't kneel. It's a fake kneeldown play. Brady runs right, everybody else goes left. Deon Lewis gets 20 yards or so, but plants his leg weird and falls out of bounds. Overtime.

OVERTIME

Referee explains playoff overtime. Patriots call heads. It's heads. They'll receive.

Kickoff into the end zone, Patriots start at the 25.

First play is to James White. Completion for six yards. He has 13 catches.

Now Brady to Amendola for 14 on an out pattern. Patriots out to their own 45.

Next play is Brady to Chris Hogan for 18 more, inside the Atlanta 40.

Another completion to White, but this time it's a loss of three. White's 14th catch, a new Super Bowl record.

Stop me if you've heard this before: Julian Edelman across the middle. Completion for 15 yards. First down at the Falcons' 25.

Another pass, a swing pass to James White. His 15th catch of the game goes for ten yards. First down at the Atlanta 15.

Next play, Brady to Martellus Bennett at the goal line. Incomplete, but the defender was clearly interfering with him. That'll be first and goal at the 2.

Yeah, man, you can’t do that.

First down, Brady with a dangerous throw to Bennett. Could have been picked off, but falls incomplete.

Next play, toss right to James White who somehow fights his way into the end zone. PATRIOTS WIN. 34-28. He was hit at the line of scrimmage, but got to the goal line. It's close, but I don't think there's enough evidence to overturn it.

Mrs. Brady selfies her heart out.

Patriots scored 31 unanswered points to win.

Buck calls Brady the greatest ever, and as much as I hate to admit it, I'm having a difficult time disagreeing. I've always been on Team Steve Young - he's an inner-circle great passer as well as a guy who could run for 1,000 yards if he wanted to - but Brady's longevity and success are unrivaled.

This is Brady's fifth Super Bowl ring. First QB ever to win five.

POSTGAME

Brady: We never felt out of it. Tough battle. They have a great team, I give them a lot of credit. We just made more plays than them.

Brady: all the Super Bowl teams have been great. This one is special too.

Patriots never led during the game. Their only lead came when White got into the end zone and won it.

Willie McGinest brings the trophy to the podium. Nope, he hands it to Michael Strahan. Most of the time, when the Lombardi Trophy is in the same stadium as Strahan and the Patriots, it's the Patriots watching the other guys celebrate.

Terry Bradshaw describes this as the greatest Super Bowl ever played. We shall see.

Robert Kraft: Two years ago, I told our fans it was the sweetest win of all of them. A lot can happen in two years. This one is unequivocally the sweetest. We are all Patriots. (Ugh, again? Gross.)

Bradshaw calls Belichick the greatest coach of all time.

Belichick: It's not about me, it's about the players. These guys fought all night.

Belichick: We have great players and they compete for 60 minutes or longer.

Bradshaw calls Brady the greatest quarterback of all time.

Brady is the MVP. I don't have a problem with that, but James White was hard done by.

Brady: There were probably 30 plays tonight where if they'd gone differently, the outcome would have been different.

Brady: So proud of these guys. Thanks all the fans, everyone in Boston. "We're bringing this sucker home."

Bradshaw calls James White "James Lewis". Great. Nice, Terry.

White: When the game's on the line, I had to find a way to get in.

Strahan: This is absolutely insane. Happy for his colleague Howie Long. Howie's son Chris plays for the Patriots.

Dan Quinn: Hurts like hell. Our guys battled hard and made plays. Thought this game would come down to the end and it did.

Quinn: Wasn't one thing that turned the game. They were just making plays. We knew it was going to be a battle and for sure it was.

Jimmy Johnson: When the momentum starts changing, you start to press, and things snowballed. Falcons are an outstanding team and very young. They'll be back.

Johnson: Belichick is the greatest coach of all time.

Johnson: We talked about Super Bowl experience and whether it would come into play. I think it did come into play.

Strahan: When I saw Tom Brady on the podium, the first thing he said to me is "I'm tired."

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl li #new england #patriots #new england patriots #atlanta #falcons #atlanta falcons

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl LI

What was the final score?

New England 34, Atlanta 28 (OT)

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

If we’re judging solely on the basis of what percentage of the game was close, Super Bowl LI wouldn’t score particularly well on this category. After a scoreless first quarter, the Falcons exploded for 21 second quarter points. Atlanta scored a touchdown every time they touched the ball in the second quarter, apart from the possession that started with 0:02 left in the half.

The third quarter was more of the same. Atlanta went into halftime with an 18 point lead and went into the fourth quarter with a 19 point lead.

And then it happened. The Patriots caught fire and came all the way back to win the Super Bowl. I remember thinking during on the day of the game, as late as the fourth quarter, that New England wasn’t out of the game. I’ve seen too many “miracles” performed by this team to think of them as being anything other than just what they do. It’s not a miracle when you can do it with some regularity.

So while much of the game wasn’t remarkably close, there was plenty of “edge of your seat” time during Super Bowl LI. It went from “they can’t possibly do this, can they?” to “no, this isn’t happening” to “they’re going to do this, aren’t they?” to “HOLY CRAP, THAT JUST HAPPENED.” At nearly any point of the fourth quarter, if any play had gone Atlanta’s way instead of New England’s way, it could have decided the game. Every play was important. The Patriots needed to keep scoring, keep Atlanta off the scoreboard, and keep the Falcons’ possessions short. They got it all done. It was riveting stuff.

Sorry, Falcons fans. I feel your pain. Super Bowls XXV-XXVIII still hurt, a quarter-century later. I’d tell you you’ll get over it, but you won’t. It’s going to suck forever. (Score: 15 out of 20. It loses points because so little of the game was close, but earns most of those points back because the finish was so incredible.)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

Um, yes. There was a comeback. It was one of the greatest comebacks I’ve ever seen. Truth be told, this 25-point comeback by the Patriots might be more impressive than the 32-point comeback that the Bills pulled off during the 1992 playoffs. It probably is a better comeback, considering the opposition.

The Falcons had all the tools they needed to burn clock and put the game away. They had good running backs and a strong offensive line. Devonta Freeman looked like one of the best backs of the century during the first half, ripping off chunks of yardage with lightning-quick cutbacks that made defenders look like fools. 99 times out of 100, if this Falcons offense wanted to go ball-possession, they’d have been able to pull it off without a hitch.

In comparison, if you wanted to build a team to possess as little of the ball as possible and to give its opponents as many opportunities to score as possible, you’d end up with something that looked a lot like the ‘92 Oilers. They chucked the pigskin all over the place, threw downfield, and almost never ran the ball. With an offense like that, you’re either going to score, punt, or turn the ball over in a hurry.

To be fair to that Bills team, a 32-point comeback is incredible in any situation. I’m not downplaying that at all. It’s just that I think it’s more of an accomplishment to come back from a 25-point deficit against a team with a pro-style offense than it is to come back from a 32-point deficit against a Run and Shoot team.

This was a ridiculously great comeback. (Score: 15 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

They did, without fail.

Tom Brady won his fourth Super Bowl MVP award while setting single game Super Bowl records for most pass attempts (62), most pass completions (43), and most passing yards (466). Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, the regular season NFL MVP, completed 17 of his 23 pass attempts for 284 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions.

Atlanta’s All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones caught four passes for a team-high 87 yards, including an incredible grab along the sideline in the fourth quarter.

Speaking of great catches, New England wide receiver Julian Edelman caught five passes for 87 yards. Let’s put a pin in Edelman’s performance. We’ll get back to him.

Every single player you’d expect to come up big in an important situation performed well: Brady, Ryan, Jones, Edelman, Danny Amendola, Devonta Freeman. Dwight Freeney had a sack. Patrick Chung and Malcolm Butler were good. You’d be hard-pressed to find a star player in Super Bowl LI who played poorly. (Score: 15 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

I’ve run out of things to say about the Patriots. Of course they’re historically great. They’re the very definition of historical greatness, the measuring stick by which future dynasties will be measured.

It’s too early to make a call on the 2016 Falcons, but early signs point to no. They were a very good team and a deserving NFC champion, but they had their flaws. The Falcons defense was in the bottom 10 in the NFL in points allowed, yards allowed, first downs allowed, passing yards allowed, passing touchdowns allowed, and yards per rush allowed. The offense was able to make up for that by leading the league in most points, fewest turnovers, and percentage of drives on which they scored. In 2016, the Falcons offense put points on the board in more than half of their possessions.

Looking at the 2016 Falcons in a wider context hurts their cause more than it helps it. Before this Super Bowl season, Atlanta hadn’t posted a winning record since 2012. The Falcons did win 10 games in 2017, earning the #6 seed in the NFC playoffs and losing in the Divisional round. They’re a good team. They have good players and good coaches. But they aren’t great in a historical context. (Score: 9 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

Edelman’s catch. My goodness. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to place it alongside David Tyree’s helmet catch in Super Bowl XLII as the greatest reception in Super Bowl history.

Down eight points with less than 2:30 left in the game and in his own territory, Tom Brady threw downfield to Edelman. Falcons cornerback Robert Alford got to it first but couldn’t catch the ball. It began to fall end over end at the Atlanta 40 yard line in a group of four players, three of them in red and black. Edelman dove for the ball as it hit Alford in the leg and Falcons safety Ricardo Allen in the arm. The Patriots receiver got his hands on the ball as he fell to the turf, then suddenly bobbled it. Still falling, still in the air, Edelman somehow got his hands under the ball and made the catch as he crashed to the ground.

Words don’t really do it justice. I’ve seen the play probably ten times and am still blown away by Edelman’s concentration and hands. Not bad for a guy who played quarterback at Kent State and didn’t move to receiver until he got to the NFL.

Two other plays come to mind: The first is James White’s game-winning touchdown, which was the first overtime score in Super Bowl. The other memorable play is the Julio Jones catch late in the fourth quarter. With the Falcons up by eight and driving for what would have been the game-clinching score, Jones went up in the air and made a diving, twisting catch while somehow landing both feet in bounds. If Atlanta had won the game, that grab by Jones would have been remembered similarly to the Julian Edelman catch on New England’s next drive. (Score: 10 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

Mostly very good. Brady was incredible, Ryan was very good, the receivers were good. I have no huge complaints with the quality of the game.

On the negative side: Atlanta converted once all night on third down and committed nine penalties. There were three turnovers, ten sacks, and a missed field goal. It was a very good game, but it wasn’t perfect. (Score: 12 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

So many story lines.

The Patriots set the all-time records for most Super Bowl appearances (9), largest comeback (25), most offensive plays in a game (93), and most passing yards (442). Tom Brady set the all-time records for most Super Bowl appearances as a player (7), most Super Bowl appearances as a starter (7), most Super Bowls won as a quarterback (5), and most Super Bowl MVP awards (4). Bill Belichick set the records for most Super Bowl appearances as a head coach (7), most Super Bowl appearances as an assistant or head coach (10), most Super Bowl appearances in any capacity (10), and most Super Bowls won as a head coach (5). James White set Super Bowl records for most receptions in a game (14) and most points scored in one game (20). A lot of significant stuff happened on the field.

In addition to all the records the Patriots set, this was also the first overtime Super Bowl in history. For decades, Super Bowl broadcasters seemed to run the same graphic every year: “No Super Bowl has ever gone to overtime.” That graphic has been retired permanently.

Falcons head coach Dan Quinn was facing the Patriots in the Super Bowl for the second time in three years, and also suffered his second heartbreaking Super Bowl loss in that time. Quinn was the defensive coordinator for the Seahawks team that lost Super Bowl XLIX when Russell Wilson threw a goal line interception in the fourth quarter. (Score: 15 out of 15)

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

One of the reasons I undertook this project was the national media’s reaction to Super Bowl LI. Everywhere I looked, somebody was calling it the greatest Super Bowl ever played. That seemed like it could be a bit of a stretch - it felt like every Super Bowl every season was immediately called The Greatest.

But here’s the thing: A bunch of recent Super Bowls have been historically great. Two of the top three Super Bowls of all time in my system have been played since the 2014 season. My top five Super Bowls include SB42, SB38, SB49, and SB51.

So while it seems like every year’s Super Bowl is called “the greatest”, it’s mostly been justified. There can only be one Greatest, and it may well be Super Bowl LI. This one grades out at 91 out of 100, the highest rating I’ve given.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-LI:

T1. Super Bowl LI - New England 34, Atlanta 28 (OT) - 91 points T1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points 3. Super Bowl XLIX - New England 28, Seattle 24 - 90 points T4. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T4. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 6. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 7. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T8. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T8. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T10. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T10. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 12. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 13. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 14. Super Bowl XLVII - Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 - 76 points 15. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 16. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 17. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T18. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T18. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T18. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T21. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T21. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 23. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 24. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 25. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T26. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T26. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T28. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T28. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 30. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 31. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 32. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 33. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 34. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T35. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T35. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T35. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T38. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T38. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points T40. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points T40. Super Bowl 50 - Denver 24, Carolina 10 - 48 points 42. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 43. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 44. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 45. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T46. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T46. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 48. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 49. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 50. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points 51. Super Bowl XLVIII - Seattle 43, Denver 8 - 34 points

#super bowl #super bowl li #new england patriots #new england #patriots #atlanta #falcons #atlanta falcons #nfl #football

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl 50

PREGAME

This is a CBS broadcast. Nantz and Simms

Nantz: This is the number one defense in the NFL against the number one offense in Carolina.

Carolina quarterback Cam Newton was named a nearly unanimous MVP yesterday.

This is likely to be Denver quarterback Peyton Manning's final NFL game.

Nantz: It's breezy out there, will that affect the game? Simms: I don't think so.

NFL retrospective, the last 50 years, with Joe Namath narrating. Now here's Brett Favre narrating. Oh, great, yes, please talk about Scott Norwood. That will make me smile.

Celebrity montage. Larry David, Jack Black, Kevin Bacon, Chris Rock, Larry King, and a bunch of other people talking about their favorite Super Bowl moments. Bugs Bunny's favorite was the Helmet Catch. Big Bird wants people to try their best and it doesn't matter who wins. Dave Letterman says it's a special day because mom lets us have tacos in the living room with the TV. Ron Howard interviews players.

Simms: Peyton Manning will have a chance to throw downfield against this Carolina defense. Panthers' defensive line will pressure the quarterback and give the defensive backs a chance. Denver needs to crowd the line of scrimmage, take the run game away, and force Cam Newton to throw the ball downfield.

Super Bowl MVPs being honored. Bart Starr is at home in Alabama. They show video of him at his house. Chuck Howley's at home too. He waves to the fans. Jake Scott sort of looks like Pete Townshend. Harvey Martin has passed away and can't be at the game, obviously. John Elway and Terrell Davis get two of the the biggest ovations, which I guess makes sense because the Broncos are in this game. Tom Brady is booed. Hines Ward waves a Terrible Towel. Peyton Manning probably got a bigger cheer than Elway or Davis. This also makes sense. Aaron Rodgers gets a nice reception. He's from the area where this game was played.

Commercials: KFC with Colonel Sanders, Cam Newton for Beats, Febreze. Jimmy is noseblind. Deadpool. NFL Shop. Promo for Elementary on CBS. Promo for Rush Hour on CBS. PSA for the I Have A Dream Foundation.

Panthers introduced first. "Keep pounding." Cam Newton dabs. Back to the stadium now, where Steph Curry pounds the ceremonial drum. He went to college in North Carolina and his dad played for Charlotte in the NBA.

Now it's the Broncos. "United as One".

Panthers coach Ron Rivera: Talk about making sure we keep our personality, be ourselves, and do what we need to do. Need to keep the chains moving on offense and can't give up anything over the top on defense. Gotta be smart, not burn all our energy early.

Broncos LB Von Miller: We just gotta play our game. Do what we always do and we'll be okay. Feels good now, ready to go. Ask me again after the game how I feel.

Commercials: Pizza Hut has stuffed garlic knot pizza, Captain America Civil War, Hyundai, Promo for The Masters.

America The Beautiful performed by an armed forces chorus. Marlee Matlin will sign the lyrics. CBS doesn't bother to show Matlin signing, so I'm not entirely sure what the point is.

Joint service color guard. Star Spangled Banner performed by Lady Gaga. She does a great job.

Commercials: 10 Cloverfield Lane, Intel, Esurance, McDonald's has all-day breakfast, Promo for Code Black with a guest appearance from Odell Beckham, promo for Hawaii Five-O with four new Coldplay songs!, promo for Blue Bloods

Coin toss: Bay area Super Bowl MVPs. Biletnikoff, Plunkett, Allen, Young, Rice, Montana. Um, guys? Allen was the Super Bowl MVP as a Los Angeles Raider. That's nowhere near San Franciso or Oakland. Joe Montana will flip the coin. Panthers call tails. It's tails. Panthers will defer, Broncos will receive.

Commercials: Hyundai commercial featuring Kevin Hart.

Bump in from commercial: Wayne Gretzky, Jack Nicklaus, Michael Jordan talk about greatness.

Simms: Broncos like to get off to quick starts. Panthers can't overplay on defense.

FIRST QUARTER

Caldwell returns the kick to the Denver 20. Unremarkable return. Decent enough.

Manning is the oldest starting quarterback in NFL history. If he wins today, it'll be win #200. He's currently tied with Favre for first all-time with 199.

First play, Manning to TE Owen Daniels for 18.

Simms: Broncos coach Gary Kubiak likes to use new plays and new formations on the opening drive.

Third and 4, Manning to Caldwell for 22 yards but there's a flag down. Holding, defense. Declined, of course. First down inside the Carolina 35.

2nd and 13 inside the 20, Manning gets lucky he doesn't give up a pick six. Floats a pass a bit across the field and McClain knocks it away from the receiver.

Drive stalls there and Brandon McManus comes on for a field goal attempt. Got it. 3-0 Denver.

Commercials: Michelob Ultra, Snickers turns cranky Willem Dafoe into Marilyn Monroe, SoFi bank loans, Mexican avocados commercial featuring Scott Baio, which may well be the last time someone ever pays him to appear on camera.

Decent return from Fozzy Whittaker out to the 19.

Commercials: Hyundai, Jeff Goldblum for Apartments dot com. He sees George and Weezy, which in this case is George Washington and Lil Wayne. Something about Super Bowl babies being born nine months after their city's team wins the Super Bowl.

Nantz: Newton is the first Heisman winning QB to start a Super Bowl since Jim Plunkett. Roger Staubach is the only other one.

CBS graphic: Before that field goal, the Panthers hadn't trailed at any point in the postseason.

Panthers get 7 and a half on third and 8. They'll punt after a three-and-out.

Simms: Von Miller was spying Cam Newton in case he left the pocket.

Commercials: Arnold Schwarzenegger for Mobile Strike video game, Guy eats Doritos at an ultrasound. The baby wants one and decides to be born early. Paypal is new money. Promo for the halftime show featuring Coldplay, Beyonce, and Bruno Mars.

Broncos get a foot on third and 1 and will punt after a three-and-out.

Commercials: The Jungle Book film, Audi cars are like rockets, promo for The Big Bang Theory.

First play of the Panthers' drive is a pass downfield to Cotchery. It's ruled incomplete but a replay shows he probably caught it. The Panthers challenge the call. If it's overruled, it'll be a gain of 24.

Commercials: Puppymonkeybaby for Mountain Dew Kickstart, Taco Bell has cheese in the shell in the Quesalupa, Marmot. I don't know what that is. Promo for the Grammys.

NFL official Mike Carey, working with CBS today, says it should be ruled a catch. Ball never touched the ground.

Oh, man, the Panthers just got screwed hard. Play stands as called. Nobody can figure out how that's an incomplete pass.

Third and 10, Newton pressured, Von Miller with a strip sack, and the Broncos recover in the end zone. Malik Jackson fell on it. Touchdown. 10-0 Denver with 6:27 left in the first quarter.

Nantz: Netwon and Von Miller were the first two picks in the 2011 draft.

Commercial: Squarespace.

CBS graphic: Panthers have trailed by 10+ points three times this season and have won all three games.

Panthers fumble a couple plays into the next drive. Tolbert coughed it up but Carolina recovered.

Next play, Newton badly overthrows Ted Ginn. Play after that, a safety blitz results in a sack. That should make it fourth down, but there's a flag on the play. Unsportsmanlike conduct, taunting, called on Denver CB Aqib Talib. Dumb, dumb, dumb penalty gives the Panthers a first down near midfield.

Talib’s meltdown begins.

Panthers RB Jonathan Stewart has a left foot injury and is questionable to return. That would be a big loss.

The penalty doesn't cost Denver any points. Cotchery drops a third down pass and Brad Nortman will punt. Fair catch at the 12.

Commercials: Shock Top beer. Buick. Advil.

Total yards: Denver 73, Carolina 9

Broncos go three-and-out. Kuechly sacks Manning on third down. He blew through the line of scrimmage completely untouched.

Denver punts from its own end zone. A good kick, Ginn gets nothing on the return, and the Panthers get called for a block in the back. Big field position swing, Carolina will start near its own 30.

Newton: 2-6, 12 yards, sacked twice, one fumble.

Good news for the Panthers: Stewart is back. Bad news: He lost a yard on first down and now has two yards on three carries.

First quarter ends. 10-0 Broncos.

Commercials: Jason Bourne, Dollar Shave Club, Acura, Quicken Loans.

SECOND QUARTER

Nice run from Cam Newton on the first play of the quarter, gets 11 on second and 11.

After a false start penalty, Newton runs for 11 again on first down.They're approaching field goal range for Graham Gano.

Third and one, Newton rolls right and throws back left across an unbalanced line. Olson gets to the Denver 15. First down after a gain of 19.

Next play, Newton to Brown, down inside the 3 and there's a personal foul facemask against Talib. That's his second personal foul in less than ten minutes.

Talib’s meltdown continues.

First and goal, Stewart goes over the top into the end zone. It's 10-7. Talib was offside on the extra point attempt. It'll be assessed on the kickoff. I'm not sure I'd let him back on the field if I'm Broncos coach Gary Kubiak.

Commercials: Seth Rogen and Amy Schumer for Bud Light. Seems about right for garbage beer. Steven Tyler for Skittles. CBS promo.

First play of the Broncos drive, Manning is obviously sacked, but it's ruled an incomplete pass. Panthers challenge. This should be easy.

Commercials: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, Steve Harvey for T-Mobile, Hyundai, promo for The Late Late Show with James Corden

Panthers win the challenge. It's a sack. Carolina is now out of challenges, which is a dumb rule. If you keep getting them right, you should be allowed to keep challenging.

Broncos go three-and-out. Denver's offense isn't doing much. That's their third consecutive three-and-out. Colquitt to punt again from his own end zone. Panthers get the ball at their own 35. Nope, there's a penalty for illegal man downfield. They're going to back Denver up and force another punt from the end zone.

Panthers take over at their own 49 after the re-kick.

Sideline reporters with both teams report that players are struggling with footing.

Carolina tries to run a double-pass and throwback to Newton, but the Broncos don't fall for it. Ted Ginn is sacked for a loss of 4. Panthers go three-and-out. If you like threes and out, this game is your jam.

Huge punt return from Jordan Norwood! The Panthers seem to think it's a fair catch and try to hold up, and then he blasts through the coverage team for a 61 yard return inside the 15. That's the longest punt return in Super Bowl history.

Nantz: Norwood was out of football entirely in 2013 and missed all of last year with an injury. Obviously he's recovered.

Broncos call timeout. Water guy tries to give Manning a water bottle as he walks to the sideline. Manning ignores him. Water guy walks with him holding a water bottle out. Manning ignores him.

This is some next-level Bobby Boucher stuff.

Third and 1 from the 5. C.J. Anderson gets a foot or so but is short of the line to make. The offense stays on the field for fourth down. I like this call.

Anderson again on fourth down, gains a couple yards. It's called back, though - holding. McManus will attempt a field goal from 33. He's made 11 consecutive field goals. Make it 12. Broncos 13, Panthers 7. Less than seven minutes left in the half.

Commercials: A prescription for "opioid induced constipation" relief. Good lord, drug companies are shameless. Persil laundry detergent. Promo for The Good Wife. Promo for the halftime show: Coldplay, Beyonce, Bruno Mars.

How about solving the real problem you’ve caused by passing opiates out like candy on Halloween?

Nantz: Broncos haven't had a first down since their first drive, but they've scored three times.

Simms: Panthers have to look at the scoreboard and say "We've made this many mistakes and we're still in the game?" It will give them confidence.

Newton runs for 14 on second and 10. It looks for a second like he fumbles during the tackle, but he was down. Flag on the play. After the play, late hit on the defense. Panthers are at their own 49. Replay shows he was clearly down.

Next play, Mike Tolbert runs for 10 but fumbles during the tackle. Broncos recover. Ouch.

Commercials: Ant-Man and Hulk for Coca Cola, Weather Tech is made in America. Super Bowl babies promo for the NFL again.

Second and 10, C.J. Anderson breaks tackles and powers through the middle of the defense for a 34 yard run to the Carolina 26.

3rd and 8, Manning throws the ball right to defensive lineman Kony Ealy. Ealy makes a nice one-handed grab and returns it for 15 or so.

CBS graphic: That was Manning's first INT in his last 164 postseason pass attempts.

Panthers go three and out. If I recall correctly, both teams are now 1-for-7 on third down conversions. Nortman crushes a punt 61 yards into the end zone.

Video freezes on third and 2 and we miss most of an incomplete pass. Broncos three and out again, have failed to convert their last seven third downs. 53 yard punt by Colquitt is fair caught as we reach the two-minute warning.

Commercials: Independence Day Resurgence, Toyota Prius, Promo for Criminal Minds Beyond Borders

Denver total yards: First drive: 64. Six drives since: 53.

Newton: 6-15, 63 yards. 5 consecutive incomplete passes.

3rd and 12, Newton buys time, moves in the pocket, and finally rifles it downfield to Devin Funchess for 24 yards.

3rd and 3 near midfield, Newton up the middle gains about 7. Panthers call their final timeout. They have the ball around the Denver 45. First and 10, 18 seconds left.

First down, incomplete pass. Down to 0:11 left in the half. Simms criticizing the Panthers' clock usage on this drive.

Second and 10, DeMarcus Ware sacks Newton. That'll end the half. After 30 minutes it's 13-7 Broncos.

Carolina head coach Ron Rivera: We can't turn the ball over in the second half. We'll have chances to make plays and we have to make plays. It'll come down to who has the ball last.

HALFTIME

James Brown: Denver sacked Newton four times in the first half.

Cam Newton: 8/19, 95 yards, 1 turnover. 46 yards rushing

Peyton Manning: 9/16, 76 yards, 1 turnover.

Commercials: Promo for The Amazing Race, Promo for CBS News

Halftime performance: Starts with a video with Janelle Monet walking through various eras of music.

Coldplay opens with the first line of Yellow before breaking into Viva la Vida. Chris Martin hugging fans and stuff. Paradise. Adventure of a Lifetime. I honestly think I've never heard Adventure of a Lifetime before. Here's Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars. Uptown Funk. Apparently uptown funk is going to give it to me. This is fine, I guess, but X already gave it to me. I have it and have had it for years. Beyonce. Formation. Now it's a mashup of a bunch of stuff. Chris Martin is trying to look cool leaning forward towards the camera, but he just looks like he's got a back injury. Video montage of previous halftime shows. About 8 songs mashed together during the video montage.

This halftime show kind of sucks, if I'm being honest. They're trying to do too much. Too many different artists doing too many different things in too short a period of time.

Commercials: Promo for Beyonce world tour. Amazon Echo. Jeep.

Walter Payton Man of the Year award winner is Anquan Boldin.

Commercials: Domestic violence awareness. Promo for Limitless. Promo for Criminal Minds. Promo for The Big Bang Theory. Promo for Life in Pieces. Promo for the Grammys. Promo for CBS Sports. Late Night with Colbert promo. Guaranteed Rate mortgage. Chevy Silverado trucks. Jeb Bush for president. Nissan.

Please clap.

Nantz: Panthers gained more than half of their total yards on the touchdown drive.

THIRD QUARTER

Simms: Panthers need to keep extra blockers in the backfield to give Newton more time.

First half stats: Panthers 140 yards and 2 turnovers. Broncos 117 yards and one turnover.

Second play of the half, Newton downfield to Ted Ginn coming across the middle. 45 yard gain.

Nice play. The Panthers fake an end-around and hand off to Whittaker up the middle. Gain of 10, but there's a flag down. After the play, unnecessary roughness on the offense. 15 yard penalty, but it's first and 10 for Carolina. They lost five yards and picked up a first down.

CBS reporter Evan Washburn: Panthers didn't change their halftime routine. Cam Newton didn't receive any extra treatment or IVs at halftime.

Another completion to Ginn. Gain of 14 to the Denver 25. First down.

CBS reporter Tracy Wolfson: Kubiak says the Broncos need to do better on second and short. Denver didn't alter their halftime routine, just gave their players extra rest.

Cotchery drops a pass inside the 5 on 2nd and 11. Newton throws it away on third down, but there's a flag. The officials wave off the flag and the Panthers will attempt a 44 yard field goal. More like Graham Ga-nope. He smokes it into the right upright and the Broncos escape.

Doink.

Commercials: Doritos. Dogs trying to get into a grocery store to get Doritos. Mini Cooper. Anthony Hopkins for TurboTax. Pokemon. Promo for Madam Secretary.

Replay shows Talib was probably offside on the field goal, no flag.

First play for the Broncos, Manning to Emmanuel Sanders. Zips it downfield for 25. Broncos had one first down in the last 31 minutes of game time before that play.

Another chunk play to Emmanuel Sanders. Gains 22 and they're inside the Carolina 20.

Panthers jump offside on an Omaha! from Peyton Manning. It's first and 5.

CBS special teams analyst Jay Feely says Gano lifted his head too early on the kick.

Broncos stall inside the 20. They got a bit lucky the third down pass wasn't intercepted. It hit a DB in the helmet and popped into the air. McManus hits a 30 yard field goal. 16-7 Denver, mid third quarter.

Commercials: Prescription Xifaxan for IBS with diarrhea. Liam Neeson for LG

CBS bumps in from commercial with video from the Wilson football factory in Ada, Ohio. Neat.

Commercials again. X Men Apolcalypse. Death Wish Coffee and Intuit Quickbooks. Butterfinger. Showtime.

Newton lofts a deep ball on the first play of the drive. He gets popped while he throws it. Philly Brown makes a terrific catch between two DBs. Gain of 42.

Next play is a screen pass left to Ted Ginn, who stops, turns around, and runs the width of the field to the right sideline. He runs 50 yards to gain 4.

That was bananas. Netwon throws downfield, overthrows his receiver. T.J. Ward intercepts the ball, falls, gets up, falls, gets up, runs, fumbles, and the Broncos recover.

Commercials: Fitbit. Wix dot com with characters from Kung Fu Panda 3. Heinz ketchup and mustard. Promo for Blue Bloods.

Big power run from C.J. Anderson on first down. 13 yards up the middle. Carries what looks like the entire Carolina defense for about half of the play.

Broncos run a draw play on third and 17. Gain of two. Colquitt will punt for what feels like the 37th time today. (Actually it's the fifth.) 54 yard punt. Not much of a return. Flag on the play. Personal foul on the return team. Illegal blindside block. It's a net of 69 yards. NICE.

Commercials: Honda has sheep singing Queen's Somebody to Love. Budweiser. Promo for Scorpion.

CBS graphic: Panthers have 121 yards and zero points in the third quarter.

Ginn has four catches for 74 yards, all in the third quarter.

The two teams are now 4 for 21 combined on third down, after Von Miller sacks Newton on third down. Nortman will punt. That was the Broncos' fifth sack tonight.

Quarter ends. 16-7 Broncos after three.

Commercials: Super Bowl babies. Promo for the Late Late Show. Toyota. Xfinity from Comcast.

FOURTH QUARTER

Broncos open the quarter with another downfield pass to Sanders. 16 yard gain. Flag down after the play. Unsportsmanlike conduct on the defense. Broncos now at the Carolina 37.

Manning fumbles but falls on it.

Third and 14, Manning back to pass, Kony Ealy knocks the ball out of his hand. Panthers get the ball at midfield. Is that considered a sack? It would be Ealy's third.

Commercials: Jeep. Schick Hydro. Axe for men. Late Show with Stephen Colbert promo. Mom promo.

Nantz: Carolina WR Philly Brown is out for the game after failing the concussion protocol.

Panthers driving. Third and 5 inside the Denver 20. The two teams are a combined 4 for 24 on third downs. Make it 4 for 25. Incomplete pass. Could have/should have been called defensive pass interference. No call.

39 yard field goal attempt from Gano. Got it this time. It's 16-10 Denver. 10:21 left.

Commercials: Jublia for toenail fungus. Christopher Walken for Kia. PSA for the I Have a Dream Foundation.

We get to see the kickoff, then it's back to commercials.

Commercials: Drake for T-Mobile, CBS All Access, Promo for Super Bowl 100 in 50 years.

Broncos go three-and-out. The teams are 4 for 26 on third down now. This is Denver's fifth three-and-out. Colquitt punts again. Panthers take over at their 27.

Simms makes some weird reference to Carolina running the wishbone in this game. I'm not entirely certain he and I are watching the same football game. Maybe they've had more than one running back in the backfield at the same time today, but it hasn't happened more than a handful of times.

Oh, hey, look, another failure to convert on third down. Newton to Cotchery for 12 on third and 15. Nortman will punt as the clock approaches 7:00.

Commercials: Helen Mirren for Budweiser. She says not to drive drunk. Promo for Supergirl, Scorpion, and NCIS LA. Promo for Survivor.

So far in this game: 10 sacks, 5 turnovers, 16 penalties, 12 punts, one offensive TD.

CBS says the two teams are 4-for-25 on third down. I count 27, but maybe I'm wrong.

CBS graphic: Broncos have failed on 11 consecutive third downs, which is tied for the longest streak in Super Bowl history. (Tied with the Broncos in Super Bowl XII.)

Third and 9, make it 12 failures to convert in a row. Clock rolls down below 5:00. Colquitt to punt again. That's the Broncos' sixth three-and-out.

Panthers get the ball at their 24. It might not be do-or-die for Carolina here, but it's certainly getting close.

Simms: If the Panthers can get a first down or two, they might be in four-down territory.

First down, Tolbert run for a yard. Clock below 4:20. Second down, Newton throws poorly to Funchess. Incomplete, but the clock stops. Third and 9. Newton back to pass, Von Miller knocks the ball out of Newton's hand. Fumble. Newton thinks about diving for the ball, chooses not to, and the Broncos get the ball inside the Carolina 5.

Broncos drive: First and goal, run stuffed. Clock below 3:30. Second down, run for a couple yards. Panthers call timeout with 3:17 left. They have two remaining.

Third down, Manning throws incomplete, but the DB was all over Demariyus Thomas. Defensive holding. Automatic first down.

First and goal, Anderson up the middle. Touchdown. Game over, you'd think. 22-10 Broncos with 3:08 left. Denver will go for 2.

Looks like they're going to review the touchdown to make sure he wasn't down before the ball got in. Replay seems to show it's a TD. We'll see what the officials decide.

Touchdown confirmed.

Two point conversion successful. Manning to Fowler in the end zone. Fowler does a goofy dance. 24-10 now, with just over 3:00 left.

Replay: Broncos players dabbing on the bench.

Panthers' next drive: Incomplete pass, sack for a loss of 14, Incomplete pass. That sack was Denver's seventh sack of the game.

Panthers will punt with 2:08 to go, the ball at their own 6, needing two touchdowns. Broncos get the ball at their 37 after the two-minute warning.

Commercials: The Secret Life of Pets, Colgate says don't brush your teeth with the faucet running. Suntrust. Promo for NCIS.

Nantz: Is this it for Peyton? Simms: It's gotta be. How could it end any better than this if you're Peyton Manning?

Broncos run on first down, Panthers burn their second timeout. Run on second down. Panthers use their last timeout. Run on third down. That's another failure to convert on third down. Clock will be down to 1:00 or so before the punt.

Broncos call timeout with 1:01 left. Manning leaves the field, almost certainly for the final time.

Simms: Asked Manning how he wanted to be remembered. Manning: Want to be known as a good teammate, respected by coaches, and want everyone to know how much I love football.

Panthers get the ball with 0:54 left on the clock. Cool play on first down. Short pass to Cotchery, who immediately laterals 10 yards away to Whittaker. Next play is incomplete. 0:23 left. We're just playing out the string now.

Gary Kubiak will become the first person to win the Super Bowl as a player and a head coach with the same team.

Panthers called for a late hit with 0:11 left. That requires a ten-second runoff on the clock. We're down to 0:01 left. And we don't get to see the final play, presumably a kneeldown from Newton. Game over. 24-10 Broncos.

That game was hot garbage.

Manning: It's very special. This game was like the regular season. Tested our toughness and our resilience.

Manning: Reflect on all the coaches, family members, teammates, and friends.

Manning: Not sure if this is my final game. Gonna spend time with my wife and children. Gonna drink a lot of Budweiser tonight, which...yuck.

POSTGAME

Commercials: Promo for Criminal Minds. Anti-Marco Rubio ad. Kia Sportage and Sorrento.

Boomer Esiason: What a performance from this defense, back to back in the AFC championship game and the Super Bowl.

Cowher: No question the MVP is Von Miller. He really won this game with this defense.

Commercials: Toyota Prius. Turkish Airlines. They now fly to Gotham City. Another Turkish Airlines commercial. They fly to Metropolis too. Batman vs. Superman tie-in. Promo for Broncos swag on NFLShop dot com.

Super Bowl XXXII MVP Terrell Davis to present the Vince Lombardi trophy. Passes it off to Joe Namath, MVP of Super Bowl III. Namath hands the trophy to Super Bowl X MVP Lynn Swann. CBS hits the wrong button or something during Swann's walk and we get a shot of the crowd.

Nantz is all discombobulated on the podium. Eventually gets the microphone to Roger Goodell for the presentation. Annabelle Bowlen, owner Pat Bowlen's wife. If Pat were here today, he'd say how proud he was of this team. Not sure why Bowlen isn't there. I guess I'll google it. He has Alzheimer’s. No bueno.

Broncos VP of Football Operations John Elway: This one's for Pat! 

Gary Kubiak: This team's been special all year. These guys just kept grinding all year and they ground their way to a championship.

MVP is Von Miller, of course.

Miller: So proud of my guys. Every last one of the guys in the locker room have gotten me here.

Manning: It's been an emotional week for everybody. Last night, we reflected on what we've been through this season. This is a tough, resilient, unselfish bunch of guys. Proud of them.

Nantz: Is this your final game? Manning: Tony Dungy gave me advice. Don't make an emotional decision. This is an emotional time. Gonna kiss my wife, kiss my kids, and drink a bunch of Budweiser. Von Miller is buying.

Commercials: Toyota Prius, Flonase, Alec Baldwin and Jason Schwartzman for Amazon Echo, Straight Talk wireless, Promo for Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Promo for the Late Late Show with James Corden. Promo for Broncos gear at NFLShop dot com.

Tony Gonzalez: The legacy that Peyton Manning leaves behind, it'll be tough to match.

Cowher: Manning has always had great respect for the game, always had dignity and humility.

Panthers coach Ron Rivera: The biggest thing was that we kept turning the ball over. We had opportunities to score and we didn't. You can't do these things in a championship game and expect to win.

Rivera: Need to learn and grow from this experience.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl 50 #denver broncos #carolina panthers #denver #broncos #carolina #panthers

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl 50

What was the final score?

Denver 24, Carolina 10

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

Most of the game was close, though there wasn’t a ton of excitement. It’s tough to get excited watching teams go three-and-out and punting.

Denver took a 10-0 lead in the first quarter when Von Miller knocked the ball out of Panthers quarterback Cam Newton’s hand during a sack. Defensive lineman Malik Jackson fell on the ball in the end zone and the Broncos were up by two scores. Carolina pulled back within three points early in the second with an impressive goal line dive from Jonathan Stewart. The running back showed some serious sproing, nearly jumping out of the stadium while crossing into the end zone. 

The next two-plus quarters were dreadful. Carolina’s next six possessions went three-and-out, fumble, three-and-out, end of half, missed field goal, interception, punt. Denver’s next nine possessions went three-and-out, field goal after actually losing yardage on a drive, interception, three-and-out, field goal, punt, fumble, three-and-out, three-and-out. It was terrible football. Technically it was a close game, but then so was the Wake Forest-Virginia Tech game that went to overtime tied at zero a few years ago.

So it’s difficult to judge this category. The Lombardi Trophy was within reach for the Panthers until late in the fourth quarter, so that’s positive. Nothing exciting - or interesting, frankly - happened for most of the game. Nobody without a rooting interest in the game (apart from possibly Frank Beamer) would have been on the edge of their seat while watching this game. (Score: 12 out of 20)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

The game was close enough that it was plausible that the Panthers would come back and win. Their offense was such that it probably would have taken a big play from the defense or special teams, but it wasn’t outside the realm of possibility. It was, however, out of the realm of probability. (Score: 4 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

Other than Broncos linebacker Von Miller, none of the stars showed up for Super Bowl 50. 

Peyton Manning, who is solidly in the conversation for “greatest quarterback in history”, had a forgettable final game. Manning completed 13 of his 23 pass attempts for 141 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception. He fumbled twice and was sacked five times.

Cam Newton, who was a nearly unanimous choice as the NFL’s Most Valuable Player in 2015, completed 18 of 41 passes for 265 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception. Newton fumbled twice and was sacked six times. Both of Newton’s fumbles were crucial plays, but I’ll discuss that more below.

Denver wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, who caught 105 passes in the 2015 regular season, 111 passes in 2014, and a record 13 passes in Super Bowl XLVIII, caught one pass for eight yards in Super Bowl 50. Manning threw to Thomas six times and completed one of them.

Broncos running back Ronnie Hillman, who was hardly a great player but did lead a Super Bowl team in rushing during the regular season, ran the ball five times for zero yards. Panthers back Jonathan Stewart, who was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2015, had 12 carries for 29 yards. He caught one pass for -1 yard.

The defenses are where you find star players who had big performances. Miller sacked Cam Newton 2.5 times and forced two fumbles. Carolina linebacker Luke Kuechly, a first team all-pro for the third consecutive season in 2015, had one sack and made a game-high eleven total tackles. Denver pass rusher DeMarcus Ware, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who is in the top ten in career sacks, sacked Newton twice.

Carolina defensive end Kony Ealy was perhaps the most dominant player on the field in this game. Ealy sacked Manning three times, forced a fumble, and made an impressive interception. He likely would have been the Super Bowl MVP if the Panthers had won the game. Unfortunately in terms of this category, that doesn’t move the needle. Kony Ealy is not a great player. (Score: 4 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

This is a tricky category to rate for this game. The 2015 Panthers won their first 14 games and finished 15-1, leading the NFL in points scored, turnovers created, net points, and defensive interceptions. They finished in the top three in the league in passing touchdowns, rushing yards, fumble turnovers created, and defensive net yards per pass attempt. They had the league MVP in quarterback Cam Newton. 

On the other hand, the 2014 Panthers went 7-8-1 and the 2016 Panthers went 6-10. For one season, this Panthers team was just about as dominant as you can be, but they’re just another decent team if you look at a three-year span.

The 2015 Broncos were the #1 seed in the AFC playoffs and featured the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yards and passing touchdowns. They started the season 7-0 and led the league in fewest yards allowed, fewest passing yards allowed, lowest yards per carry allowed, yards allowed per drive, points allowed per drive, and defensive net yards per pass attempt.

That said, this Denver team looked vulnerable heading into the postseason. Peyton Manning had the worst season of his NFL career, throwing nine touchdowns and 17 interceptions while completing fewer than 60% of his passes for the first time since 1998. The 2015 Broncos led the league in interceptions thrown and were 28th in passing touchdowns. The running game was competent but unremarkable, with Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson carrying the bulk of the load. It seemed clear that if the Broncos were going to win it all, the defense would have to play incredibly well. 

The Broncos haven’t made the playoffs or finished in the top half of the AFC West since 2015, but it’s tough to hold that against them. If anything, it’s evidence of how special Manning was. He went 45-12 as the starting quarterback for a team that’s been mediocre under every other recent quarterback. (Jay Cutler, Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow, Trevor Siemian. To a lesser extent, Chris Simms, Brock Osweiler and Paxton Lynch.)

So neither of these teams were historically great, but it was no accident that either team made it to Super Bowl 50. (Score: 8 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

Cam Newton’s two fumbles are hugely memorable. In a game that featured very little offense, turnovers became even more important than they otherwise would have been. Late in the first quarter, Newton dropped back to pass inside his own 10 yard line. Von Miller blew through the Panthers’ offensive line, sacked Newton and knocked the ball out of the quarterback’s hand into the end zone. That gave the Broncos a double-digit lead against the favored Panthers.

Late in the fourth quarter, while trailing by six points, Newton was again stripped of the ball by an onrushing Von Miller. The Carolina quarterback looked as if he was going to jump onto the loose ball, but strangely decided not to attempt a recovery. As Newton stood there watching, the Broncos’ T.J. Ward picked up the ball and returned it to the Panthers’ four yard line. Four plays later, after a defensive penalty gave Denver a first down, C.J. Anderson iced the game with a two-yard touchdown run. Super Bowl 50 was decided by 14 points. Newton’s two fumbles directly led to 14 Broncos points. (Score: 8 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

Hot garbage. 

This was a dreadfully played football game. Quarterbacks regularly missed open receivers and offensive lines frequently failed to block pass rushers. The Broncos won this game with less than 200 yards of total offense. Carolina fumbled four times, turned the ball over four times, committed 12 penalties for more than 100 yards, allowed seven sacks, and punted eight times. The Broncos went three-and-out seven times and 13 of their 14 possessions lasted less than 2:45. The two teams combined to go 4-for-29 on third down conversions.

I’m not saying offenses need to storm up and down the field all day in order for a game to be high-quality. I’m just saying that offenses need to be able to occasionally pick up a first down or complete a pass on third down. I’m saying the team that wins shouldn’t fail on 13 of 14 third down conversion attempts. (Score: 3 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

“Greatness” of the game. Heh.

There are a few things that come to mind. This game was seen as sort of a passing of the torch from an all-time great quarterback who was probably retiring, to a 26-year-old NFL MVP. In a similar vein, it was widely (and correctly) assumed that this would be Peyton Manning’s final appearance as a professional football player.

Newton and Manning became the first quarterbacks who were drafted #1 overall to face each other in the Super Bowl. This was the first time both Super Bowl head coaches (Ron Rivera and Gary Kubiak) had appeared in the game as a player. 

In terms of the game itself, the weather was a non-factor, there was no rivalry to speak of, and the Panthers are hardly a legacy franchise. The Denver win was a bit of a surprise, as they were five-point underdogs. (Score: 9 out of 15, almost all of which comes as a result of Manning/Newton related storylines.)

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

48 out of 100. It just misses being one of the ten worst Super Bowls ever played, largely because it was Peyton Manning’s final game and the two offenses were so awful that nobody could build a large lead.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-50:

1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points 2. Super Bowl XLIX - New England 28, Seattle 24 - 90 points T3. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T3. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 5. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 6. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T7. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T7. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T9. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T9. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 11. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 12. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 13. Super Bowl XLVII - Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 - 76 points 14. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 15. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 16. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T17. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T17. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T17. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T20. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T20. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 22. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 23. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 24. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T25. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T25. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T27. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T27. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 29. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 30. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 31. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 32. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 33. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T34. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T34. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T34. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T37. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T37. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points T39. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points T39. Super Bowl 50 - Denver 24, Carolina 10 - 48 points 41. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 42. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 43. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 44. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T45. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T45. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 47. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 48. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 49. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points 50. Super Bowl XLVIII - Seattle 43, Denver 8 - 34 points

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl 50 #super bowl l #denver broncos #denver #broncos #carolina panthers #carolina #panthers

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl XLIX

PREGAME

This is an NBC broadcast with an extended Carrie Underwood music video at the beginning. Great. Perfect. Thanks for that. Football now?

Roof is open at the stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Temperature in the mid 60s.

Michaels opens with deflated football controversy. The Patriots are minimizing it. Collinsworth says he thinks the New England players will rally behind each other.

This recording doesn't seem to include commercials, which is fine with me.

Seattle wearing their dark blue uniforms. Patriots in white.

One of the Seahawks introduces himself as being from THE Utah State University, which is fun.

Patriots run in behind what appear to be actual soldiers. "Crazy Train" playing.

Seahawks get the string part from Bittersweet Symphony instead.

Walter Payton Man of the Year Award time. Last year's winner, Charles Tillman, announces this year's winner. Thomas Davis, Panthers LB.

Moment of silence for the Giants' Ann Mara.

John Legend performs America The Beautiful. He does it about as well as you'd expect, which is extremely well.

Color guard is made up of servicemembers in each branch of the armed forces, all based in Arizona.

Idina Menzel to perform the Star Spangled Banner. I remember this being bad. I hope it isn't.

It's not bad, per se, it's just weird. It's like she's a driver alternately slamming on the brakes, then gunning the engine. You can't get any sense of a regular tempo. She sang all the notes and sang them all well, but it was a weird performance.

Collinsworth: New England's offensive tackles need to play big and fast.

Collinsworth: The two key players are Tom Brady and Marshawn Lynch. You don't say, Cris. Thanks for the analysis.

Coin toss: Tedy Bruschi and Kenny Easley, honorary captains and club greats. Patriots call heads. It is tails. Seattle will defer, Patriots will receive in the first half.

Seattle coach Pete Carroll: Not thinking about going back to back. If it happens, it happens. We play every game like it's a championship and this one's no difference. Will play tough and smart, trust and believe in ourselves.

Cutaway: Marshawn Lynch on the sideline eating Skittles.

FIRST QUARTER

Decent runback, Amendola out to the New England 18.

Michaels: Tom Brady says there isn't a game he would want to win more than this one.

Patriots complete a few very short passes early. They're getting 3-5 yards per pass, but it gets them a first down.

First five plays are either runs or very quick throws. Patriots not putting Brady in a position to face the pass rush. He throws incomplete on third down and the Patriots will punt it away.

The Seahawks hit the kicker. Is it 5 or 15 yards? Five yards. Running into the kicker. It's 4th and 1. Declined, the punt stands.

Collinsworth is insisting that the rule says if you hit the punter's plant leg, it's roughing - a 15 yard penalty. That was clearly a collision with the knee of the plant leg.

NBC graphic: Russell Wilson is 10-0 (including postseason) in his career against quarterbacks who have won a Super Bowl.

Seattle goes three and out. They'll give the ball right back to the Patriots. Fair catch at the New England 33.

Quick pass from Brady to Edelman. Brady is now 5-6 for 27 yards. Very short passing.

LeGarrette Blount up the middle for 5 to get into Seattle territory.

Brady to Gronk for 4. None of these passes are downfield. Swing pass to Shane Vereen for a few. These quick, short passes are keeping the clock rolling. Under 5:00 left in the first.

3rd and 1, Blount around right end for 6, to the Seattle 25. This is an impressive if methodical drive.

Quick out to Amendola in the flat. Another 13 yard gain. Brady is 8-9 for 44 yards.

Well, that's not terribly impressive. Brady throws to the end zone on third and six and the only person in the area is DB Jeremy Lane. That's an interception. New England gets zilch, other than field position, out of that drive.

Lane is injured as he's tackled. His arm is in what looks like an aircast. That's not great. I have no interest in seeing that replay.

Total plays: New England 19, Seattle 3. Score: 0-0.

First quarter ends. It's scoreless. Seahawks didn't throw a single pass in the first quarter, if memory serves.

SECOND QUARTER

Jeremy Lane is "doubtful" with a left wrist injury. I'm pretty sure the thing was completely shattered. The only way he was coming back in the game is if they amputated the arm..

Third and 9, Wilson buys time, rolls, looks around, runs some more, looks, doesn't see anything, and he throws an incomplete pass. Jon Ryan will punt.

Halftime show is Katy Perry and Lenny Kravitz. Sure, if by "Lenny Kravitz", you mean "Left Shark".

Another quick outside pass, this time to Amendola. He breaks it for 17 yards, (almost?) all of them after the catch. They're into Seattle territory again.

Collinsworth: The Patriots are clearing space for Vereen, trying to get him one-on-one with a linebacker in the open.

Finally a deep pass. Brady deep to Gronkowski, incomplete. Vereen up the middle for 1 on the next play. Third and 9.

First down. Edelman does his best Wes Welker impersonation, comes across the middle short, and picks up 23. First and 10 from the Seattle 12.

Two plays later, Brady throws a slant. Lafell splits two Seahawks and gets into the end zone. Safety Earl Thomas blasts CB Tharold Simon instead of the receiver and Simon looks hurt. He's only in the game because Jeremy Lane got injured. They've gotta make sure they don't run out of cornerbacks in the Super Bowl against Tom Brady.

Once again, the Seahawks go three and out. Collinsworth says the Patriots DBs have completely dominated the receivers and taken everything away from Russell Wilson. Second quarter is almost halfway over and Wilson still hasn't completed a pass.

Total yards: New England 140, Seattle 22.

Collinsworth: Patriots are running Shane Vereen out of the backfield and sending their tight end or slot deep down the seam. That gets quick WR Julian Edelman one-on-one over the middle against linebacker Bobby Wagner. They're winning the game with that strategy.

Maybe so, but Brady just threw incomplete on third down. Ryan Allen will punt with 7:17 left in the half. Downed near the 30.

Cutaways: John Travolta, Kevin Hart, Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Kenny Chesney, Steven Tyler, Paul McCartney.

This is the second-longest a team has ever gone in a Super Bowl without a completion. The '85 Patriots completed a pass with 5:00 in the half.

And, as soon as NBC mentions that, Wilson completes a pass. Hits Kearse for a first down. 

Michaels: None of these Seahawks wide receivers were drafted. Not a one.

Oh, what a play by Chris Matthews. Wilson throws downfield and Matthews makes a turning, jumping, falling catch at the New England 11. Seahawks threatening.

Lynch run, Lynch run, and the ball is on the three yard line. Less than 3:00 left in the half.

Next play is another Lynch run. He's pretty good. Bounces it outside, spins, breaks a tackle, and reaches into the end zone. Suddenly it's 7-7. 2:16 left before halftime.

Cutaway: All of the footballs for this game in duffel bags, being guarded so nobody messes with the air pressure.

Collinsworth repeats the Patriots' line about not knowingly tampering with footballs. His tone of voice suggests he believes them, which is precious.

One play into the New England drive, we reach the two minute warning. Patriots at their 31, but this is when their offense really hums.

Blount runs for 9. Second and inches. Clock at 1:30 and counting.

Quick out to Vereen. Tackled in bounds at the 45. 1:00. Clock rolling.

Brady misses Amendola downfield. It looks like the receiver had no idea where the ball was and just sort of stuck his arms into the air in case the ball came.

Edelman jet sweep. Gets out of bounds in Seattle territory. 0:49 before the half.

Brady to Vereen across the middle. Gets to the Seahawks' 26. Timeout called with 0:40 remaining. That was the same look the Patriots have been running, where they clear out an area of the field to get a little, quick guy one-on-one against a middle linebacker.

Collinsworth: Seahawks can't bring in extra cornerbacks to deal with the Patriots' passing game because of the injury to Lane.

This time, it's not a cornerback in coverage, it's a linebacker. Rob Gronkowski blows past K.J. Wright off the line and gets wide open. Total mismatch. Brady to Gronk, touchdown. 14-7 Patriots with 0:31 left before halftime.

That TD is Tom Brady's 11th touchdown pass in a Super Bowl, tying Joe Montana for the career record.

Kickoff through the end zone. Seahawks have 31 seconds and three timeouts to work with if they want to tie the game before halftime.

First play, 19 yard run up the middle from Turbin. Timeout #1. 0:24 left in the half, Seahawks at their own 39.

Next play, Wilson zone read run for 16. Gets out of bounds at the Patriots 45. 0:17 and two timeouts left.

Incomplete pass. 0:11. NBC graphic says Hauschka's pregame long going this direction was from 52 yards. Seattle needs 10 more yards to get him there.

Ricardo Lockette downfield gets 20 or so, but there's a flag down. Personal foul, defense, facemask. It's tacked on to the end of the play. Do the Seahawks kick a field goal here with 0:06 left? Nobody knows, even the Seahawks. They call a timeout to talk about it.

You don’t often see a personal foul facemask before the ball is thrown.

I think you have to kick here. The Seahawks will run a play. I am not a qualified NFL football coach. Pete Carroll is.

Everybody lines up and...New England calls a timeout. They wanted to see the Seahawks' formation.

Touchdown. Wow. Wilson throws a back-shoulder bullet to Chris Matthews in the end zone right after Collinsworth guessed it would be a throw to Matthews. Matthews was like twice as tall as the guy covering him.

What a great play call. Looks like it'll be 14-14 at halftime. Two seconds left - I assume squib kickoff.

Yep. The guy who picks the ball up takes a few steps and then kneels, which...dude, there was no time on the clock. The only possible benefit of giving yourself up is not fumbling, which I guess is something.

HALFTIME

John Harbaugh: Seattle is having major matchup problems on defense. They can't cover these guys and they need to do something.

Harbaugh: That was a really tough ask of the quarterback, going for it with six seconds left. Great play call from Seattle.

Dan Patrick: Katy Perry is coming up with the halftime show. She'll have a tough act to follow. Oh, she'll be fine, Dan. She'll be just fine.

Rodney Harrison: Seattle defense has no answer for Shane Vereen. If I'm Brady, I continue to spread him out and get coverage from a linebacker.

It's time. IT'S LEFT SHARK TIME. GET TURNT.

Katy Perry comes out with Roar. She's riding a giant "robotic" tiger, which is a neat prop but is run by people inside the legs. Dark Horse. This is, visually, light years better than anything I've ever seen at a Super Bowl halftime show. It's extremely well put-together. A wild Lenny Kravitz appears! I Kissed a Girl duet. I'm not sure the song means the same thing when a dude sings the lyrics.

YES. I see sharks, palm trees, and beach balls. It's time. Teenage Dream. DAT SHARK DOH. Left shark is completely out of sync with everything and looks crazy.

California Gurlz. They're undeniable, but not as undeniable as Left Shark.

Missy Elliott! Get Your Freak On. This is theoretically a duet, but Katy Perry is just a famous background dancer/singer. Work It. Now it's Missy Elliott solo. Lose Control. This probably allows Katy to change costumes.

Firework. Katy is alone on a small-ish stage. I guess that's how they close out halftime shows and get the stage off the field. Now she's on a platform that's being raised, going up up up like a firework. She's wearing a safety harness that matches her dress, which is neat. Okay, now she's flying across the sky. Looks like she's riding the NBC "The More You Know" logo.

That was the grand finale. She nailed it.

Costas: In all five Patriots Super Bowls, win or lose, the margin of victory has been four or fewer points.

Costas has a whole long monologue and at the end tells us that the kickers could decide the game. You think?

Michaels: Russell Wilson says halftime is so long that he took his uniform off, took a shower, and put a clean uniform on. I can't tell whether or not he's serious, but that's insane.

THIRD QUARTER

Seahawks to receive the kickoff. Through the end zone. Seahawks take over at their 20.

NBC graphic: Chris Matthews is the fourth player to have his first career catch in a Super Bowl.

Seahawks start the second half feeding it to Marshawn Lynch. Beast mode breaks the second run for 12-15 yards.

Oh, man, what a catch. Another back shoulder pass to Matthews, way downfield. Big gain. Michaels says Matthews was working at a Foot Locker when the Seahawks asked him to try out, and he had to convince his boss to give him time off. A replay shows a very subtle push-off by the receiver that went uncalled.

Seattle gets 8 yards on first down, 1 on second, 0 on third. They'll try a chip-shot field goal with Steven Hauschka. 27 yards. Right down the middle. Seahawks lead 17-14 with 11:09 left in the third.

Collinsworth: So far, everything's going fine for the Patriots, but they look at the scoreboard and it's 17-14 Seattle.

I mean, I guess so, Cris, but you aren't going to win games doing nothing but throwing slants and swing passes. If you force yourself to have to pick up 6-7 first downs in a drive, that's a high degree of difficulty.

Third down, the Patriots keep picking on Bobby Wagner over the middle, but Wagner wins this one. It's an interception. Seahawks in business at midfield. Brady was looking for Gronk.

Michaels says that Matthews jokingly gets upset when he googles himself and sees the MSNBC guy with the same name. Says that might not be the case anymore.

Marshawn Lynch up the middle. Tough, strong, quick run and it's first and goal from the 4.

Secons and goal, Patriots sell out to stop the run. Play fake by Wilson and Doug Baldwin is WIDE open in the end zone. He nearly trips and drops the ball. Replay shows he used the umpire as a pick to gain a step on the DB. It's 24-14 Seahawks with 4:54 left in the third.

Michaels: This is the biggest deficit Brady has faced in any of his Super Bowls.

Patriots drive opens with an offensive holding penalty. 1st and 20 from the 25.

Patriots go three-and-out. The holding penalty was too big to overcome. Seattle will get the ball back with 3:15 left in the third and a ten point lead.

First play, Wilson downfield to Ricardo Lockette for a 25 yard gain. Seattle averaging more than 15 yards per pass attempt.

Third and 3, Wilson makes a terrific throw downfield to Jermaine Kearse, but Kearse just flat drops the ball. Jon Ryan to punt with a minute left in the quarter. Out of bounds at the 14.

After a run on first down and a short pass to the tight end on second down, the third quarter comes to an end. 15 minutes left.

FOURTH QUARTER

Third and 1 to start the quarter, the Patriots run with Blount. Stopped. They punt.

Seahawks feeding Lynch now. Patriots respond with run blitzes.

The Seahawks go five-wide on third and seven. Wilson sacked by Ninkovich. A coverage sack - Russell Wilson had nothing to throw to. Seattle will punt it back to New England.

NBC graphic: Brady has two interceptions today. That's as many as he threw in his first five Super Bowls combined.

First down, nobody can get open. It's a sack. Makes it 2nd and 18.

3rd and 14, Brady steps up and throws to Edelman at midfield. Gain of 21 and a first down. Clock now below 10:00.

Swing pass to Vereen, steps out of bounds and is hit afterwards. Personal foul. Dumb play by Earl Thomas. Patriots are in field goal range and rolling.

Vereen run to the 25. Clock below 9:00, third and 8. Patriots down 10.

Complete down the middle to Edelman. First and goal inside the 5. Clock closing in on 8:00.

Holy cow. Edelman just faked Tharold Simon out of existence on first and goal, but Brady missed him. It was a double move that just about broke Simon's ankles.

Second down, Brady to Amendola coming across the back of the end zone. Touchdown. 24-21 Seahawks, a bit less than 8:00 to go.

That touchdown pass was Brady's 12th career Super Bowl TD pass. That makes him #1 all-time, passing Joe Montana (11).

NBC: Seahawks have allowed a total of 13 points in the fourth quarter in their last 8 games. Patriots have allowed 12.

First play of the Seattle drive, a huge non-call. Patriots DB Malcolm Butler slips, falls, and clearly reaches out to trip WR Ricardo Lockette. Incomplete pass, no call.

Third and 5. 7:05 left. Wilson overthrows an open Marshawn Lynch going down the sideline. Lynch wasn't going very hard on the pass route and it threw Wilson off. It's a three-and-out that takes less than a minute. Ryan to punt. Patriots get the ball with 6:52 left.

Patriots moving downfield slowly. A couple completions to Vereen. Less than 5:45 left, first and 10 near midfield. Plenty of time for New England.

Swing pass to Edelman for 9, into Seattle territory. Less than 5:00 left, ball at the 42.

Second and long, GRONK. He's covered by Kam Chancellor and beats him. Gain of 20 or so. First and 10 from the 32.

Second down, Brady to Gronk again. He's one-on-one with a linebacker. 13 yard completion. to the 19. Next play is Vereen up the middle for 7. Clock approaches 3:00, 2nd and 3.

Complete to Lafell. First and goal at the 6. 2:52 left. Brady calls a timeout when the play clock runs low.

Brady's 36 completions have set a new single game Super Bowl record.

Blount up the middle for 3. Second and goal. Clock will be around 2:10 at the next snap. Second down, they run the same play that torched Tharold Simon on the last drive. Edelman with a double move toasts Simon. Brady won't miss that twice in a row and he doesn't. It's 28-24 Patriots with 2:02 left on the clock. Seahawks have all three timeouts.

Kickoff is a touchback. Gives Seattle an extra play. We'll hit the two minute warning after the first play of the Seahawk drive.

And that play is a 31 pass down to Marshawn Lynch down the left sideline by Wilson. Gets his team into Patriots territory. 1:55 left.

Next play, incomplete pass. They have to burn a timeout before the second down play - the play clock was down to 1. Second down, Wilson throws deep to Matthews in the end zone. Can't quite get to the ball. Incomplete. Third and 10.

No problem. Wilson to Lockette for 12. First down. 1:15 and counting.

HOLY CRAP. On first down, Wilson throws deep, it bounces off of the defensive back's hand, Jermaine Kearse falls and lands on his back, the ball hits Kearse in the outstretched leg hits the other leg, pops up, hits him in the hand, bounces, and then Kearse finally catches it at the 6 yard line. That's a crazy play.

Seahawks have to burn their second timeout before the next play.

First down, Lynch up the middle. Tackled inside the 1. Clock still rolling. 0:36 and counting, second and goal.

Second down, it's a pass. AND IT'S INTERCEPTED AT THE GOAL LINE. WHAT THE HECK WERE THE SEAHAWKS DOING?

Collinsworth is apoplectic about the play call. Michaels is just confused. You have Marshawn Lynch and you throw the ball?

Seahawks CB Richard Sherman looks like someone farted on his breakfast.

Collinsworth: "If I lose the Super Bowl because Marshawn Lynch can't get it in from the one yard line, so be it. So be it! There is no way....*stuttering*...I don't believe the call."

Patriots have the ball inside their own 1. They can't just take a knee - they need to get it out of the end zone.

Collinsworth, watching the replay: "WHY?!?"

Seattle jumps offside before the Patriots' first snap. Now Brady can just take a knee. And he does.

Now there's pushing and shoving. I see Gronk throw more than one punch. He should really be ejected. We'll see if he is. #51, Irvin for Seattle threw a punch too, it appeared.

Irvin is ejected. Gronk is not.

Brady takes another knee. Seahawks can't stop the clock and it's over. 28-24 Patriots.

POSTGAME

Malcolm Butler: I had a vision I was going to make a big play and it came true. I'm just blessed. Can't explain it right now.

Butler: Could tell from the formation what the play was going to be. It's because of the preparation.

Michaels: One of the things I love about this game, you've got all these huge stars on the field and Chris Matthews would have been an MVP candidate if the Seahawks has won. And now Malcolm Butler, a guy nobody has ever heard of, makes the game-winning play.

Robert Kraft on Deflategate controversy: Every year, if you're privileged to get to this game, hard things happen. You have to be resilient.

Lombardi trophy presented by Kurt Warner, the MVP of Super Bowl XXXIV.

Fans boo Roger Goodell.

Kraft: To all the Patriot fans, this is our fourth Super Bowl championship in 14 years. The first one we won, I thought was pretty special because it happened at a unique time in our country. (9/11, I assume) I never thought another could feel as special, but this one does. We're all Patriots.

Dan Patrick to Belichick: You ever think you'd win another one of those? Belichick: Sure did.

Belichick: So proud of all these players, I love these guys.

Patrick: Did you expect a Marshawn Lynch run on second down at the goal line? Belichick, refusing to throw anyone under the bus: They do a lot of things at the goal line, we needed to be ready for anything.

Tom Brady named MVP.

Brady: It wasn't the way we drew it up, and me throwing a couple of picks didn't help, but we were resilient and got it done. It was a great team win.

Brady: Want to thank friends, family, and teammates.

Gronk: It feels unbelievable! Had no doubts at all, everyone on this team is great.

Edelman: We're bringing this thing back to Foxboro. Feels unbelievable.

Edelman: Nothing but respect for Seattle. They have a great team. We have a mentally tough team that works its tails off and I'm proud of them.

Harbaugh on the Seahawks' decision to pass: That's hard, you've gotta think about running the ball there. You have a timeout if you don't get in.

Dungy and Harrison both agree that you absolutely have to hand the ball to Lynch on second down.

Pete Carroll: It was a fantastic football game. A true championship game.

Carroll on the pass: We had three receivers on the field, they had their goal line defense in, didn't want to run against their goal line package. It's my fault, totally. Everybody said why didn't you just run it and that would have been a good idea. We were playing for third and fourth down, with the amount of time on the clock it would have been perfect.

Carroll: For everything to work out this way, I hate that it happened. Everybody did a great job and we had a chance to win.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlix #new england patriots #new england #patriots #seattle seahawks #seattle #seahawks

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl XLIX

What was the final score?

New England 28, Seattle 24

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

The entire game was close. The score was 0-0 at the end of the first quarter and 14-14 at halftime. Seattle took a 24-14 lead into the fourth quarter, but it was clear that wasn’t a safe lead against the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick Patriots. And it wasn’t a safe lead. The Seahawks went three-and-out on their first possession of the fourth quarter. They punted and New England responded with a touchdown to cut the lead to 24-21. Seattle then went three-and-out and punted. And New England responded with another touchdown to take a 28-24 lead with 2:06 left in the game.

The defending champion Seahawks weren’t done, though. Russell Wilson led his team 75 yards down the field in less than a minute, giving the Seahawks a first and goal from the five yard line. There was a minute on the clock and Seattle had one timeout and the best power running back in football, Marshawn Lynch. This should have been easy. You hand the ball to Lynch and dare the defense to stop him three times. If he doesn’t get in, you tip your cap to the defense and know you’ve done everything you can do.

But that’s not what happened. On first down, Lynch went off left tackle for four yards. It was second and goal from the one yard line. A touchdown seemed completely inevitable. And then the Seahawks lost their damn minds. Instead of daring the defense to prevent Marshawn Lynch from gaining three feet, Seattle ran a quick slant passing play. New England rookie defensive back Malcolm Butler, an undrafted free agent from West Alabama, jumped the route and made the biggest interception in the history of the Super Bowl. It was, by most accounts, the biggest blunder in professional football history. Years later, I still almost can’t believe they called that play.

I’m struggling to come up with the words to describe what a terrible idea that pass was. It was indescribably bad.

Anyway, I guess that didn’t affect how close the game was. Whether the Seahawks scored there or not, Super Bowl XLIX had come down to a play on the one yard line with less than 30 seconds on the clock. It almost can’t possibly get closer than that. (Score: 20 out of 20)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

There was indeed. The Patriots’ comeback after trailing 24-14 in the fourth quarter was, at the time, the largest comeback in the history of the Super Bowl. But for the interception at the goal line, there would have been a second comeback to defeat the first comeback. (Score: 14 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

For the most part, yes. Super Bowl XLIX MVP Tom Brady completed 37 of his 50 pass attempts for 328 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions. Brady’s top receiver, Julian Edelman, caught nine passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. Star tight end Rob Gronkowski had six receptions for 68 yards and a score.

Seattle’s star offensive players also performed well. Quarterback Russell Wilson went more than a quarter and a half before completing his first pass, but had a big day once he got going. Wilson finished 12 of 21 for 247 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. Perhaps the best player on the field for either team was Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch. Lynch ran the ball 24 times for 102 yards and a touchdown, adding a clutch 31 yard reception in the fourth quarter.

The only ho-hum performance from great players came from the Seattle defense. The Legion of Boom, which had completely dominated Denver in Super Bowl XLVIII, was fairly pedestrian in this game. To a large extent, that’s a credit to Brady and New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. The Patriots’ passing game was designed around short, quick passes meant to neutralize the Seattle pass rush. If Brady only has the ball for a couple seconds, you can’t pressure him and force mistakes. That strategy worked extremely well. (Score: 12 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

I’ve written about both of these teams in the past, so I’ll keep this short. The Patriots are, of course. In my estimation, the New England Patriots of this era are the greatest team in the modern history of professional football. The Seahawks are about a half-step behind them. Seattle led the league in fewest points allowed every year from 2012-2015, went to the Super Bowl two years in a row, and came within a whisker of winning back-to-back Super Bowls. That’s historically great-adjacent, at least. (Score: 9 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

OMFG GIVE THE BALL TO MARSHAWN LYNCH. (Score: 10 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

The quality was largely really good. There were no fumbles and penalties weren’t a factor. There were three interceptions, but only one of them (the first of Brady’s two interceptions) was a bad throw. The other two came on good defensive plays.

You’d have to be hypercritical to have watched this game and had any sort of problem with the level of play on the field. (Score: 13 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

Somehow, despite the Patriots and Seahawks playing together in the AFC for a few decades, they had never faced each other in the postseason before this game.

With their appearance in Super Bowl XLIX, Seattle became the first team since the Patriots ten years earlier to play in back-to-back Super Bowls. For their part, this was New England’s eighth appearance in a Super Bowl, tying the record held by the Cowboys and Steelers.

The result was more or less what was expected; the Vegas line was a pick ‘em and the game came down to the final 30 seconds.

This game was notable for having featured a head coach (Bill Belichick) facing the coach he had replaced (Pete Carroll). Belichick took over in New England after the 1999 season, when Carroll was fired.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Deflategate in this section of the wrap-up. The controversy about underinflated footballs erupted shortly after the Patriots defeated the Colts in the AFC championship game. It was the story in the media heading into Super Bowl XLIX and continued as a huge NFL story for more than a year. Tom Brady eventually served a four-game suspension and the Patriots forfeited two draft picks, including their 2016 first round pick. (Score: 12 out of 15)

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

90 out of 100. It’s just barely behind Super Bowl XLII as the greatest Super Bowl ever played, at least at the time it took place. We’ll see how it compares to Super Bowl LI, which I assume will also rate extremely well.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-XLIX:

1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points 2. Super Bowl XLIX - New England 28, Seattle 24 - 90 points T3. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T3. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 5. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 6. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T7. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T7. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T9. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T9. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 11. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 12. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 13. Super Bowl XLVII - Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 - 76 points 14. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 15. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 16. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T17. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T17. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T17. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T20. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T20. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 22. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 23. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 24. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T25. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T25. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T27. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T27. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 29. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 30. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 31. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 32. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 33. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T34. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T34. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T34. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T37. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T37. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points 39. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points 40. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 41. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 42. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 43. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T44. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T44. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 46. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 47. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 48. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points 49. Super Bowl XLVIII - Seattle 43, Denver 8 - 34 points

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlix #new england #new england patriots #seattle #seattle seahawks #patriots #seahawks

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl XLVIII

PREGAME

This is a Fox broadcast. It opens with a crazy classroom-looking thing where the players write on the chalkboard what they'll do. Okay. Sure. I guess.

Peyton Manning says he'll compete his butt off.

Buck and Aikman in the booth. Looks like this recording includes a half-hour of pregame.

Aikman: Peyton Manning knows what to expect. Russell Wilson says it's just like any other game, but it's just not.

Buck: Number one ranked defense of the Seahawks vs. the number one ranked offense of Denver.

Aikman: What will decide the game is what happens when the Seattle offense faces the Denver defense.

Pete Carroll: All the plans in the world may not work for us. Everybody's tried to stop Peyton Manning and nobody's been able to do it. We'll mix it up.

Carroll: Russell Wilson will have a huge part in our success.

Eric Decker: Gotta weather the storm of the emotions early. It's my first Super Bowl, gotta go out there and execute early and get into the game.

Walter Payton Man of the Year Award winner is announced. Charles Tillman of the Bears.

"America the Beautiful" performed by Queen Latifah. Again? She did the same thing before Super Bowl XLIV, the Saints-Colts game.

Buck tosses to a trailer for a Captain America film as they go to break. My recording doesn't have it, which, whatever.

Pre-produced video about the Seahawks. Kurt Russell talking about how tough they are. Russell's from Portland, isn't he? He might be a Seahawks fan. (Looking it up: He's from everywhere. Born in Massachusetts, spent time in Portland when his dad ran the Mavericks baseball team, went to high school in metro LA.)

Russell did a video for the Broncos too. So I guess they didn't just pick a famous fan of each team. 'When The Levee Breaks' in the background. Broncos offense is a fine-tuned machine. Relentless. No mercy. Reference to "Escape from New York". This game is in New York. (Well, New Jersey.)

National anthem. Renee Fleming. She performs it exactly like you'd expect from an accomplished opera singer: Ostentatious, a bit over the top, but brilliantly sung. One wonders what she thought of Queen Latifah's performance. (I, for one, was impressed by Queen Latifah's performance.)

Coin toss. Joe Namath and Phil Simms. Have I mentioned this game is in New York?

Namath toss the coin before anyone calls anything. Ref grabs it out of the air and asks the visiting team (Seattle) to call it. The Seahawks call tails. Now Joe tosses it again. It's tails. Seahawks win the toss and defer. Broncos will receive.

Namath: I’mma just toss th...  Referee: NOT YET, JOE!

Chris Myers: Before the game, people were concerned about the weather, this being the first Super Bowl played outdoors in the north. The only story with the weather today is that it isn't a story. (It's 49 degrees and clear.)

FIRST QUARTER

Nice kick coverage by the Seahawks, stopping Holliday inside the 15.

Goodness. Manning had 5477 yards and 55 yards in the regular season.

First play, snapped over the head of Manning into the end zone. Knowshon Moreno falls on it for a safety. But wait, there's a flag down. Illegal motion, declined. Safety confirmed. It's 2-0 Seahawks, 0:12 into the game.

Fox graphic: Last safety in a Super Bowl was last year. Okay, thanks. Actually, it's weird - there were safeties on two consecutive snaps from center in the Super Bowl. (Sam Koch's intentional safety in XLVII and this debacle in XLVIII.)

That safety was the fastest score ever in a Super Bowl.

First play for the Seahawks is a Marshawn Lynch run for three yards. Doesn't talk much into microphones. Does his talking with his legs.

Next play, Percy Harvin on a jet sweep left. I love that play call. Harvin was/is insanely fast. Runs for 30 yards. Aikman calls it a reverse. Dude. That's a jet sweep 100 times out of 100. Went in motion, took a handoff from a quarterback in a shotgun formation on the dead run laterally. That's pretty much the exact definition of a jet sweep.

Third and 9, Jermaine Kearse runs a quick slant. They get 11-12 yards. First down inside the 20.

2nd and 12, zone read, Wilson keeps it for 6. Gets out of bounds. It's third and manageable.

Third and 6, Wilson scrambles for 5. Dove for the sticks but didn't get there. I assume that means Steven Hauschka will kick. Well, maybe not. Pete Carroll is challenging the spot. Replay shows it's very close. I think he got the first down.

He did not get the first down. Short by inches. Here's Hauschka for a 26 yard attempt. Nope. False start. Here's Hauschka for a 31 yard attempt. Yep, got it. Hauschka is nails. 5-0 Seattle.

Broncos go three and out. Aikman says the Broncos had the second-fewest threes and out in the regular season. Colquitt will punt. Fair caught by Tate.

Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chili Peppers at halftime. I assume they'll sing about California.

Aikman: Denver is stacking the line of scrimmage to prevent the run and going one-on-one against the receivers.

Third and 8, Wilson scrambles and finds Golden Tate on the sideline. Clutch play for another first down.

Another third down conversion. Third and 4, Wilson to Doug Baldwin for 6.

Seahawks go razzle dazzle on second and 5. Toss to Lynch, a throw back to Russell Wilson, and Wilson is under pressure. Rolls left and flips it forward toward a receiver. Incomplete. The Fox commentators don't think it went past the line of scrimmage, but that doesn't matter when there's a receiver in the neighborhood.

Next play, Wilson lofts a ball down the left sideline and Baldwin runs underneath it. First down inside the 10. Baldwin torched Champ Bailey on a double move and there was no safety help. The corners were on an island. It was a nice catch and an even nicer throw.

Aikman: These Seahawks WRs are a lot better than people realize.

Second down, swing pass incomplete to Harvin. The Broncos challenge, say that it was a lateral and a fumble. They're wrong, it's clearly a forward pass. Review confirms the call on the field.

Total yards: Seattle 128, Denver 8.

Third and goal, Wilson throws it to Kearse in the end zone. Kearse grabs it, but Nate Irving knocks it out of Kearse's hands for an incomplete pass. Hauschka splits the uprights. 8-0 Seattle, 2:16 left in the first quarter. The Seahawks have as many points as the Broncos have yards.

Nice defensive play here by Irving.

Hauschka hits the crossbar with the ensuing kickoff. Nice aim, Steven.

Fox graphic: First two drives for the Broncos were the first time all postseason Denver has gone two drives in a row without scoring.

Third down, Seahawks blitz and hurry Manning's throw. He overshoots Julius Thomas down the middle and throws it right to Kam Chancellor, a Seattle DB. Interception. Seahawks have the ball inside Denver territory again.

Another jet sweep to Harvin starts the next drive. 14 yards this time. Harvin is still lightning-quick.

First quarter ends with the Seahawks inside the 20. Denver has 11 total yards, their lowest first quarter output all season. Broncos had zero first downs in the quarter. 8-0 Seahawks after one.

SECOND QUARTER

Aikman: This drive is important for Seattle. They've had to settle for field goals twice, need to take advantage of these opportunities.

Rushing yards: Seattle 66, Denver 1.

Third and 4, Wilson throws to Tate in the end zone. Tony Carter was face-guarding him and didn't turn for the ball. It'll be first and goal from the 1.

This is a rules violation.

Two Marshawn Lynch runs later, the Seahawks are in the end zone. 15-0 Seattle with 12:00 left in the first half.

Holliday stuffed again on the ensuing kickoff return. Only gets out to the 15.

Kam Chancellor is injured on the tackle. Looks like a serious injury, but he pops up after a minute or two.

Hey, the Broncos have a first down. Third and one, Knowshon Moreno carries it over right guard out to the Denver 30.

Later in the drive on third and 9, Manning gets time to throw for once and throws a strike to Wes Welker coming across the middle. First down into Seattle territory.

Broncos putting together a solid drive here. Clock under 6:00, third and 1, Montee Ball gets a yard and a half. A fresh set of downs for Manning. This drive is nearing the 7:00 mark in terms of time of possession.

Welp, that'll kill the drive in a hurry. Broncos called for tripping on first down. It's first and 20 from the Seattle 42.

Screen pass blown up on first down. Now it's 2nd and 22. Moreno gets nine up the middle on second down, so it'll be 3rd and 13. Clock under 4:00. Fifteenth play of the drive here.

...and the drive is over. Manning hit as he throws, the ball floats through the air and is picked off by linebacker Malcolm Smith. Smith takes it all the way to the house. It's 22-0 Seahawks in the second quarter. 3:21 left in the half.

Oh, it's all falling apart for Denver now. Holliday is stripped on the ensuing kickoff return and kicker Steven Hauschka recovers. It'll be reviewed and possibly overturned. I think he was down.

Overturned. Returner was down at the Denver 33. No fumble.

Wow, nice third down catch from Demariyus Thomas. Back shoulder fade to the Seattle 43. Two plays later, the Broncos are at the Seattle 28 and we reach the two minute warning.

Broncos get hosed on a no-call. DB Earl Thomas ran into Julius Thomas while the ball was in the air to him. Clearly should have been defensive pass interference.

Third and 4 at the 22, false start on the offense. Oof. It's now 3rd and 9 at the 27.

They get seven on a Manning to Moreno pass. Seattle takes timeout. It'll be fourth and 2 from the Seahawks 20. Does Denver dare go for it, or do they take the easy points?

They go for it. Shotgun, three wide. Pass tipped and falls incomplete. Seahawks take over on downs with 1:01 left in the first half.

Seattle isn't going to anything stupid here. Two runs up the middle and the first half is over. 22-0 Seahawks at the break. This is the first time a team has been scoreless at the half of a Super Bowl since the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV against the Ravens.

HALFTIME

Jimmy Johnson: Pete Carroll told me during the week he was going to get the ball in the hands of the fastest guy on the field, Percy Harvin. He didn't waste any time and it's worked well.

Curt Menefee: Manning came back from a 24 point deficit last year against the Chargers.

Johnson: I expected the Seattle defense to be good, but I didn't expect them to be sufficating.

Michael Strahan: Trying to come back is playing right into the strength of the Seahawks defense.

Johnson: We'll fer a big dose of Marshawn Lynch in the second half.

Okay, time for Bruno Mars featuring the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Bruno is playing the drums and killing it. They should just let him do this for 15 minutes. Locked Out of Heaven. I wonder if the guys in The Fixx get any residuals from him completely swiping everything except the vocals from One Thing Leads To Another. Also, I wonder what an acceptable length of time would be for one to be locked out of heaven. Treasure. This isn't exactly my cup of tea musically, but the showmanship is good. Runaway Baby. Now he's completely stolen Shout from the Isley Brothers. Great. Here come the Peppers. It's a duet on Give It Away. You can keep it, my dude. I understand you'd like to give it away now, but I'm not in the market for what you've got and would prefer that it not be put in me. Just The Way You Are, dedicated to the U.S. Armed Forces. Bruno's on a tiny stage in the dark. I assume that's a trick to get the massive stage off the field more quickly.

Menefee shoehorns in a Rio 2 reference when they go back to the studio hosts. Coincidentally, it was produced and distributed by Fox. They talk about how great Bruno Mars was. Jimmy Johnson very noticeably stays quiet.

Jimmy watches people talk about Bruno Mars.

More Led Zeppelin as they bump in from commercial for the second half. Good Times Bad Times.

Aikman: First thing the Broncos need to do in the second half is get a stop. Seattle gets the opening kickoff of the third quarter.

It has begun to rain very lightly. Probably not enough to become a big factor.

Broncos last two possessions: 24 plays, zero points.

Aikman: Not including the kneeldown at the end of the first half, the Seahawks scored on all three first half possessions, and they scored twice when they didn't even have the ball.

THIRD QUARTER

Hey, remember where Aikman said Denver needed a stop? The good news is that the Seahawks offense won't score on this first possession. The bad news is that the Seattle special teams scored when kickoff returner Percy Harvin picked up a bouncing football and housed it. Buck says the kick was bounced to limit the damage Harvin could do. Oops. Now it's 29-0 Seahawks with 14:48 left in the third quarter

Buck: Seattle actually practiced halftime during the week.

Erin Andrews: Broncos coach John Fox says he's happy with the way the offense is moving the ball, they just have to stop turning it over.

Pam Oliver: Seahawks coach Pete Carroll says he talked about finishing. It has nothing to do with disrupting Manning, they just have to go out and finish the job.

Eek. First and ten, Manning lofts a pass into an area with four Seahawks and zero Broncos. It falls incomplete. He looks rattled.

Third and 4, Manning to Decker for six or so. First down near midfield.

Seahawks star cornerback Richard Sherman is down injured. Fox goes to commercial and when they come back, he's up and standing on the sideline.

Seattle jumps on third and 3. That's a first down.

Buck: Broncos punter Britton Colquitt might as well go home. They aren't going to punt, down 29 in the Super Bowl.

3rd and 10, draw play to Montee Ball. Loss of 1. The previously dismissed Colquitt will come in handy as the Broncos punt for the coffin corner. Fair catch at the 8.

Cutaways: Hugh Jackman, Kevin Costner, Paul McCartney, John Travolta, Harry Connick, David Beckham, Michael Douglas.

First play of the drive, Marshawn Lynch for 18 up the middle. Aikman says the Broncos are stacking the line, which is good unless the back gets past those defenders - then there's nobody to tackle him.

Seahawks called for holding, it's first and 20 but they don't seem to worried about it. They still run up the middle to roll that clock. Clock under 8:00 at the next snap. Wide receiver screen for zilch. Yardage no longer matters - they're just killing clock. It'll be near 7:00 before Jon Ryan punts. Broncos take over at their own 45 with 7:05 left in the third.

Cutaway: Sad John Elway

Erin Andrews: Broncos RB Knowshon Moreno has been receiving treatment for a back injury.

Manning goes downfield to Demariyus Thomas, complete but almost immediately fumbled. Maxwell punched it out during the tackle. Seahawks take over with 5:55 left in the third.

Third and 7, Russell Wilson to Luke Wilson for 12 yards and a first down. Barring turnover, that'll eat another 2+ minutes off the clock.

Another first down. A laser from Wilson to Lockette downfield for 19. They're inside the Denver 25. 3:10 and counting.

If the game weren't already over, it is now. Wilson throws a slant to Jermaine Kearse, who spins, makes four defenders miss, and gets to the end zone. It's 36-0 Seattle. 2:58 left in the third quarter.

Fox graphic: Seahawks are the first team in Super Bowl history with a safety, interception TD, and kickoff return touchdown in the same game.

Aikman: I can't think of a single Denver Bronco, on offense or defense, who has won his matchup.

Buck: Seahawks have played almost seven quarters in this stadium this season and allowed zero points. Shut out the Giants in week 15.

This is what it looks like when a billionaire fist-bumps.

None of this really matters anymore, but Manning throws downfield and draws a defensive pass interference penalty.

Manning on a crossing pattern to Welker at the 14. 0:02 left in the quarter.

Well, it won't be a shutout. Last play of the third quarter. Demariyus Thomas makes a nice catch in the end zone. He was being tackled before the ball got there, but still caught the ball.

They go for two and get it. Welker across the middle again. Third quarter is over. It's 36-8 Seahawks.

FOURTH QUARTER

Can I stop watching this now? I don't want to watch this anymore. I'll continue watching though. I'm one stubborn SOB. This game cannot, must not defeat me.

Fourth quarter starts with an onside kick. Seahawks recover without much problem. They get the ball at the Denver 48. 14:59 left in the game.

2nd and 11, Wilson to Tate for 9. Two Denver defenders blast each other in the helmet on the tackle. I'm sure that didn't do any permament damage at all.

3rd and 2, Wilson buys time, looks, scrambles, looks, and finds Doug Baldwin coming across the field. First down. Clock down below 12:45.

Next play, Wilson down the middle to Kearse at the 10. The Broncos just have no answers. Clock below 12:00.

One play later, it's another touchdown. Wilson to Kearse, jukes, dances, and splits the defenders to get into the end zone. 43-8 Seattle.

Aikman: "I don't know what Denver's doing." Notes how soft the coverage is, which makes no sense in a situation where you need to create turnovers.

Looks like a three and out for the Broncos, but they draw a defensive pass interference on this down. Quit stopping the clock, you guys.

Manning to Demariyus Thomas again. His 13th catch of the game, a Super Bowl record.

Seahawks CB Richard Sherman is injured and being carted to the locker room. Again, not that it matters in terms of this game.

Denver dinking and dunking their way downfield. Clock under 10:00, ball at the Seattle 47. Incomplete pass on 3rd and 2. They'll go for it on fourth, of course.

Manning has 33 completions tonight, a new Super Bowl record.

Incomplete pass on fourth down. Manning threw is just short of Montee Ball, who couldn't bring it in.

Buck: Marshawn Lynch has his shoes off on the sideline, so we'll probably see Robert Turbin the rest of the way. Aikman: I thought about kicking mine off. A cutaway shows Lynch has shoes on again.

Pam Oliver: Richard Sherman has a right ankle injury and is doubtful to return.

Seahawks moving the ball slowly but surely. First down for Turbin, clock nearing 7:30.

Fox graphic: Seattle's last championship was the '78-'79 Supersonics. Buffalo and Cleveland are unimpressed.

Turbin gets the ball again, runs to the Denver 30. 6:30 and counting.

Run stuffed on third and 1. Clock below 5:30. What will Seattle do on fourth down? They'll go for it. Play action pass out into the flat, incomplete. Broncos get the ball with 5:19 left, down 35 points.

Denver is running the ball. No mas. Run stuffed, run stuffed, incomplete pass. They'll go for it on fourth down. Okay. Why not? Manning hit in the backfield and fumbles. Seahawks recover. It hardly matters whether it's a fumble or an incomplete pass - Seattle was getting the ball anyway.

Russell Wilson is out of the game. Tarvaris Jackson replaces him at quarterback. Wilson finishes 18-25, 206 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT.

Jackson throws on third and long. Incomplete. 4th and 7 with 2:06 left.

Aikman: Richard Sherman is the closest thing I've seen to a shutdown cornerback since my former teammate Deion Sanders.

Seahawks run on fourth down. Stuffed. Broncos take over with 1:59 left. Guys, can we just agree to take a bunch of knees and end this?

Nope. Swing pass to C.J. Anderson on first down. They get 12 or so, not that it matters.

Run up the middle to Anderson. Clock below 1:00.Run up the middle again to Anderson. Is it over yet? It's over. Pete Carroll gets hit with his second Gatorade bucket of the night. Final score: 43-8 Seattle.

POSTGAME

Wilson: It's a true blessing. God is so good. Believed we'd get here. Said to the guys at the beginning of the season, why not us? Have great teammates.

Wilson: My dad always used to tell me "Russ, why not you?". He meant to believe in myself, to go out and succeed.

Marcus Allen, MVP of Super Bowl XVIII, will present the Lombardi trophy.

Roger Goodell: Big shoutout to New York and New Jersey for hosting. To Pete Carroll and his team, what an amazing performance. Paul [Allen], you've been here once before, now you get to take the trophy back home to the 12th man.

Pete Carroll: This is an amazing team, these guys have worked on this a long time, four years ago, always moving forward. These players didn't expect anything other than a win in this game. They're incredible.

Russell Wilson is the third youngest QB to win a Super Bowl.

Wilson: God is so good. Brought me here a mighty long way. My teammates are just so incredible. Have thought we were going to win the Super Bowl since the playoff loss last year. You want to play your best football at the end of the season and that's what we did tonight.

Linebacker Malcolm Smith is named MVP. Had the interception touchdown and recovered a fumble.

Smith wins a Silverado pickup truck.

Broncos coach John Fox: We just ran into a buzz saw. We didn't play well enough to beat a very, very good Seattle team. My hat's off to Pete Carroll and the Seahawks, they played a great game.

Fox: Proud of my players, proud of what they accomplished this year.

Shoutout to Terry Bradshaw, home in Louisiana.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlviii #denver #seattle #broncos #seahawks #denver broncos #seattle seahawks

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl XLVIII

What was the final score?

Seattle 43, Denver 8.

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

None of the game was close. Well, almost none. By rule, part of the game has to be close.

It was clear from the very first snap that things could go sideways in a hurry for the Broncos. As Peyton Manning went through audible signals on the first offensive play of the game, he stepped forward to call signals to the linemen. Center Manny Ramirez snapped the ball over Manning’s shoulder and into the end zone for a safety just twelve seconds into the game. (As an aside, this was the second consecutive play from scrimmage in a Super Bowl that resulted in a safety. Baltimore punter Sam Koch intentionally stepped out of the end zone as time ran down in Super Bowl XLVII.)

After receiving the ensuing free kick, the Seahawks drove 51 yards for a field goal to make it 5-0 before the Broncos had successfully run a play. Denver then went three and out and Seattle drove for another field goal. 8-0 Seahawks. On the third play of the Broncos’ next drive, Peyton Manning was picked off by Kam Chancellor. Seattle took advantage of the short field and scored a touchdown. 15-0. Manning was intercepted again on Denver’s next possession, this time a pick-six from linebacker Malcolm Smith. 22-0 Seahawks.

At this point, Seattle had scored every time they had the ball and twice when they didn’t have the ball. There was a time in the second quarter when the Seahawks had more than twice as many points as the Broncos had plays from scrimmage. Seattle’s utter domination of this game began on the first play and continued unabated until they had a 36-point lead. (Score: 0 out of 20)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

Goodness, no. By the time Denver had a possession that didn’t end with an interception, a turnover on downs, or a three-and-out, Seattle led 29-0 in the second half. (Score: 0 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

During the regular season, the 2013 Seahawks had a once-in-a-generation defense. They were the first team since the 1985 Chicago Bears to lead the league in fewest yards allowed, fewest points allowed, and most takeaways. The Legion of Boom led the NFL in fewest passing yards allowed and most interceptions. This was an incredible defense all year and it was an incredible defense on the field during Super Bowl XLVIII. With apologies to the 2000 Ravens, this Seattle team put together the most dominant defensive performance in a Super Bowl since the ‘85 Bears. Considering the quality of the opposition, it might be more impressive than what the Shufflin’ Crew did to the Tony Eason/Steve Grogan-led Patriots.

If it’s even possible, the 2013 Broncos offense may have had a better year than this Seattle defense. Peyton Manning set all-time NFL records by throwing for 5,477 yards and 55 touchdowns on the year. To put that 55-touchdown performance in perspective, nobody else has ever thrown more than 50 TDs in a season. Manning didn’t just throw 50, he did it, kept going, and got halfway to 60. This was a downright Ruthian season by Peyton Manning.

The 2013 Broncos are the only NFL team in history to score more than 600 points in a season and had the second-most total yards in a season, with 7,313. They scored 30+ points in a game a staggering thirteen times during the regular season. The Broncos scored 50 or more points three times and 40-49 points three more times. This is an offense that was almost unfathomably dominant.

It was. Until they met the Seahawks.

And to be fair, most of the credit/blame for Denver’s offensive struggles can be given to Seattle’s defense. The Seahawks played a great game, but to act as if they were superhuman or something is to ignore the evidence. Seattle gave up 24 points to the winless Buccaneers, a team that finished dead last in the NFL in total yards. They allowed 20 points to the Texans, a dreadful team that finished the season with fourteen consecutive losses. The Broncos were never going to light this defense up for 40 points, but it would have been reasonable to expect something like 17, 20, 24 points from one of the best offenses in the history of football.

So I’m comfortable calling the Broncos’ performance awful. When the two best teams in the league face each other, the only way you end up with a five-touchdown win is with one team playing a great game and the other playing horribly. 

Credit where it’s due: Manning set the single-game Super Bowl record with 34 completions. It’s just tough to call that a great performance when his team didn’t have any choice but to throw the ball non-stop. (Score: 9 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

On a single-season basis, they’re both in the neighborhood at the very least. The 2013 Seahawks had the best defense of the 21st century and by many measures the 2013 Broncos had the best offense of anyone, ever.

It’s a bit murkier when you zoom out a bit. The Seahawks won back-to-back NFC championships in 2013-14 and (obviously) won Super Bowl XLVIII. On the other hand, apart from those two Super Bowl appearances, they haven’t made it past the divisional playoffs in more than a decade. So they’re not ‘70s Steelers great, but they’re pretty darn good.

The Broncos are about the same. In their four years with Peyton Manning at quarterback, they never went worse than 12-4 in the regular season and never failed to win the AFC West. On the other hand, if you look that was a four-year blip in the middle of what was otherwise a period of mediocrity in Denver. Other than the Manning years, it’s been five head coaches and six regular starting quarterbacks since the Broncos won ten games in a season.

That’s not meant to degrade what Denver accomplished in those four years. I just like to see an extended period of success when I’m looking for dominance. I don’t see that here. What I do see is a team that appeared in two Super Bowls in three years and set a bunch of records for offensive output. That’s good, right? (Score: 9 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

Not a ton of them, simply because the game got out of hand so quickly. The three that come to mind are the first-play safety, the Smith pick-six, and Percy Harvin’s kickoff return for a touchdown. These weren’t plays that turned the game, but they were certainly memorable.

I’ve already written about the safety and the Smith interception, so I’ll concentrate on the Harvin touchdown here. Coming out of halftime, down 22 points and needing a stop on the first possession, the Broncos intentionally kicked off short in order to minimize the damage the lightning-fast Harvin could do. Maybe it was a good idea, but it was a disaster when the plan was put in motion. Matt Prater’s kick took a big bounce and floated in the air, giving Harvin time to grab the ball on the run and blow through the coverage team. If the Broncos had any level of confidence after halftime, it was out the window now. (Score: 3 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

Again, it’s tough to separate what was the Seahawks defense playing a great game and what was the Broncos offense not being able to get out of its own way.

There were only three punts, total, in Super Bowl XLVIII. The Seahawks only had to punt once because they scored just about every time they got the ball. The Broncos punted twice because they turned the ball over four times. (Six times, if you include turnovers on downs.) Speaking of which, there were more turnovers than punts in this game. That’s not a mark of great quality.

Despite their dominating win, the Seahawks committed 10 penalties and gave away 104 penalty yards. They weren’t anywhere near as sharp as you might expect from the 43-8 final score. (Score: 7 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

This game was played in metro New York, becoming the first outdoor Super Bowl to be played in a “cold weather” location. Despite the setting, this was not the coldest Super Bowl ever played and the temperature at kickoff (49 Fahrenheit) was fully ten degrees warmer than the temperature at Super Bowl VI in New Orleans.

As I’ve discussed above, this was a matchup of a great offense and a great defense. Both teams were the top seeds in their respective conferences and both went 13-3 in the regular season. Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning was a strong candidate for “greatest quarterback of all time” by this point and Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson was a young rising star. Manning was looking to match his little brother Eli’s mark of two Super Bowl championships.

This was a pretty pedestrian Super Bowl in terms of storylines heading into the game. There wasn’t much to talk about besides Seattle Defense vs. Denver Offense, Manning vs. Wilson, and the weather forecast.

Personally and completely subjectively, this matchup was made a bit less interesting by the fact that the Seahawks and Broncos had spent around a quarter century together in the AFC West, playing each other twice a year. A younger viewer than me (I’m 42 as I write this) might not feel this way, but Seahawks-Broncos feels more like a regionally-televised late kickoff game in week eight than it does a Super Bowl. (Score: 7 out of 15)

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

34 out of 100. 

Super Bowl XLVIII was, according to my highly scientific and not at all pulled out of thin air methodology, the single worst Super Bowl ever played. It’ll probably stay that way, at least until I wrap up the weekly part of this project in February 2018. The only remaining Bad Super Bowl is the next Broncos appearance in SB50, and I don’t recall that one being much worse than “pretty bad”.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-XLVIII:

1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points

T2. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T2. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 4. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 5. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T6. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T6. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T8. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T8. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 10. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 11. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 12. Super Bowl XLVII - Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 - 76 points 13. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 14. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 15. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T16. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T16. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T16. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T19. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T19. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 21. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 22. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 23. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T24. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T24. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T26. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T26. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 28. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 29. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 30. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 31. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 32. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T33. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T33. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T33. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T36. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T36. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points 38. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points 39. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 40. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 41. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 42. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T43. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T43. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 45. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 46. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 47. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points 48. Super Bowl XLVIII - Seattle 43, Denver 8 - 34 points

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlviii #seattle #seahawks #denver #broncos #seattle seahawks #denver broncos

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl XLVII

PREGAME

This is a CBS broadcast. Starts with a pre-produced segment with Ravens and Niners players talking about wanting to win.

Simms: For the players, this is an emotional time. Need to make sure they don't overplay and make a big mistake to cost them the game.

FIRST QUARTER

LaMichael James! My dude! LaMike is back to return the opening kickoff for San Francisco. Kickoff is through the end zone.

Second-year QB Colin Kaepernick comes on to run the San Francisco offense in the Super Bowl. It's almost like he's a good football player or something.

First play, play action pass from Kaepernick to Vernon Davis for 20. It's coming back though. Illegal formation. Davis was covered by the wide receiver. Dumb mistake.

Nantz: This is Ray Lewis's final game. He's retiring after the game.

Niners go three and out. That illegal formation penalty killed the drive before it began.

Andy Lee will boot it away to the Ravens. Jacoby Jones back to return it. Gets to the Baltimore 48.

Ravens rolling on offense. Quick throw to the fullback, then a run to Ray Rice, and then a play-action pass downfield to Torrey Smith. Baltimore inside the 20.

Flacco incomplete in the end zone on third down, but the Niners jumped. The Ravens get another chance.

Baltimore goes five-wide on 3rd and 4 from the 13. Touchdown! Flacco lofts one over the top to Anquan Boldin in the end zone. That penalty cost the Niners four points. Oof. 7-0 Baltimore, less than five minutes into the game.

Boldin was behind everybody.

CBS graphic: Niners have allowed their opponents to score first in every postseason game this year.

Niners get a first down. Crabtree in the slot, gets a matchup with Ray Lewis and makes Lewis look silly. Gains 15 or so.

Nifty run from Frank Gore for eight yards, out near midfield.

3rd and 2, designed run for Kaepernick out of the shotgun. Follows his right guard for 9 yards. First down into Ravens territory.

San Francisco running the ball well. Another first down for Gore, to the 32. 

Now they go to the air. Kaepernick to Vernon Davis, wide open, complete. Inside the Baltimore 10 now, first and goal.

Second down, Kaepernick scrambles and just barely misses a wide-open Crabtree.

Kaep is sacked on third down. The Niners will have to attempt a field goal. David Akers from 36 - got it. 7-3 Ravens, 3:58 left in the first quarter.

Ravens safety Ed Reed is going to the locker room. I guess maybe he's injured, but he doesn't look like he's in agony or anything. Replay shows he twisted his knee when he tackled Vernon Davis on the last drive.

Sideline reporter Solomon Wilcots confirms Reed injured his left knee on the tackle of Davis.

Third and a half-yard, Ray Rice runs left for a couple yards. First down.

Ed Reed returns to the sideline. Looks like he's probably fine.

Third and 7 for the Ravens in their own territory. It looks like Flacco is just throwing it away on a scramble, but miraculously, Anquan Boldin gets to the ball and grabs it for a gain of 31 into Niners territory.

Third and 13, Flacco scrambles again but this time the defense gets him. A sack at the San Francisco 43 ends the first quarter. Baltimore 7, San Francisco 3.

SECOND QUARTER

Sam Koch boots it into the end zone on the punt. Not ideal.

Cutaway: Harbaugh parents, Jack and Jackie.

First down, brilliant pass from Kaepernick to Davis across the middle. A frickin' laser hits Davis in stride. First down out to the San Francisco 49.

Another pass to Davis, this time a gain of 11 to the Baltimore 40. Seems like the Niners are trying to get Ray Lewis in pass coverage to take him out of the run game.

LaMichael! LMJ gets nine yards up the middle on the first down. Second and 1 from the 32.

I really dig this formation.

Niners having big success with the read-option run game, which could never work in the NFL because it's a college gadget trick that pro defenses are too smart and fast to fall for.

Aw, hell. James makes a great spin move to avoid a tackle, then fumbles when he's hit. A replay clearly shows it's a legit fumble. Dammit, LaMichael. Ravens recover.

Ravens convert another third and short. Bernard Pierce this time gains two on 3rd and 1.

Flacco fires downfield to a covered Ed Dickson. Gain of 21, inside the San Francisco 30.

Now Flacco to Dickson again. They're throwing a bunch to their tight ends (Pitta and Dickson) too. Personal foul tacked onto the end of the play, which isn't a big deal for the Niners - it's a four-yard penalty. First and goal from the 4.

CBS graphic: Ravens have scored on 29 of 30 drives on which they've had a first and goal.

Make it 30 of 31. Flacco to Pitta in the end zone. 14-3 Ravens, halfway through the second quarter. That James fumble was big.

First play of the next drive, Kaepernick downfield, overshoots receiver Randy Moss and hits Baltimore's Ed Reed right in the numbers. Picked off in San Francisco territory.

There's some pushing and shoving after the play. Offsetting personal fouls. Nothing happens. Baltimore keeps the ball.

Nantz: That's the first time a 49ers quarterback has ever been intercepted in a Super Bowl. This is the franchise's sixth Super Bowl.

Ravens keeping it on the ground here, which makes some sense - move the ball while giving San Francisco as little time as possible before halftime on their next possession.

3rd and 4, Flacco to Rice in traffic, makes a couple of nice moves and gets to the 20 for a first down.

Second and 9, right through Boldin's hands. Could have been intercepted but isn't. Sets up third and 9. 3:17 left in the half. Presumably, they'll pass here.

Yep, they do. Flacco overshoots Torrey Smith in the end zone. They'll settle for a Justin Tucker field goal attempt. It's a fake! Direct snap to Tucker - he gains eight yards but needed nine. Well executed, but just came up short. It's a turnover on downs with 3:05 left in the first half. I feel like maybe Tucker just became the leading rusher in Super Bowl history among placekickers.

There was all kinds of room for Tucker to run, but unfortunately for the Ravens he runs like a kicker.

2nd and 10, Kaepernick throws from his own end zone. He double clutched on the throw and telegraphed it. Very nearly picked off at his own 15.

Ravens call timeout after an unsuccessful third down draw play. Niners will punt with 2:19 left in the second quarter.

Jacoby Jones muffs the punt, picks it up, and gets to his own 45. Flacco will have 2:07 to score before the half.

Nantz: Ravens have a shot to score here, then get the ball to start the second half.

Second and ten, Flacco deep to Torrey Smith. Probably should have been offensive pass interference but there's no flag. Pass hits DB Chris Culliver in the numbers but falls incomplete.

Coming out of the two minute warning, Flacco deep again, this time to Jones. Jones makes a diving catch, gets up, shimmies, jukes, and finds the end zone. 21-3 Ravens. 1:45 left in the first half.

Chris Culliver was all kinds of discombobulated on the touchdown.

Replay shows Jones was nearly touched while he was on the ground, but was not touched.

Ravens wearing an Art Modell memorial patch, which...no sir, I don't like it at all.

Kaepernick comes out and completes a couple of passes on the ensuing drive and gets a roughing the passer penalty tacked on to the end of the second completion. Niners get to the Baltimore 45.

CBS graphic: Niners came back from 17 behind in the NFC championship game.

Kaepernick goes downfield again, this time to Delaney Walker. Terrific throw gets the Niners into the red zone. San Francisco calls timeout with 0:57 left, first and ten from the Baltimore 17.

Third and 2 from the 9, Kaepernick rolls, rolls, looks, and falls over. Didn't see anyone to throw to. San Francisco calls timeout with 0:03 left in the half. Akers from 27 yards. Right down the middle. We've reached halftime. 21-6 Baltimore.

HALFTIME

Simms: The Ravens have given the ball to Flacco and told him to go win the game. They're crossing the defense up.

Wilcots: Asked John Harbaugh about the fake field goal. Said low-risk, high reward. Either we pick up the first down, score, or we pin the Niners deep in their own territory.

THIRD QUARTER

Welp. Jacoby Jones takes the kickoff nine yards deep in the end zone and goes virtually untouched through the coverage team. That's a 109 yard touchdown, which is a record, obviously. Extra point is good. It's 28-6 with 14:49 left in the third quarter.

Gone.

Simms to Nantz: Both of us were surprised Jones chose to take the ball out of the end zone.

The Harbaugh in its default state.

First play, Kaepernick on the run, throws a nice pass to Crabtree, right in stride. 29 yard completion for a first down.

If anyone’s going to go full Hannibal Lecter with a facemask, it might as well be Ray Lewis.

Second down, Kaep buying time, hanging in the pocket, gets tripped and falls. Six yard sack.

Simms's microphone cuts out while describing the sack, then the power goes out in the stadium. Almost immediately, emergency lighting kicks in, but it's way too dark to play.

Have you tried turning it off, then back on again?

We've got video but still no audio from the announcers. CBS goes to commercial. When they come back, Steve Tasker is reporting. He's doing his best to describe what's going on, but as a breaking news reporter, Tasker makes a wonderful special teams player.

CBS goes to commercial, comes back, and it's still Tasker. Players stretching on the field. Nobody is sure how long this is going to take.

Tasker and Wilcots suggest that this power outage could cost the Ravens the momentum they would have had after the Jones kickoff return touchdown.

Wilcots tosses to the studio team. James Brown vamps, kills time. He's doing the studio host version of scrambling.

Shannon Sharpe: There's been a power surge in the stadium - it's called the Baltimore Ravens.

Bill Cowher: Niners defense needs to come up with turnovers. Ravens are going to play with the lead and burn clock. You can still throw the ball, but take your time in the huddle, snap the ball with the play clock below 5, just milk the clock.

Cowher: San Francisco will have to go to the hurry up offense soon. That will affect the inexperienced Kaepernick.

Sharpe: Before the lights went out, I was getting the sense this game was about to get away from the 49ers.

Cowher: Not seeing a sense of urgency from the 49ers, which isn't because they don't know the situation, it's because they're inexperienced.

CBS runs highlights, still killing time.

Marino: John Harbaugh is a special teams coach. Between the kickoff return and the fake field goal, special teams are playing a big role.

Cowher: It's like another, longer halftime now.

Tasker: This delay might last as long as 20 minutes. Called Jim Harbaugh over, he didn't want to talk on camera but I told him it could be that long. He said thanks, that nobody had told him.

Wilcots: Ravens just working to keep focus, not going to the locker room, getting ready to go win a championship.

Cowher: If I'm Baltimore, I'm just worried about the game. Gotta concentrate on the job at hand.

Studio team agrees that this break helps the 49ers.

Cowher: Jim Harbaugh needs to pull Kaepernick aside and say we need more of a sense of urgency. You have to stay comfortable out there, but we need to move more quickly.

Brown: It'll be another 15 minutes before the game is underway.

Cowher: [Backup QB] Alex Smith could run a hurry-up offense maybe better than Kaepernick. Marino: He hasn't played in how long? I wouldn't do that.

Cowher: I'm not saying you immediately go to Alex Smith. I'd just think about that in the back of my mind - who can get more plays run? Who gives me a chance to score a lot of points?

Marino: I thought the 49ers would be able to run the ball better. That's their gameplan and it hasn't worked for them.

Sharpe: Kaepernick is a one-read quarterback. He looks to Crabtree, then takes off running.

Lights beginning to come back on inside the stadium.

Marino: Beyonce must've knocked the lights out.

Wilcots: The league is not prepared to make a statement about what knocked the power out. They're still working on finding out what happened.

CBS runs highlights again. They're tapdancing out there.

Sharpe: This delay will hurt Ray Lewis. He's 37 years old!

Brown: Play will resume in 7-10 minutes.

Sharpe: Somebody didn't send the check to pay the stadium power bill.

Marino: John Harbaugh will tell his team to relax and be patient. We've got a lead.

CBS goes to a ticking "since power outage" clock. 27:20 and counting.

Tasker: Outside power feed coming into the stadium went dead. Before play resumes, teams will get a warmup period. There's no restrictions on that, both teams can do what they feel like they need to do.

Sharpe: If this happened to me, I'd tell my guys that the power didn't just go out on us. It went out on the other guys too - we can't control that. We have 25-30 minutes left, we have to take care of that and we'll win the Super Bowl.

Back upstairs to Nantz and Simms. Nantz: Hey, Phil, next time you decide to charge your phone, give us a warning, okay?

Simms: There's no time for the 49ers to panic. Defense needs to make some plays and get the ball back for their offense.

CBS shows video of a power outage the 49ers had last year (in 2011).

Simms: If I'm Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick is my man and I'm going to win or lose with him. Between his legs and his arm, that's how they'll get back into the game if they do.

Tracy Wolfson: On the 49ers sidelines, their equipment is still coming back online. Things are just now beginning to work, which will allow the game to resume.

Nantz: Game will resume in the next minute.

Delay is 34 minutes. Nantz says when they hear from the NFL about the cause, they'll pass it along.

3rd and 13, Kaepernick rolls and throws underneath. It's complete but short of the first down. Niners to punt again.

Lee boots it through the end zone, which at the very least keeps it away from Jacoby Jones.

CBS graphic: 84 minutes have elapsed since the Ravens' last offensive play.

Doesn't seem to have affected them. First play, Flacco to Smith for 15.

3rd and 7, Flacco to Ray Rice for 6. They'll punt.

Koch kicks it through the end zone. Niners get the ball with 10:26 left in the quarter.

Hey, Dean Pees is Baltimore's defensive coordinator. Former head coach at Kent State. Neat.

Kaepernick scrambles for 15. He'll take that all day if they leave that much space open.

Man, you just can’t do that against Kaepernick. He will shred you.

Excellent throw deep downfield from Kaepernick to Crabtree. Hits him right in the hands and Crabtree just plain drops it. Leaves a third and 8.

Kaep to Moss for 9. First down. 

Niners call a timeout at the line of scrimmage. Oof. They may need that later.

Simms: If Kaepernick didn't understand the play, he should have just gone to the line of scrimmage and done something. Those timeouts are too important to burn.

Kaepernick to Vernon Davis for 15. They're at the Baltimore 31.

Now Kaepernick zips it to Crabtree, who bounces off of two DBs and gets into the end zone. 31-yard score. 28-13 Ravens. San Francisco isn't dead yet.

Subpar tackling

Nantz: NFL has revised the kickoff return to 108 yards instead of 109. Merely ties the all-time record instead of breaking it.

Ravens go three-and-out, capped off by a sack on third down. Left tackle Bryant McKinnie didn't block anything, he just stood there and the rusher blew past him.

Koch punts from his end zone. Ted Ginn grabs it on a bounce and takes it to the Baltimore 20. Niners are super-not dead yet.

First play, Kaepernick to Davis for 14. First and goal from the Baltimore 6.

Next play, Gore gets the edge on the right side and he's in the end zone. All of a sudden, it's 28-20 Ravens with 4:59 left in the third quarter.

Yards since the power outage: 106-16, San Francisco.

Simms: I don't think the power outage affected Baltimore. I just think the 49ers are playing better.

Superdome statement: Power has been restored. Sorry.

NFL statement: Stadium's looking into it. We dunno. We'll let you know when we hear.

Second and 7, complete pass to Ray Rice, who almost immediately fumbles it. Niners recover inside the Baltimore 25. Have I mentioned San Francisco isn't dead yet?

That was the third fumble Ray Rice has lost in the postseason.

Third and 7, Kaepernick looks for Ginn in the end zone. Tipped away and the Niners will settle for an Akers field goal attempt. It'll be a 39-yard kick. Wide left, but there's a flag on the play.

Running into the kicker. Akers gets another shot, this time from 34 yards.

Replay shows it easily could have been roughing instead of the five yard penalty.

Got it this time. 28-23 Baltimore, 3:10 left in the third quarter.

Akers looks injured as he kicks off. Not a great kick, but not horrible. Something to keep an eye on.

Third and 3, Swing pass to Boldin for a big gain. Gets to the San Francisco 35.

Now a quick pass to Pitta for 7. They're well within field goal range.

Last play of the third quarter comes on 3rd and less than a yard. Bernard Pierce makes a terrific move and picks up 8 yards. He's tackled by the neck and unsurprisingly injured. The Ravens will have a new set of downs as the fourth quarter begins. 28-23 after three.

FOURTH QUARTER

Ravens DL Haloti Ngata is injured and not expected to return.

First and goal from the 5, Ray Rice up the middle for 4. A touchdown here would be huge.

Second and goal, Rice up the middle again. No gain. I'm having Super Bowl XVI flashbacks.

Third down, Flacco rolling right, buying time, and throws it out of the end zone. They'll settle for a 19-yard field goal attempt. Perfect. Ravens up 31-23, San Francisco is still within one score.

Nice throw downfield, Kaepernick to Moss. The Ravens blew the coverage on Moss. 30+ yard completion.

Next play, Frank Gore with a nice run left, cut back to the right, gets inside the Baltimore 20.

Nantz: It's been a rough month for Ray Lewis in the court of public opinion since he announced his retirement. Well, yeah, Jim, people don't like it when dudes intentionally lie to the police during murder investigations.

Oh, what a run from Kaepernick. Goes back to pass and sees a bunch of open space to his left, so he takes off. 15 yard touchdown run cuts the lead to 31-29 and the Niners are going for 2.

Remember the thing about not giving Kaepernick a bunch of open space to run in? Yeah. That.

Incomplete pass on the two-point conversion. Kaep was hurried by an unexpected safety blitz.

That 15 yard run was the longest touchdown run by a quarterback in the history of the Super Bowl.

So anyway, it's 31-29 Baltimore with 9:57 left.

Wilcots: Ravens RB Bernard Pierce was injured, went to the locker room, ran a bit to test the injury, talked to trainers, and now appears to be ready to go.

Third and 9 for the Ravens, Flacco misses Torrey Smith by a few yards, but DB Chris Culliver was all hands on Smith's jersey. Pass interference. Big first down.

Flacco rolls, looks, and sees Anquan Boldin improvise to get open. Ten yard completion, first down near midfield.

Niners challenge the spot. That's a big call from Jim Harbaugh - risking one of their two remaining time outs.

Simms hates the challenge, but it pays off for the 49ers. It's third and inches instead of first and ten.

The Ravens throw on third and inches! Gutsy call from Flacco to audible to that play. It works. Boldin makes a catch with a defender's arm right there in the way. What a catch.

Clock under 6:00. Ravens are in field goal range.

Rice up the middle, stuffed. Pierce up the middle, stuffed. Clock will be below 4:30 before the next Ravens play.

The Niners send two linebackers on a blitz for third and long, but they mistimed the snap. Guessed wrong, it looks like. Jim Harbaugh is freaking out, which is admittedly his natural state. Third and 2 instead of 4th and 7.

Incomplete pass to Pitta on third down. Was it tipped at the line? Not sure. Either way, Pitta should have caught it.

Justin Tucker hits a field goal to extend the lead to 34-29 Ravens. Niners will get the ball with a chance to win the game.

49ers have never led, but could win the Super Bowl with a touchdown on this drive. Truth be told, they probably need a touchdown on this drive to have any chance at all.

Gore runs for 7 on first down, Kaep scrambles for another 8 or 9 on second down. He got out of bounds. 3:32 left, first and 10 from the Niners' 36.

Oh, what an amazing throw. Vernon Davis was open deep downfield and Kaepernick hit him in the hands. Davis drops the ball.

Next play, another laser from Kaepernick. Michael Crabtree over the middle, gets to the Baltimore 40.

Now they hand it to Frank Gore, who blows through the defense for 33. First and goal from the Ravens' 7. 2:45 left in the game.

Tyrod Taylor sighting! Tyrod's hanging out on the Ravens' sideline.

They run it up the middle on first down for a yard or two and the clock hits 2:00. Two minute warning time, Niners with a legit chance to win this thing after a 22-point second half deficit.

Second and goal from the 5, Kaepernick rolls, rolls, looks, and there's nothing to throw to. Incomplete pass.

Third and goal. Play whistled dead. Delay of game? Really? No, not really. Harbaugh got a timeout called before the penalty.

So it's still third and goal. 1:55 on the clock. They throw short and wide to Crabtree, but he's decked and drops it. Can't blame him for that.

Fourth and goal. They need to score on this play. Do or die.

Die. Kaepernick overthrows Crabtree in the end zone. Jim Harbaugh loses his mind claiming a hold on the defense. There's no flag. It's a turnover downs.

Hey Jim, what did the officials just do to you?

Replay shows that the defensive back had a couple handfuls of red jersey. Probably should have been a flag. Simms says it's hard to throw a flag in that situation - I say if it's hard to throw a flag when a game is on the line, you should find new work.

That’s a handful of jersey if I’ve ever seen one.

Niners burn their final timeout on first down. 1:42 left. It'll be run, run, punt. Maybe you take an intentional safety on fourth down? I'd rather do that than give the Niners the ball close enough for a Hail Mary shot.

Run, stuffed. Run, stuffed. Play clock-to-game clock differential is nine seconds. I say you snap the ball to the punter, have him dance as long as possible, and step out the back of the end zone. Simms says you punt it. That seems insane. Simms thinks about it more and still says you punt it. If you can get the clock down past 6-7 seconds before the safety, the field goal isn't even an option. There's time for one play - the only question is where the ball is snapped from. The free kick gives Baltimore an extra 20 yards, at least.

The Ravens do give away the safety. Koch is able to get the clock down to 0:04 before he's pushed out of the end zone. I still have no idea what Simms is smoking. That was so obviously the right decision that I can't see a case against it.

Simms: "Well now, they get to either punt the ball or kick it off from the...*pause*...looks like the 20 yard line."

Cool, Phil, you're not even completely sure what the rules are. Great analysis.

Nantz references the free kick rule, allowing the receiving team to choose to kick an uncontested field goal after a fair catch. But they need the fair catch, otherwise it's not an option.

Koch punts it all the way back past the Niners' 20. Free kick isn't an option. Ted Ginn returns the kick for around 30 yards but is tackled. That's why you give away the safety, fellas. Game over. Ravens 34, Niners 31.

POSTGAME

Cutaway: Ravens' Chykie Brown making "snow angels" in the celebratory confetti.

Coming up next: A new episode of Elementary. If you want more postgame coverage, you'll want to go to the CBS Sports Network.

Marino: Seemed like in the second half, after the power outage, the Ravens defense was tired. But they came up with the stand at the end of the game.

Cowher: Red zone defense won the game for the Ravens. Kaepernick was great. May have lost, but this kid has a future in the NFL. Yeah, well, he would have if he didn't express an unpopular opinion.

Esiason: Flacco's going to be named the MVP. Stemmed the tide of momentum, stood up when they needed him. This is Joe Flacco's game.

Richard Dent brings the Vince Lombardi trophy to the podium. Super Bowl XX MVP.

Roger Goodell: Ravens have made five straight playoff appearances, and are now the World Champions.

Ravens owner Steve Bischiotti: Thanks to New Orleans for a spectacular way to celebrate. To the fans back in Baltimore, we're bringing another one back home to you.

Nantz references O.J. Brigance, former Raven suffering from ALS.

First thing John Harbaugh says is that he wants the fans to give a big long cheer for Brigance.

Nantz: What did you say to your brother after the game? John Harbaugh: I told him I loved him. Nantz: What did he say? John Harbaugh: Congratulations.

Joe Flacco is named the MVP.

Flacco: We don't make it easy, but that's the way the city of Baltimore is. It's the way we are. Did this for the people back in Baltimore. Can't wait to get back there with the trophy for the parade.

Ray Lewis: When God is for you, who can be against you? No greater way to go out than as a champion, with these teammates.

Yes, Ray, I'm sure God was totally stoked about that time you stopped the police from arresting murderers.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlvii #baltimore #san francisco #ravens #49ers #baltimore ravens #san francisco 49ers

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl XLVII

What was the final score?

Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

Despite the final score, most of this game wasn’t close. The Ravens took a 21-6 lead into halftime and extended that lead on the opening kickoff of the second half. Kick returner Jacoby Jones caught the kickoff eight yards deep in his own end zone and shot through the coverage team like a bolt of lightning for a 108-yard touchdown. Jones’s kickoff return tied the NFL record (both regular and postseason) for longest scoring play of any kind. At that point, it was 28-6 and the vultures had begun to circle over the Niners’ season.

But a funny thing happened on the way to a blowout. After a 34-minute delay for a power outage inside the stadium (more on the delay later), it was a completely different game. It looked like someone had turned the 49ers off, then back on again. San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick went from looking like a decent but unremarkable passer to looking like Steve Young. Kaepernick utterly shredded Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, and the rest of the Ravens’ star-studded defense. The Niners put up 17 points in just over four minutes and all of a sudden it was 28-23 instead of 28-6.

After that blizzard of points, the rest of the game was a nailbiter. A Justin Tucker field goal extended the Ravens’ lead to 31-23, a touchdown and successful two-point conversion being the difference. Kaepernick looked at that, shrugged, and five plays later had his team in the end zone. The Niners needed a two-point conversion to tie the score, but Kaepernick overthrew Randy Moss on the attempt. It was 31-29 Baltimore with roughly ten minutes left in the Super Bowl. There was plenty of time for the 49ers to take the lead and win the game.

Most of that time would be gone before the San Francisco offense got the ball back. Baltimore used healthy doses of running backs Ray Rice and Bernard Pierce to drive downfield and keep the clock rolling. That drive ended with a Tucker field goal and a 34-29 lead. There was 4:23 remaining in regulation. Again, that was plenty of time for the Niners, particularly with an offense that was firing on all cylinders in the second half. Kaepernick led them on an impressive 75-yard drive, using his arm and his legs to make things happen along the way. That’s the good news for San Francisco. The bad news was that they started the drive on their own 20, meaning they needed 80 yards instead of 75. The drive that could have ended with Kaepernick cementing a legendary place in Super Bowl history instead ended with an incomplete pass on fourth and goal from the Baltimore 5.

But the game wasn’t over at that point. Not by a longshot. It was clear that the Ravens would run as much clock as possible, but just as clear that San Francisco would get the ball back with a few seconds left on the clock.

With 1:46 left on the clock, Joe Flacco handed the ball to Ray Rice. Rice gained two yards, out to the seven yard line. The 49ers responded by calling their third and final timeout of the half with 1:42 left. The second down play was another run, of course, this time Bernard Pierce running around left end but obviously avoiding going anywhere near the sideline. Going out of bounds would have stopped the clock, which was not something that would have endeared him to his teammates, coaches, or fans. With the clock still running, Baltimore didn’t have to snap the ball again until the clock reached 0:56. Fullback Vontae Leach went off right guard on third down, again going nowhere near the sideline. With the Ravens getting 40 seconds in between plays, it had become clear San Francisco would get the ball back. The question had become how best for Baltimore to do that.

As fourth down approached, the Ravens ran the play clock down all the way, then called a timeout with 0:12 remaining in the game. Baltimore decided to do the most logical thing possible in this situation: They snapped the ball to punter Sam Koch, who had been told to run around in the end zone as long as he could, to not kick the ball under any circumstances, and to step out of bounds when he was about to be tackled. Koch burned eight of the twelve remaining seconds while giving away that intentional safety.

There were four seconds remaining on the clock when the Ravens lined up for the free kick. A poor kick by Koch would have allowed the Niners to call a fair catch and attempt an unchallenged field goal to tie the game and send it to overtime. That wasn’t a problem, though. Koch blasted the free kick more than 60 yards downfield to the waiting Ted Ginn inside the San Francisco 20. If Ginn decided to return it, there wouldn’t be enough time for a play from scrimmage. If Ginn decided to fair catch the ball, the Niners would probably be way too far back in their own territory to attempt a Hail Mary bomb into the end zone. Ginn chose to return the kick, which was almost certainly the right move. It was a nice return too, out to midfield before being tackled. Unfortunately for San Francisco, the clock expired during Ginn’s return. Game over; the Ravens had escaped with a 34-31 win. (Score: 11 out of 20)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

Missed it by that much. At the time Super Bowl XLVII was played, the biggest comeback in the history of the Super Bowl had been 10 points. The 49ers had been down by 22 points in the second half and nearly come away with a victory.

Missed it by that much.

If you would have asked me early in the fourth quarter who would win the game, with the Ravens leading 28-23, I probably would have picked San Francisco. The Baltimore offense had gone dormant and the 49er offense looked unstoppable. This game was a whisker away from becoming one of the greatest comebacks in football history. That the comeback didn’t succeed is only a minor detail in scoring this category. (Score: 14 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

Eh, not really. San Francisco receiver Randy Moss, who seems like he should be a lock to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in the class of 2018, only had two catches. Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, who’s probably about to go into the Hall alongside Moss, was fairly pedestrian. Lewis had seven tackles, but none of them were for loss. The 49ers seemed determined to not allow Lewis to be an impact player, often working to get him into coverage on tight end Vernon Davis. Ray Lewis was terrific at a lot of things (run stopping, getting to the ballcarrier and making a tackle, intentionally misleading police during the investigation of a double murder), but he wasn’t going to stop a big, quick, athletic tight end in pass coverage downfield.

San Francisco running back Frank Gore, who as of this writing is in the top five in NFL history in career rushing yards, put together an impressive performance. Gore had 19 carries for 110 yards and a touchdown.

Baltimore kick returner Jacoby Jones was a first-team All-Pro in 2012; he set Super Bowl records with 290 combined yards, two touchdowns of 50+ yards, and a 108-yard kickoff return touchdown.

The players who weren’t quite great, but were instead very good, generally put together strong performances in this game. Ravens WR Anquan Boldin (6 receptions, 104 yards, 1 TD) and Niners receivers Vernon Davis (6-104-0) and Michael Crabtree (5-109-1) were all impact performers.

Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco has never quite been star-level, but you wouldn’t have known by his performance in this game. Flacco was a deserving Super Bowl MVP, completing 22 of 33 pass attempts for 287 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions.

For the Niners, quarterback Colin Kaepernick was a bit of a question mark going into this game. Super Bowl XLVII was only the tenth start of Kaepernick’s professional career. He went into the 2012 season as Alex Smith’s backup, but took over the starting job when Smith suffered a concussion. Smith never did get his starting job back in San Francisco. Anyway, Colin Kaepernick. He was magnificent in the second half after a bit of a hit-and-miss first half. Kaepernick completed 16 of 28 passes for 302 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. In addition, he ran the ball seven times for 62 yards and a score. It’s almost as if he’s good at playing football. (Score: 9 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

Nope. The 2012 Ravens were a pretty good team, but not much more. They finished the season 10-6, tied for the worst record of any team in the playoffs that season. Baltimore’s offense was 16th out of 32 NFL teams in yards gained. The defense was 17th in yards allowed. Everything about this team screamed “not too shabby but unremarkable”, other than the fact that they hoisted the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the Super Bowl. This Ravens team doesn’t get a ton better in context of the seasons around 2012. They did go 24-8 in the regular season in the two previous seasons, but then went 8-8, missed the playoffs, and were outscored by their opponents in 2013. Again, on the whole it was a pretty good resume. It’s just not exactly “1970s Steelers” or “1980s 49ers”.

The 49ers were much the same. They hadn’t had a winning season in nearly a decade before head coach Jim Harbaugh showed up in 2011, then they went 13-3, 11-4-1, and 12-4 in Harbaugh’s first three seasons. They haven’t had a winning season since. For those three years, this was a very good team. If you zoom out a bit, though, you see that those three years of excellence came in the middle of a 15-season span in which the Niners have changed coaches eight times. As I write this, in the past four seasons, the 49ers have had four coaches: Harbaugh in 2014, Jim Tomsula in 2015, Chip Kelly in 2016, and Kyle Shanahan in 2017. You don’t do that if you’re even remotely close to historically great. (Score: 7 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

Absolutely. Two immediately come to mind, both of which came towards the start of the third quarter: The Jacoby Jones kickoff return and The Blackout.

I’ve written above about the Jones return touchdown, so I won’t go into it here. Obviously, it was a memorable and exciting moment that played a big part in determining the Super Bowl champion.

The Blackout was perhaps THE turning point in this game. Three plays into the second half, the Superdome suffered a power outage that delayed the game for more than 30 minutes. At the time of the stoppage, the score was 28-6 and the 49ers looked dead in the water. Almost immediately upon the resumption of play, the roles reversed. The Ravens went three-and-out on their first possession, then the Niners scored a touchdown. And then the Ravens went three-and-out on their second possession, then the Niners scored a touchdown. It’s probably way too simple to say that the blackout was the cause of the reversal. But it would be one heck of a coincidence if the two things were completely unrelated. (Score: 10 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

The quality of play was good, as you’d tend to expect in a game between two championship-caliber teams. The Ravens had one turnover, the 49ers had two. Each team punted three times, a relatively light workload for their punters. There were only 53 total penalty yards in the entire game.

Nothing about the play was remarkable, other than the fact that it was consistently good. (Score: 11 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

I don’t know whether I should include the blackout here. I sort of think I shouldn’t, because I already counted it in the “memorable moments” category. Maybe I’ll consider it as a minor factor.

The big story in the lead-up to this game was the coaching matchup. Baltimore’s head coach, John Harbaugh, and San Francisco’s head coach, Jim Harbaugh, are brothers. This was a remarkable development - just one year earlier, they had become the first pair of brothers to be NFL head coaches at the same time. Now the Harbaughs were facing off in the Super Bowl. Their father, Jack, was also a successful head coach, having won the Division I-AA National Championship as the head coach at Western Kentucky in 2002. (I’d lose my Bowling Green card if I didn’t shoehorn in a reference to Jack’s time as an assistant coach at BGSU.)

In addition to the Harbaugh angle, Super Bowl XLVII was the final NFL game for two pro football legends. Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis had already announced that he would retire after the game, win or lose. The future was a bit murkier for 49ers wide receiver Randy Moss. Moss retired after the 2010 season, sat out in 2011, then came out of retirement to play for the 2012 Niners. One of the greatest receivers in football history, Moss was a spare part as a 49er, playing as the third wideout in an offense that frequently used a tight end as a downfield threat. The Niners didn’t invite Moss back for 2013; he was widely praised as an off-field influence, but was clearly a shadow of his former self. It was an amicable breakup, by all accounts.

The Ravens played the season in honor of recently deceased owner Art Modell. I wish it were possible for me to say something nice about Modell, but it isn’t. My mom’s from Cleveland, my siblings were born in Cleveland, I grew up less than an hour from Cleveland. Simply typing “Art Modell” raises my blood pressure noticeably. So I’ll leave it there. Modell died, the team honored him. The end.

There was quite a bit of attention paid to Colin Kaepernick in the leadup to the game. As I mentioned earlier, Kaepernick became the Niners’ starting quarterback after Alex Smith suffered a concussion in November. Jim Harbaugh broke the unspoken, unofficial rule that players don’t lose their jobs due to injury and left Kaepernick in the starting role even after Smith was ready to return. This was a controversial decision, not least because Smith had been named the offensive player of the month earlier in 2012 and completed more than 70 percent of his passes on the season. Eyebrows were raised. Let’s just say that. (Score: 14 out of 15)

Um, guys? Hello?

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

76 out of 100. Not quite Top 10, but still very good. It gets hurt because half of the game looked like a blowout and because neither team was inner-circle great.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-XLVII:

1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points T2. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T2. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 4. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 5. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T6. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T6. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T8. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T8. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 10. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 11. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 12. Super Bowl XLVII - Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 - 76 points 13. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 14. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 15. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T16. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T16. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T16. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T19. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T19. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 21. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 22. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 23. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T24. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T24. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T26. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T26. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 28. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 29. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 30. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 31. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 32. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T33. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T33. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T33. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T36. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T36. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points 38. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points 39. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 40. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 41. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 42. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T43. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T43. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 45. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 46. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 47. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points

#football #nfl #super bowl #super bowl xlvii #san francisco #baltimore #49ers #ravens #niners #san francisco 49ers #baltimore ravens

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl XLVI

PREGAME

This is an NBC broadcast. Recording starts with the coin toss.

Coin toss. 2012 Hall of Fame inductees. Curtis Martin will do the honors.

As the visiting team, Giants call the toss. They call tails. It's heads. Patriots will defer.

That ends the NFC's streak of 14 consecutive coin toss wins.

Giants were 7-7 at one point, haven't lost since.

Eli Manning: We're all playing for each other. Love and respect each other, ready for a big night.

Michele Tafoya: Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski suffered a high ankle sprain in the AFC Championship game.

Commercial: Hyundai doing some sort of Rocky theme song thing.

FIRST QUARTER

Giants receive. Decent return from Jerrel Jernigan to the 23.

First play: Ahmad Bradshaw up the middle for no gain. Michaels says the Giants have the worst rushing offense in the NFL.

Manning converts a third down. Hits Victor Cruz for 8-9 yards.

Fans seem pro-Giants. It's not surprising that people in Indianapolis don't want the Patriots to win.

Michaels: In three of the last four Super Bowls, the team with the worst rushing offense in the NFL has taken part.

Nice drive here for the Giants. A couple completions to the tight ends, that catch by Victor Cruz, now Hakeem Nicks for 19 into New England territory.

Drive stalls. Two sacks and a stuffed running play knock the Giants out of any semblance of field goal range. Steve Weatherford pins the Patriots at the 5 on a punt.

Commercials: Bud Light Platinum. (Gross.) Audi commercial featuring an Echo and the Bunnymen song. (Awesome.) Audi headlights are so bright they kill vampires, it seems.

Obligatory cutaway: Gisele Bundchen.

Patriots' first play, Brady is under pressure in the end zone. Throws it deep down the middle to nobody. The officials confer....yep, that's intentional grounding and a safety. 2-0 Giants.

Commercials: Pepsi featuring Elton John as a king of some sort of singing contest. He's dropped into a dungeon. Flava Flav greets him. The only good part of the ad. Hyundai Veloster. Promo for "Smash", tomorrow on NBC.

FLAVA FLAV!

Michaels: That's the first safety in a Super Bowl since XXV, 21 years ago.

Replay shows it was the right call. Brady was in the tackle box, under pressure, and nobody within at least 15 yards of where the ball landed.

Manning is 6-for-6 early. I'm pretty sure all six are to different receivers. Giants approaching midfield.

BIG run from Ahmad Bradshaw. Makes a couple tacklers miss and gets 24 yards down the left sideline. First and 10 from the New England 33.

Now a completion to Bear Pascoe inside the 20. First down. Giants on their second dangerous drive before the Patriots run their second play.

Patriots were 31st in the NFL in yards allowed.

Confusion in the Patriots' secondary. Completion to Cruz, maybe a fumble, maybe not. They say it's a fumble but it doesn't matter. New England had 12 defenders on the field.

First and goal from the 6. Bradshaw to the 2. Clock ticks under 4:00 left in the first, Patriots still only have that one offensive play.

Oh, man, crazy-dangerous throw. Manning throws a slant to Cruz for a score. 9-0 New York. Linebacker Jerrod Mayo dropped back to cover a slant but never looked back for the ball. He could have picked it like James Harrison did three years ago against the Cardinals.

No, Mayo!

Commercials: Bud Light Platinum. Still gross. M&Ms. Best Buy - "any phone, any carrier". Celebrity Apprentice. Even more gross than Bud Light Platinum.

Commercials: Coke ad featuring CGI polar bears hanging out. Chevy trucks - they'll still exist after the 2012 Mayan Apocalypse, but Ford trucks won't. Halftime show promo. Madonna. Promo for "Rock Center" with Brian Williams.

Offensive plays: Giants 19, Patriots 1.

Collinsworth: I've never seen the Patriots look this unsettled to start a game.

Brady converts a third and 4. Over the middle to Deion Branch at midfield.

Now a quick pass to Welker. Giants trying to cover him underneath with a linebacker. Goodness. 19 yard gain.

2nd and 6, Welker on an end around for 10 or so. Patriots inside the New York 20 as the first quarter ends. New York 9, New England 0.

Commercials: Bridgestone. They made a football out of Bridgestone tires. It's easy to control, just like Bridgestone tires. GoDaddy commercial featuring Danica Patrick, Jillian Michaels, and a scantily clad woman. Lexus. "Battleship" film. It looks awful.

SECOND QUARTER

Oh, hey, it's Aaron Hernandez. Catches a pass on the first play of the quarter. Gain of 2. Becomes the leading receiver in Super Bowl history among murderers.

3rd and 4 from the 11, Brady pass knocked down by Jason Pierre-Paul. That forces a field goal attempt from Gostkowski. 29 yarder. Got it. 9-3 Giants.

Commercials: Budweiser. Prohibition is over! Hooray, but your beer is still awful. Doritos. A dog bribes a guy with Doritos to not tell on him for killing their cat. Camaro.

NBC runs a song about Jason Pierre-Paul. "JPP", set to the tune of Naughty By Nature's OPP.

Commercials: GE. We make turbines that keep your Budweiser cold. Gross. Commercial for John Carter, which somehow may have been a worse film than Battleship. TaxAct dot com decides it's a good idea to have a kid peeing in a swimming pool as its Super Bowl ad. Promo for The Voice, premiering tonight after the Super Bowl.

Manning is 9-for-9 to start the game, a Super Bowl record. They jinxed him. He's 9 for 10 now after throwing it away on first down.

Brandon Jacobs up the middle for 11. Patriots not doing much to stop the Giants early.

Manning hits Bradshaw in the face with a pass. Incompletion.

Michaels: People wondered why the Giants weren't favored heading into the game.

Commercials: The Lorax, A dog loses weight so he can fit out the doggie door and chase a Volkswagen. Darth Vader chokes a guy in a bar for laughing at that. Promo for America's Got Talent featuring Howard Stern, coming this summer.

Third and 6, great catch from Hakeem Nicks downfield. Pass looked high, but he went up and got it at the New England 48. First down.

3rd and 15, Manning completes a pass to Bradshaw at the 40. It's short of a first down and Weatherford will punt it into the end zone. Welp.

Commercials: David Beckham in his underwear for H&M. The CGI Coke polar bears again.

Another Brady pass knocked down by Jason Pierre-Paul.

Chad Ochocinco comes into the game on third and 7. It's a six yard pass to Welker and the Patriots will punt.

Tafoya: Giants TE Travis Beckham is out with a torn ACL.

3rd and 11, Manning deep to Manningham, but incomplete. Weatherford will punt with around 4:00 left in the half. Kicks it out of bounds at the 4.

Commercials: Chevy Sonic doing stunts. Star Wars Phantom Menace 3D. Gross. Promo for a Madonna halftime show.

Gronk! His first catch of the game is down the seam for 20. Out to the New England 35, 2:30 to go in the half.

After a running play, it'll be 2nd and 6 when they return from the two minute warning.

Commercials: The Avengers, Teleflora dot com, Skechers, NFL Play 60 promo sponsored by Kinect for X Box 360, Cars dot com.

Brady to Hernandez to the Patriots' 49. First down. 1:40 and counting.

Now Brady to Hernandez again. Ruled a catch and down by contact. Probably the right call. Yep, replay shows his elbow was down before the ball came out.

Brady to Woodhead to the New York 37. Flag on the play. Holding, offense. Big penalty.

Brady keeps going to Hernandez. Moves the chains again. Out at the 34 with 1:01 left on the clock.

Brady to Welker at the 23. First down. 0:28 left, Patriots timeout.

Commercials: Doritos - grandmother uses a bungee slingshot to fire a toddler at a kid with a bag of Doritos. Talking baby for Etrade. G.I. Joe Retaliation.

Brady to Woodhead. Out at the 12. First down. Clock stopped at 0:24

Brady to Woodhead at the 3. Flag down. Giants offside. Declined. 0:18 left, 2nd and 1 at the 3.

Draw play! Woodhead chopped down in the backfield by Pierre Paul. Timeout, New England.0:15 left in the half.

Third down, Brady looking, looking, looking, touchdown. Threads a needle to Danny Woodhead in the end zone. 10-9 Patriots with less than 10 seconds left in the half. Presumably, they'll squib the kickoff, the Giants will take a knee on first down, and it'll be 10-9 at halftime.

Touchdown.

Collinsworth: That tied a record for longest drive in Super Bowl history.

Yep. Squib kick, Giants take a knee. At the half: New England 10, New York 9.

Commercial: NFL Fantasy Football

HALFTIME

Rodney Harrison: Belichick will tell his players we haven't played our best and if we cut out the mistakes, we'll win this game.

Tony Dungy: If I'm Tom Coughlin, I'm telling my players that we're moving the football, we just have to finish drives. We can move the ball on these guys.

Dungy: With the injury, Gronkowski can be covered one-on-one with a linebacker. He's a decoy. They have to stop Welker and Hernandez.

Harrison: Hernandez is a matchup nightmare for the Giants. Tough to bring down in space.

Harrison: Giants need to run at Brady, not go around the offensive line. They need to get in his face or it will be a long day.

Commercials: Toyota Camry, Will Arnett for Hulu Plus, LMFAO playing the halftime show in a bar instead of at the game - commercial for Bud Light, Tonight Show promo with Madonna in an elevator with Jay Leno.

Halftime show. Madonna! She's being brought to the stage by some sort of legion. Vogue. She's lip synching to obvious samples of herself. This is about eleven million times better than last year's Black Eyed Peas debacle, and I'm by no means a Madonna fan. Music. LMFAO. It's a mashup of Music and Party Rock. Everybody's gonna have a good time. Sexy And I Know It. I work out! Okay, now it's a Madonna song that I've genuinely never heard in my life. She seems to want all the love today. Nicki Minaj cameo. Now MIA. Nice. MIA flips the bird to the camera. The NFL is having a collective freakout about that, I'm sure. Open Your Heart featuring a drum line and Cee-Lo Green. Like A Prayer after an extremely quick wardrobe change. Cee-Lo joins in on backing vocals. Show ends with a "World Peace" message on the field. Madonna crushed it out there.

Commercial: Promo for The Voice with a cameo from Betty White 

Costas: Last three times these teams have met, they've been decided by three, three, and four points. Every Super Bowl that Tom Brady has played in has been decided by three points. Kickers could play a key role in the second half.

Commercials: "It's haltime in America" featuring Clint Eastwood not screaming at an empty chair. I guess this is a Chrysler commercial. Cool, guys, maybe don't make dogshit cars if you want to be successful. NFL Fantasy Football.

Michaels: Brady finished first half with eleven consecutive completions.

When these two teams played in the regular season, it was scoreless at the half.

THIRD QUARTER

Patriots receive. Julian Edelman to the 21.

Tafoya: Belichick says they have to do better in the red zone and stay out of third and long.

First play of the drive. Brady to Ochocinco for 20 or so.

Brady on final drive of first half: 10-10, 98 yards, TD.

The law firm gets going. BenJarvis Green-Ellis for around 15. Giants on their heels, observes Collinsworth.

Brady's 14th consecutive completion. Super Bowl record.

Third and inches, Green-Ellis for three. First down at the New York 20.

"Second and a deuce", says Michaels. Aaron Hernandez one-on-one against a linebacker. No chance for the Giants. Touchdown. 17-9 New England. That's Hernandez's sixth catch of the game.

Patriots have back-to-back drives of 96 and 79 yards.

Commercials: Promo for Smash - series premiere tomorrow

Giants convert on third and four, get out to midfield with a pass to Nicks. Collinsworth says Patriots are trying to shut down Victor Cruz and the Giants have responded by using other receivers.

Another first down to the New England 36. Bradshaw blasts through the middle of the line.

Manning to Nicks again. First down to the 25.

Collinsworth: Patriots' gameplan is to allow short, quick passes but not big plays. Manning needs to stay patient.

Nicks gets blasted by Patrick Chung, going up for a catch. Comes out of the game injured. He's back in after a play. Would have been big if he had been knocked out.

Third and 10, short pass to Manningham. Lawrence Tynes will come on to try a 38 yard field goal. Just sneaks it inside the left upright. 17-12 Patriots midway through the third quarter.

Commercials: Fiat Abarth. Pepsi Max - a Coke delivery guy wins free Pepsi Max for life after trying and failing to buy one without anyone noticing.

Cutaway: Eli Manning's wife and mom.

Commercials; Toyota Camry - reinvented everything else after reinventing the Camry. Coke polar bears. John Stamos for Dannon Oikos yogurt. Century 21 commercial featuring Donald Trump, Deion Sanders, and Apollo Ohno.

First play of the next Patriots drive, Jason Pierre Paul is injured on a tackle in the backfield. NBC goes to commercial.

Commercials: Jerry Seinfeld and Jay Leno for Acura, General Electric.

Pierre Paul is up. Looks like he took a shot to the head making a tackle, which as we know is no big deal as far as the NFL is concerned. He'll be back. Brains are overrated.

Patriots go three and out. Justin Tuck sacks Brady on third down. Patriots will punt. Blackmon returns it to the Patriots' 48.

Commercials: Budweiser. For people who like to celebrate big events with garbage beer. Bridgestone. They made a basketball out of Bridgestone tires. They're quiet. NFL Fantasy Football.

Replay shows Brady may have injured his left shoulder on the sack. That's his non-throwing arm.

Completion to Nicks at the 30. He's stripped, but fullback Henry Hynoski falls on it. Lucky.

Jacobs finds a seam up the middle, runs to the 23. First down. 3:00 and counting in the third. Giants down 5 but threatening to score.

Completion to Bear Pascoe inside the 12. Another first down.

Tafoya: Patriots medical staff isn't paying attention to Brady, but he's occasionally rotating his left arm to check the shoulder.

Third and 8, Manning sacked at the 15. Giants will settle for a field goal attempt. Tynes from 33 yards. Got it. 17-15 Patriots with 0:35 left in the third quarter.

Second play of the Patriots drive, nobody covers Deion Branch so Brady immediately throws it to him. Gain of 13.

Patriots just barely get a play off before the end of the quarter. Green-Ellis up the middle for a few. After three quarters, it's 17-15 New England.

Commercials: Canton Bulldogs, representin'! It's a commercial for the NFL.

FOURTH QUARTER

Brady makes a crazy escape from the pass rush a la Eli Manning in the last Super Bowl. Chucks it deep and is picked off by...a middle linebacker?!? Chase Blackburn, who was substitute teaching a couple of months ago, makes the play. He beat Rob Gronkowski on a jump ball.

Oh, huge break for the Giants. Brandon Spikes forces Bradshaw to fumble, but the Giants recover. Chris Snee, coach Tom Coughlin's son-in-law, made the recovery.

Commercials: Matthew Broderick for Honda CRV - a parody of Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Wow - a bold move to have a car commercial featuring a guy who killed two people while driving a car. "Act of Valor" film. Cartoon characters for Met Life. Another promo for Smash.

Third and 7. Incomplete pass, but there's a flag down. Offside, defense? Yep. The Patriots give New York another chance, this time on third and 2.

This time they convert. Manning steps up and throws a rope to Nicks. Threw it right over a linebacker.

NBC graphic: Eli Manning threw 15 TD passes in the fourth quarter this season, the most of any QB in NFL history.

Now Giants tight end Jake Ballard is hurt. Commercial time. He's grabbing his left knee. Giants are down to one tight end, Pascoe.

Commercials: Hyundai. Driver doing CPR on a passenger by starting and stopping. Bud Light. A dog named Wego who brings people beer when they say "Here, Wego!"

Oh, man. Dangerous throw. Manning in traffic to Victor Cruz on third and 1. That worked, but it was a crazy idea.

Now a completion to Manningham for 12. Into Patriots territory at the 43. 10:00 or so left.

Tafoya: Ballard has a knee sprain but will try to play.

Replay: Ballard testing the knee on the sideline and wiping out badly. He's not okay. It's gutsy of him to try to play, but that looks bad.

That’s...not good.

Third and 10, Manning goes downfield to Manningham. Collinsworth immediately: "That's interference." No flag. Giants flipping out. Bad non-call. Weatherford to punt. Welker fair catch at the 8.

Cutaway: Ballard being helped to the locker room, putting no weight on the leg.

Commercials: Motley Crue for Kia. Kick Start My Heart. CareerBuilder dot com. Monkeys annoying a guy. NBC promos. Thursday night comedies. None of the shows is Community, which, yeah. NBC did that a lot.

Collinsworth on the non-call: Everybody's going to have their own opinion on that. That's exactly how opinions work, Cris.

Big third down conversion on the first set of downs for the Patriots. Danny Woodhead in the flat, gains around 25. Patriots up 2, less than 8:00 left.

Giants DB Antrel Rolle down, injured.

Commercials: Samsung Galaxy Note featuring the Darkness. They believe in a thing called love. Promo for The Voice.

Second and 7, Patriots run a reverse to Welker. Gains 11 yards for a first down. Patriots out to their 45. Clock under 7:00.

Clock rolling, under 5:45, Patriots have a third and 3 at midfield. Giants only have one timeout - they need to get a stop fairly urgently.

They don't get the stop here. Brady to Hernandez. First down. Clock under 5:00 now.

Green-Ellis stuffed on first down. Clock rolling near 4:00.

Second down, Giants defense confused, Welker wide open and he just drops it. Huge drop. It's third down with 4:00. Clock stopped.

Welker doesn’t ever drop this ball. But he dropped this ball.

Incomplete pass on third down. Patriots will punt with 3:53 left in regulation. Fair catch at the 12.

The Giants only need a field goal here. 3:46 left, one timeout. Plenty of time, but it has to happen on this drive.

Collinsworth: Wow. We should just have these two teams play all the time. Everyone in the country who isn't from New York or New England: Gross. Yuck. No.

First play of the drive, Manning deep to Mario Manningham down the sideline. Great catch at midfield. Replay shows he caught it and got both feet down. What a play.

Collinsworth: That catch isn't quite David Tyree, but it's pretty close.

Patriots have challenged this, but it's pretty obvious that it's a catch. Yep. Call is "confirmed".

Cutaway: David Tyree on the Giants sideline.

Second and 10, complete pass to Manningham again, this time to the 34. They're in fringe field goal range. This game is indoors, which will help Tynes. Less than 3:00 left.

Collinsworth drops a Scott Norwood bomb. Thanks, Cris. Thanks for that. 2:10 and counting.

Quick pass to Nicks, complete to the Patriots' 18 as we reach the two minute warning.

Commercials: Cadillac. Testing at the Nurburgring. Swamp People on the History Channel. GoDaddy dot com. Danica Patrick and scantily clad models. She won as many races during this commercial as she did in her NASCAR career. Promo for Awake. That was such a great friggin' show and I'm still upset it got cancelled.

Run to Ahmad Bradshaw to the 11. 1:45 and counting. Patriots unsure whether to use timeouts.

Snap at 1:15, quick pass to Nicks. Goes out of bounds inside the 10. 1:09 left, clock stopped. First down.

First down, Bradshaw up the middle, stuffed. New England timeout at 1:04.

Second and goal, the seas part and it freaks Bradshaw out. He tries to fall over at the 1 but slips into the end zone. One of the few times in the sport it can be a mistake to score a touchdown. Giants going for 2, up 21-17 with 0:57 left. They don't get it.

Replay shows Patriots linebacker Brandon Spikes appears to have been ready to knock Bradshaw into the end zone to force him to score, so New England could get the ball back.

Patriots have 0:57 and a timeout. They need a touchdown. Michaels says Belichick had to choose between giving Brady 0:20 to get in field goal range and stop the clock,. or a minute to score a touchdown.

Kickoff downed in the end zone. They need 80 yards in 0:57.

Collinsworth: In an interview, Brady said he'd rather have the ball, trailing, than have a lead but the other guys have the ball.

First down, Branch drops what would have easily been a 20-25 yard completion. 0:52 left.

Second down, dropped by Hernandez. 0:48 left.

Third down, Brady sacked by Tuck. Patriots burn their last timeout. 0:36 left on the clock. It's fourth and long.

I dig this facemask.

They convert on 4th and 16! Brady buys time, moves in the pocket, and finds Deion Branch for 20.What a play. 0:32. Branch got out of bounds.

Completion for 11 to Hernandez. Down the middle, though. No timeouts. They get up to the line and spike it at 0:17.

Next play, the Giants have 12 men on the field. Patriots gain five yards on the penalty, but the clock is down to 0:09.

Brady to Branch down the sideline, barely out of bounds. 0:05 left. They'll have to chuck it into the end zone on the next play. Patriots at their own 49.

Tipped in the end zone - Gronkowski maybe could have gotten to it, but does not. Giants win! 21-17 final.

POSTGAME

Cutaway: Archie Manning, apparently crying tears of joy.

Commercial: Promo for NBC Sports Network

Michaels and Collinsworth vamp for a while, then they go back to commercial.

Commercials: Chevy Sonic and OK Go. Act of Valor film. L'Oreal makeup. DiGiorno frozen pizza. Geico. NFLShop dot com has Giants Super Bowl Champions stuff.

Lombardi Trophy presented by Raymond Berry, Colts legend. He's a Baltimore Colts legend, my dudes. This game was in Indianapolis.

Berry looks extremely frail as he walks through the Giants to get to the podium. It kind of bums me out to see.

Roger Goodell: It's been an extraordinary season for the fans. Thanks for the support. An extraordinary game to end an extraordinary season. Congratulations to the Mara and Tisch families.

John Mara, Giants President and CEO: Giant fans are the most loyal in the league and this is for you!

Mara: There's not one coach in the league I'd trade Tom Coughlin for. Proud to have him.

Steve Tisch, Giants chairman: Never been around a bunch of guys with more love for each other and for the game of football. This team played their hearts out for the fans.

Tisch: I thought four years ago was great. That was just a dress rehearsal for this.

Coughlin: Everybody did a tremendous job to get us here, playing against a great team like the Patriots.

Coughlin: At halftime, I said we can play better than this, guys. We're better than this. They agreed.

Eli Manning named MVP.

Manning: Wild game, wild season. Great, tough bunch of guys who never quit and have great faith in each other.

Dan Patrick: Any point in the game where you thought We're In Trouble? Manning: Nope. Stay positive.

Patrick: How's it feel to win a Super Bowl in the stadium your brother built? Manning: It's great to win a Super Bowl anywhere, but Indianapolis is great, happy to be here.

Manning wins a Corvette for being named MVP.

Mario Manningham: Just trying to be patient, gotta be patient in this game. We knew big plays would come and we had to take advantage.

Hakeem Nicks: Feels great, happy to be a part of this team.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlvi #new york giants #new york #giants #new england patriots #new england #patriots

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl XLVI

What was the final score?

New York 21, New England 17

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

The whole game was relatively close. The Giants had a 9-0 lead at the end of the first quarter and the Patriots led 10-9 at halftime. New England came out after halftime and steamrolled down the field on an impressive touchdown drive that extended the lead to 17-9.

From there, the Giants’ defense completely took over. After that Brady-to-Hernandez touchdown extended the Patriots’ lead to eight points, New England never again ran an offensive play inside the New York 40 yard line. It was up to Eli Manning and the Giants’ offense to score enough points to catch the Patriots. There was more than a bit of tortoise-and-hare to the comeback: New England burst out of the second half gates with a dominant touchdown drive, but the Giants slowly but steadily plodded back into the game.

On their first possession after the Patriots took that eight-point lead, Manning led the Giants on an utterly unconvincing but nevertheless effective drive of ten plays and 45 yards, capping it off with a Lawrence Tynes field goal. The lead was now down to 17-12. Brady and the Patriots then went three-and-out, giving the Giants the ball in good field position. Once again, New York failed to blow the doors off the place, but once again they did enough to come away with points. A nine-play, 33-yard drive of more than five minutes cut the Patriot lead to 17-15 with seconds left in the third quarter.

It looked like the New England offense was beginning to get back into rhythm early in the fourth quarter when Tom Brady threw deep downfield to tight end Rob Gronkowski. It was a jump ball between Gronk and linebacker Chase Blackburn and surprisingly, the Giants won this one. Gronkowski, one of the biggest, strongest, most athletic tight ends in modern football history, was outplayed by a guy who hadn’t been drafted out of college and had been a substitute teacher a couple of months earlier. It was a remarkable play, a lightning bolt out of the blue that played a big role in deciding the Super Bowl champion.

After the Giants and Patriots burned most of the clock in the fourth quarter on possessions that ended with a trade of punts, Eli Manning was in a familiar position: He was trailing the favored Patriots late in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl, needing points on this possession in order to win a championship. Once again, Manning delivered. This time, it was an 88-yard touchdown drive in less than three minutes, giving New York a 21-17 lead after a failed two-point conversion.

The end of the Giants’ game-winning touchdown drive was one of the weirdest plays in Super Bowl history. With a minute left and the ball inside the New England 10 yard line, a potential game-winning field goal was very nearly a certainty for New York. The Giants were just killing the clock at this point, trying to give Brady as little time as possible for a desperation drive. New England coach Bill Belichick made the sort of decision that has earned him a reputation as a mad genius: He decided to let the Giants score a touchdown. New York running back Ahmad Bradshaw blew through the line on second down intending to fall over at the one-yard line, but the lack of defensive effort threw him off and he mistakenly fell into the end zone for a touchdown. It was a weird scene: The defense wanted to give away a touchdown and the offense didn’t want it. It was like watching a stoppable force collide with a movable object.

The idea was that it was better for the Patriots to give Brady a minute to score a touchdown than 15-20 seconds to get into field goal range. It nearly worked, too. On the final play of the game, Brady chucked a Hail Mary pass into the end zone. The ball was tipped and fell just out of Gronkowski’s reach. Game over, 21-17 Giants. (Score: 16 out of 20)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

There were a few comebacks. The Giants scored the first nine points, the Patriots scored the next 17 points, and then the Giants scored the final 12 points. New England very nearly stole the game with a final play Hail Mary, as I mentioned above. The comebacks didn’t have a massive degree of difficulty, but this was a back-and-forth game. (Score: 13 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

Brady was good but not great. The future Hall of Famer completed 27 of his 41 passes for 276 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. It was the sort of performance that would earn a high grade for a mere mortal, but the bar is higher for Tom Brady. He has to clear the Joe Montana/Kurt Warner bar, and not just the Phil Simms/Brad Johnson bar. In terms of what a “great” performance constitutes, Brady is a victim of his own success.

Many of the second-tier stars had big performances. I’m sure people are going to read this and get upset with me for characterizing Eli Manning as a second-tier star. “Count the rings!”, they’ll say. “How can you argue with two Super Bowl championships?”

I can’t. Eli Manning has played wonderfully in both of his Super Bowls. He’s a very good quarterback.

But if you judge quarterbacks by championships and not their performances in every game, you wind up with Jeff Hostetler, Trent Dilfer, and Doug Williams being better than Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, Dan Fouts, and Warren Moon. It’s a goofy, wonky system that’s irreconcilable with real life.

Wait, how is there a football card comparing Trent Dilfer and Dan Marino? How did that happen?

So as a result, I’ve got Eli Manning on the second tier alongside guys like Roethlisberger and Carson Palmer. He’s worse than his brother, he’s worse than Brady, he’s worse than Rodgers and Brees. But so are a lot of guys. That’s not an insult. That’s like being inferior to the Beatles and Stones. It’s a fact of life.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand. Manning was excellent again, completing three-quarters of his passes for 296 yards, a touchdown, and no interceptions. It perhaps goes without saying, but not turning the ball over is vitally important. If you complete a huge percentage of your passes for nearly 300 yards while not giving the ball away, you’re going to win a lot. Manning did that in this game.

Other players who had big performances: Giants WR Hakeem Nicks (13 targets, 10 catches, 109 yards), Giants RB Ahmad Bradshaw (17 rushes, 72 yards, 1 TD), Giants WR Mario Manningham (5 catches, 73 yards, one incredibly clutch play in the fourth quarter), Patriots TE Aaron Hernandez (14 targets, 8 catches, 67 yards, 1 TD). (Score: 10 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

The Brady-Belichick Patriots, man. There’s nothing I can say that hasn’t been said before. They’re the most consistently great team in North American major professional sports in the 21st century. It’s not even close, really.

This Giants team is one of the very worst teams ever to win a Super Bowl. They were outscored by their opponents in the regular season, they were last in the league in rushing yards, and were last in the league in rushing yards per attempt. The 2011 Giants were 27th in the NFL in total defense, 29th in passing yards allowed, and finished in the bottom ten in the league in rushing touchdowns allowed and rushing yards allowed per attempt. I hesitate to say that this was a bad team - bad teams don’t hoist the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the Super Bowl - but it sure wasn’t a great team. (Score: 8 out of 10. Sorry, Patriots, the other guys dragged you down.)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

A few. Nothing quite on the level of the David Tyree Helmet Catch, but there were a handful of extremely memorable plays in Super Bowl XLVI. The Chase Blackburn interception comes to mind, as does the incident where the Patriots defense gave the Giants a touchdown that New York didn’t necessarily want.

But perhaps the single lasting memory from this game is the catch that Mario Manningham made on the first play of the game-winning drive. Manningham ran a fly pattern along the left sideline and Manning made a perfect throw past two Patriots defensive backs and over the receiver’s shoulder. While bending sideways awkwardly and falling out of bounds, Manningham was able to simultaneously catch the ball and tap both feet in the field of play. It was one of those plays that seems impossible until you’ve watched a few replays, and then just seems wildly improbable. New England challenged the ruling of a completed pass, but the call was confirmed.

Between those three plays, Super Bowl XLVI provided its share of memorable moments. (Score: 9 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

The quality was solid. There was a total of one turnover, both offensive lines protected their quarterbacks, and all four units (NE defense, NE offense, NY defense, NY offense) had noticeable periods of success. Penalties were a non-factor and there weren’t a ton of dropped passes. This was a well-played game. (Score: 12 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

Nothing incredible, but there were a few good stories. This was the fifth Super Bowl to have been a rematch of teams that had met in a previous Super Bowl. It hadn’t happened in 16 years, with the most recent rematch being the Steelers and Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX.

Not only was this the second time in five seasons that the Giants and Patriots met in the Super Bowl, but it was also the second time in five seasons that the Giants and Patriots met in the Super Bowl after having faced each other during the regular season.

This game was played in Indianapolis, the city where Peyton Manning had become an NFL superstar. Heading into Super Bowl XLVI, both Manning brothers had one Super Bowl ring - this was a chance for Eli to top his brother in Peyton’s city.

The Giants were attempting to become the first team in NFL history to go 9-7 in the regular season and win a Super Bowl championship. Obviously, they were successful.

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

78 out of 100. It was one of the ten greatest Super Bowls ever played, at least at the time. It wasn’t inner-circle great like the first Giants-Patriots Super Bowl, but it was a very good Super Bowl. This one is about on par with the 31-24 Elway-Favre game in XXXII and the 21-17 game between the Bradshaw Steelers and the Staubach Cowboys in Super Bowl X.

Not too shabby.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-XLVI:

1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points T2. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T2. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 4. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 5. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T6. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T6. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T8. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T8. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 10. Super Bowl XLVI - New York Giants 21, New England 17 - 78 points 11. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 12. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 13. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 14. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T15. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T15. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T15. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T18. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T18. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 20. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 21. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 22. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T23. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T23. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T25. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T25. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 27. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 28. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 29. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 30. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 31. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T32. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T32. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T32. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T35. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T35. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points 37. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points 38. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 39. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 40. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 41. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T42. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T42. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 44. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 45. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 46. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlvi #new england patriots #new york giants #new england #patriots #new york #giants

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Notes taken during Super Bowl XLV

PREGAME

This is a Fox broadcast. Looks like it has at least some of the pregame show.

NFL presents Walter Payton Award to Madieu Williams of the Minnesota Vikings. He wasn't able to be there because he was overseas visiting soldiers in Iraq.

Lea Michele from Glee sings America The Beautiful. Slightly botches (or maybe intentionally changes) the lyrics. It's subtle, but it's there. "Purple mountain majesties."

Cutaway, G.W. and Laura Bush.

Star Spangled Banner. Christina Aguilera, ending the streak of three consecutive American Idol contestants to perform the national anthem. Aguilera badly screws up the lyrics. Seriously? It's not that hard.

Coin toss. New members of the Hall of Fame. Chris Hanburger, Richard Dent, Shannon Sharpe, Marshall Faulk, Deion Sanders. Steelers call tails. Deion Sanders tosses the coin. It's heads. NFC somehow wins the toss AGAIN. Green Bay defers, Pittsburgh will receive. This is the 14th consecutive coin toss win for the NFC.

Packers CB Charles Woodson: Told teammates don't think about anything else, just winning.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin: Don't know how much experience helps. Both teams fired up. We're here to play and here to win.

FIRST QUARTER

Good return from Antonio Brown. 37 yard runback to the Pittsburgh 36.

Steelers C Doug Legursky starting his first NFL game at center.

First play, quick outside pass to Hines Ward for four yards.

Steelers go three and out. Three plays, zero yards, one punt.

The Steelers' Jeremy Kapinos to punt. I have no idea who that is. Tramon Williams back to receive.

Williams drops it! He nearly got trucked by a teammate (Sam Shields) as he tried to catch the ball. Packers recover. They got lucky. I have no clue what in the world Shields was doing.

Dude. Sam. Let the guy catch the ball.

Third and 9, Pack converts. Rodgers downfield to Donald Driver. First down near midfield.

They couldn't convert the next third down. Aaron Rodgers makes a perfect throw downfield to Jordy Nelson, who can't make the catch. Tim Masthay will punt it away.

(Annoyed grunt)

Masthay kicks it into the end zone.

Nice run off tackle by Mendenhall. 15 yard carry. Next play, another 10 yards. Ripping off chucks of yardage - they ran the same play twice in a row.

Steelers try to throw downfield on third and two. Incomplete pass and Kapinos returns. He punts it into the end zone.

Packers have 15 players on IR, 6 opening day starters among them.

Early, it looks like the Packers are able to throw but not run and the Steelers are able to run but not throw.

Oh, look, it's Cameron Diaz feeding Alex Rodriguez.

A lot going on here: John Madden is texting, President Bush is reading something, Laura Bush is extremely happy, Condi Rice is having an enjoyable conversation, Emmitt Smith looks forlorn, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta Jones are watching themselves on the big screen, there’s a cheesehead kid two rows behind Laura Bush, and the kid next to Catherine Zeta Jones looks like he’s taken too much acid.

Packers steadily driving downfield. They're closing in on the Pittsburgh 30 with just under 5 minutes left in the quarter.

3rd and 1, absolutely perfect throw from Aaron Rodgers to Jordy Nelson. There was only one person on the field who could have gotten to that ball and it was Nelson. 29 yard touchdown pass. 7-0 Packers, late first quarter.

Good return by Antonio Brown, out past the 40. It's coming back though - block in the back. Half the distance to the goal - Steelers start inside their own 10.

Absolutely horrible throw by Roethlisberger on first down. He just heaved it downfield in the face of the pass rush. Nick Collins picks it off and runs it all the way back for a touchdown. 14-0 Packers. Aikman says Roethlisberger couldn't get anything on the throw and it just hung in the air.

Excessive celebration on the Packers - Crosby kicks off from his own 15. Steelers get the ball at their own 36 to start their next drive.

Packers: 14 points in 24 seconds.

Chris Myers: Steelers DB Bryant McFadden was off the field injured during the Nelson TD pass, but is back and ready to play.

Roethlisberger slips and falls on a second down pass incompletion. His left knee just gave out. He's extremely gimpy out there and it's 3rd and 9 from the Steeler 49.

It’s not great when your quarterback does that during a follow through.

Nah, his knee is fine. There's nobody open on the next play and Roethlisberger scrambles for 17 yards or so. First down at the Packers' 33 as the first quarter ends. 14-0 Packers.

SECOND QUARTER

Steelers backup QB Byron Leftwich loosening up on the sideline just in case. Roethlisberger stays in the game for now.

Second and 12, Tremon Williams with a great play to knock the ball away from Emmanuel Sanders.

Next play, Sanders slips and falls while running his route and Roethlisberger hits him while he's still on his knees. Nice throw for a first down.

Sanders limps off, looks upset, and throws his helmet to the ground. He looks like someone who knows he's legitimately injured.

Steelers throw underneath to Wallace on third and 7. Gains four yards. Here's former BGSU Falcon Shaun Suisham for a field goal attempt. Got it. 14-3 Pack, 11:01 left in the half.

Emmanuel Sanders being carted to the locker room. Some kind of ankle or foot injury.

Stop me if you've heard this one: Packers throw underneath on third and 5, they gain 4 and Tim Masthay will punt.

Replay shows Packers receiver Donald Driver twisted his leg underneath him during a tackle.

Whoa, Fox actually mentioning Ben Roethlisberger's suspension for "violating league policy", which is a polite way to say he maybe possibly sorta kinda sexually assaulted someone, allegedly. He wasn't charged. I should make that very clear.

Donald Driver walking to the Packer locker room under the care of trainers.

Steelers facing a first and 20 deep in their own territory, throw for 16 on first down, then Mewelde Moore runs it for seven yards on second down. Steelers moving.

Buck: Steelers moving the ball well on the ground. Aikman: Yeah, they are, but I'm not sure how worried the Packers will be about that. If Roethlisberger is hobbling and the pass rush can get to him, the Steeler passing game will have problems.

Chris Myers: Team doctor talked to Roethlisberger before this series, Ben said he was able to run.

3rd and 6, what a throw from Roethlisberger to Randle-El for a first down. There was only one person who could have caught it.

Buck: Clay Matthews says he'll mirror Roethlisberger a lot - sometimes he'll blitz, but often he'll be ready to stop a scramble.

Near midfield, Roethlisberger forces a throw into traffic and Jared Bush picks it off. Bush faked blitz, dropped into zone, and read the QB's eyes. Nice play.

Bush is #24.

Packers have four minutes to score before halftime. Rodgers to Nelson on an out to the Pittsburgh 33. James Starks runs for 12 more on the next play. First and 10 from the Steelers' 21 with 2:40 in the half.

Rodgers. What a quarterback. He rifles one across the middle to Greg Jennings at the goal line for a 21 yard touchdown. Troy Polamalu decks the receiver as the ball arrives, but Jennings makes the grab. 21-3 Packers with 2:24 left in the half.

It was that close to being knocked down.

Fox graphic: Packers have led every postseason game this year by 11+ points at the half.

Antonio Brown returns the kickoff to the 23. 2:18 left.

Roethlisberger : 8-14, 66 yards, 2 INT. 29.8 passer rating.

First play, Roethlisberger goes deep. Just barely gets the ball over the outstretched hand of a defender. 37 yard completion to Randle El. DB Sam Shields is injured on the tackle and walking to the locker room as we hit the two minute warning.

Now Charles Woodson is injured. Falls on his shoulder as the first down pass falls incomplete. Both starting cornerbacks are now hurt for the Packers.

Woodson goes to the locker room as Roethlisberger completes a third and 10 pass to Hines Ward for 14. At the very least, the Steelers are in field goal range.

Now Roethlisberger to Hines Ward at the 8. Less than a minute left, 1st and goal.

Next play, Roethlisberger buys some time and finds Ward alone in the end zone. 21-10 Packers, 0:39 left in the half.

Now Nick Collins is going to the locker room injured for the Packers. The Green Bay defensive backs are dropping like flies.

Packers don't have a ton of interest in moving the ball here. They hand it off to Starks up the middle, he gains a few yards, and they call it a half. It's 21-10 at the long break.

HALFTIME

Commercials: A creepy "people in uncanny valley fairy tale costumes" for AT&T. Troy Aikman for Reliant Energy, which I think is a local ad. KDFW morning news promo.

Bradshaw: Packers offense has done a great job of mixing it up. They did everything except roll Rodgers out.

Jimmy Johnson: Packers tackling extremely well - Steelers not able to break big plays because the tackling is so solid.

Strahan: With all the injured defensive backs, the first drive of the second half is huge for the Packers' confidence.

Howie Long: Steelers have 25 players who have played in the Super Bowl. They won't panic in the second half.

Tom Brady unanimously named MVP. Got all 50 votes.

Least valuable hairstylist.

Black Eyed Peas. I Gotta Feeling. Fergie's microphone isn't on for the first few words she's singing. We didn't miss much. She sounds terrible. Dancers in light-up costumes making weird green arrows. At lead one of them is burned out. Oh, here's apl.de.ap and Taboo. Good for them. Nice to see you, fellas. Dancers attempting to make concentric circles around the stage and failing. Slash appears from below the stage. Will.i.am introduces him. Fergie sings Sweet Child O' Mine horribly. She sounds like someone at karaoke trying to do an Axl Rose impersonation. She also badly mimics his dance moves. Now she's grinding on Slash as he tries to do his job. Leave the man alone, Fergie. Pump It. Will.i.am is killing it, but he's alone in that category. Apl.de.ap is really selling the dance moves, so there's that. Let's Get It Started. Sounds like it's sped up. Inexplicably, Usher has appeared. He's obviously lip synching, which is something the Peas should have considered. This mix is horrendous. Fergie is a trillion times louder than Will. They've changed Usher's hit song to "Oh My Gosh". Overhead shot of the stage - it's supposed to say love, but part of the V doesn't light up. Where Is The Love? Now they're playing The Time. Fergie still can't sing. Rock That Body. The dancers look like what would happen if Daft Punk and Minecraft had children. Recorded voice at the end says "THAT WAS MEGA." That was...something.

Black Keys-backed highlight package as Fox comes back from commercial. Much better.

THIRD QUARTER

Pam Oliver: Charles Woodson has a collarbone injury and is out for the game. Sam Shields has a shoulder problem and will return.

Chris Myers: Emmanuel Sanders out with a foot injury for the Steelers. Ben Roethlisberger is fine but "hacked off" at the way things are going.

Two penalties in the first three attempts at a play for the Packers on the first possession of the quarter. Holding, 10 yard completion, false start. It's second and 15.

Oh, man, on third and 5 James Jones drops a perfectly thrown pass that would have been a touchdown. Instead Masthay punts. Not much of a return from Antonio Brown, but there's a flag on the play. It's a horrendous call. Packers are called for a personal foul facemask but the only contact that was made to the face was an unintenional brush as the defender's arm went past.

Steelers get the ball at midfield. Mendenhall runs for 17 on the first play of the drive and plows into a cameraman on the sideline. Mendenhall is injured, but it's unclear how badly he's hurt.

3rd and 1, backup running back Isaac Redman breaks free for around 15 yards. It's now first and goal from the 8.

Mendenhall back in the game and carries the rock into the end zone on first down. The left guard pulled right, blew a hole in the defense, and Mendenhall followed. 21-17 Packers, 10:19 left in the third.

That Steelers drive was 50 yards, all of it on the ground. Zero passing attempts.

Obligatory Fox graphic: Largest deficit overcome to win the Super Bowl. It's still 10 points: Washington in Super Bowl XXII and New Orleans in XLIV.

Pro-Steelers crowd getting into it. Buck mentions it's suddenly become a road game for the Packers.

Aikman: When the Steelers came back in Super Bowl XXX, it felt like 75% of the people in the stands were Pittsburgh fans.

Packers go three and out. Rodgers sacked by James Harrison on third and 7. Masthay gets more work. He'll boot it away. The Steelers are flying right now.

There's a shot of the Steelers' quarterbacks on the sideline. All three played in the MAC: Roethlisberger at Miami, Batch at Eastern Michigan, Leftwich at Marshall.

3rd and 1 near midfield, Roethlisberger burns a timeout. That might be big later.

Roethlisberger bobbles the snap on that third down play, hands it to Mewelde Moore. It looks like he's stopped, but Moore bounces it outside and the Packers lose contain on him. First down.

Now Roethlisberger to Ward inside the 30. Steelers looking sharp right now - very much on the front foot and the better team at the moment.

Steelers stall near the 35. Zombo sacks Roethlisberger on 3rd and 13. Suisham will try a field goal from 52. Goodness. It's wide left by a mile. Still 21-17 Packers with 4:29 left in the third quarter.

Not close.

First play after the missed field goal. Rodgers downfield to Jordy Nelson for 18. First down at the Pittsburgh 40.

Shot of Donald Driver on the sideline with a boot on his foot/ankle. I can't imagine he'll be back.

Steelers burn another timeout, this time on defense in the third quarter. Oof.

After the game, "TV's best comedy, Glee". I had no idea it was a comedy. Not a clue. All I know is that I never watched because I hate musicals.

Rodgers looks for a slant on third and 8. Overshoots his receiver. It's decision time. Masthay will punt from the Pittsburgh 38. Fair catch at the 12.

Steelers go three and out. Roethlisberger overthrows Wallace on third down. Not a great throw. Kapinos punts. Gets a great roll to the Green Bay 25.

Flag on the play. Tremon Williams of the Packers got upset that a Steeler tried to shove him into the punt, so he went upside that guy's head. Not a smart play. No idea why he was anywhere near the ball. Punt + penalty add up to 66 yards.

3rd and 10, Rodgers with a rifled throw to Swain. It's caught for a first down. Ball ripped out of his hands, Packers recover. Officials rule it an incomplete pass. Packers will challenge the call. I think they have a case on this - he took a couple of steps after catching the ball.

Mike Pereira, Fox expert, says they got the call correct on the field.

Replay: Catch, step, step, step, tackle. Ball out. Packers recover. I want a slow-mo replay. Pereira doesn't. Says you can make anything look like a catch in slow motion. Maybe he's right, particularly when the receiver takes three steps after catching the ball. You can definitely make that look like a catch.

I see catch, step, step, step, tackle, ball out. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Here's the call: Ruling confirmed. Incomplete pass. Okay, if you say so.

This will be the Packers' fourth punt of the quarter. Good kick. Packers called for ineligible man downfield. Former BGSU Falcon Diyral Briggs. Dang it, Diyral. Steelers will make them rekick the ball after a five yard penalty.

Not a good punt the second time. Brown catches it and is knocked out of bounds immediately at the Green Bay 41.

Steelers probably only have time for one play before the quarter ends. Mendenhall gains 8 on the ground. It's 21-17 Packers as we head to the fourth.

Commercials: AT&T. Troy Aikman for Reliant Energy again. Fox 4 News promo.

FOURTH QUARTER

First play of the quarter, Mendenhall runs. Ball pops out when he's hit - Packers recover. It's the third Steeler turnover of the game. They get the ball at their 45.

Fox graphic: Teams with 3+ takeaways in the Super Bowl are 30-4. I assume one of the four is the Cowboys in Super Bowl V. Can't think of the other three off the top of my head.

2nd and 10. Rodgers with another terrific throw to Jordy Nelson and it's another drop by Nelson. He's having a terrible game - three drops.

Jordy makes up for it and then some. Makes a catch coming across the middle against a blitzing defense and there's nobody out there to tackle him. Nelson out of bounds at the 2. First and goal, Packers.

Rodgers sacked on first down. Second down, gets it to Greg Jennings in the end zone. I'm not entirely certain he got both feet down at first glance. I guess he dragged his toe. Yep. He did. 28-17 Packers, 11:57 left in regulation.

If you give Aaron Rodgers and Greg Jennings that much open space, you’re hosed.

Commercials: Pepsi Max, Rio.

Steelers moving the ball well on their next drive. They're inside Green Bay territory in less than a minute.

Now a quick screen to Mike Wallace for 15 or so. Clock ticks below 10:00. Steelers still need two touchdowns, or at the very least a touchdown, a two point conversion, and a field goal.

Big holding penalty on Flozell Adams. Steelers have 1st and 20 from the Packer 43 as we approach 9:00 on the clock.

2nd and 18, Roethlisberger to Ward for 15 yards. Clock below 8:00, but 3rd and 3 is a whole lot better than 2nd and 18.

There's one of the touchdowns they need. Roethlisberger lofts one down the left sideline to Wallace. It beats a blitz and he scores easily. 28-23, Steelers going for 2.

Pittsburgh was 2-for-2 on two point conversions this year. Make it 3 for 3. Roethlisberger runs an option play, flips it to Antwaan Randle El, and it's a three-point game. 28-25. Steelers right back in this one.

I dig this play.

Steelers have never led in this game. Were down 14-0 and 21-3.

First play of the next drive, Rodgers sacked. Once again, Pittsburgh is fired up.

Packers: 37 pass plays, 9 rushing plays

3rd and 10, what a throw. Rodgers with a laser to Greg Jennings down the seam. About an inch past the defensive back's hands and right in stride.

Next play, Starks for 14 yards to the Steelers' 30. Clock now below 5:00, Packers still up 3 and approaching field goal range.

Pack killing clock now. Starks up the middle for a yard. Clock below 4:00, 2nd and 9.

Second down, Rodgers goes downfield to James Jones. Makes the grab and steps out of bounds at the Pittsburgh 8. First and goal.

First down, completion for one yard. Second down, completion for two yards. Clock now below 2:30. Sure would be nice for the Steelers to have those timeouts.

Incomplete into the end zone with 2:10 left. Presumably, Mason Crosby will come on for a chip shot field goal.

Yep. 23 yarder. Got it. Packers up 31-25 with 2:07 left.

Kickoff return to the 26. There's a flag down. Personal foul on the Steelers. OUCH. They'll start at their own 13, needing a touchdown. We've reached the two minute warning.

15 yard completion to Heath Miller. 1:40 and counting.

5 yard completion to Hines Ward in bounds. 1:10 and counting.

Roethlisbeger throws it away on second down. 1:02.

Replay shows the personal foul came after the kickoff return, when a Steeler just shoved a Packer out of frustration.

Roethlisberger overshoots everyone on third down. Buck and Aikman can't agree on who the throw was to - that's how wild the throws was.

4th and 5. 0:56 left. They need to convert or it's game over.

It's game over. Incomplete pass on fourth down. Fox commentators think WR Mike Wallace got mugged by the DB. Replay shows it was just a really nice defensive play.

Packers in the victory formation. Rodgers downs it on first down with 0:46 left. A bunch of people go running out onto the field for some reason. It's not over, you guys.

Okay, now it is. Rodgers downs it on second down. Game over. Final score: Packers 31, Steelers 25.

POSTGAME

Packers WR Greg Jennings: "It's a great day to be great, baby!"

Jennings: "To God be the glory." We've overcome adversity all year. Defensive captain gets hurt, #1 receiver gets hurt, we were able to overcome again.

Buck: Mike McCarthy grew up in Pittsburgh as a Steelers fan. Now he's a Super Bowl-winning coach of the Packers.

Packers' 13th NFL championship. All-time record.

Roger Staubach, Super Bowl VI MVP to present the trophy. They skipped Super Bowl V MVP Chuck Howley.

Mark Murphy, Packers president: We have the best fans in the league, couldn't do it without them.

Ted Thompson, GM: Very proud of this team.

Mike McCarthy: Emotional halftime, a bunch of bumps along the way, but the Lombardi Trophy is coming home to Green Bay.

Aaron Rodgers named MVP.

Rodgers: Great group of men. A lot of character. Proud to be able to share this with them.

Rodgers wins a Camaro convertible.

Cutaway: Bart Starr celebrating.

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlv #pittsburgh steelers #green bay packers #pittsburgh #green bay #steelers #packers

[watchingthesuperbowl]

Grading Super Bowl XLV

What was the final score?

Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25

How much of the game was close? What was the “edge of your seat factor” like? (20 points)

The first half was never really close. On their second possession, the Packers went 80 yards in nine plays to take a 7-0 lead. The Pack doubled that lead on the next play from scrimmage when Ben Roethlisberger lofted a ball into the secondary and Nick Collins picked it off. Collins somehow weaved his way through the Steelers and took the interception all the way back for a touchdown. Green Bay had scored 14 points in 17 seconds.

It was 21-3 Packers late in the second quarter before the Steeler offense began to get things going. Roethlisberger led his team on a seven-play drive, throwing the ball on every play, before hitting Hines Ward in the end zone to cut the Green Bay lead to 21-10 at the half.

On Pittsburgh’s next possession, early in the third quarter, they threw zero passes and got the same result. When Rashard Mendenhall went off right guard on first and goal from the eight, suddenly that 21-3 lead had become 21-17. The Steelers were back in the game and weren’t going anywhere.

Virtually the entire second half was close from that point on. Pittsburgh cut the Packer lead to 28-25 midway through the fourth quarter and it looked like the Steelers had a chance to post the biggest comeback in the history of the Super Bowl. It didn’t happen that way, but the game was anybody’s to win until the final minute. The Steelers were in the game until their final possession, a completely unexpected outcome given the Packers’ first half dominance. (Score: 10 out of 20)

Was there any kind of comeback? Was there ever any indication that the team which was trailing had a chance to come from behind and win? (15 points)

Absolutely. The Steelers could easily have won this game. After Green Bay went up 21-3, Aaron Rodgers and the offense went into hibernation. Their next five possessions, spanning part of the second quarter, all of the third, and part of the fourth quarter, went: End half, three and out, three and out, four plays and a punt, three and out. During that span, the Packers ran 14 offensive plays for a total of 20 yards.

There were absolutely no signs of life from the Packer offense. It looked for all the world like the Pittsburgh defense, arguably the best in the NFL during the 2010 season, had figured out how to shut down Green Bay’s ability to move the ball.

When the chips were down, though, Aaron Rodgers was able to get it done. Up three points in the fourth quarter, the Pack’s young signal caller led his team on a clutch scoring drive, killing most of the remaining clock and forcing the Steelers to come up with a touchdown to win. The key play on the Packers’ game-winning drive was an inch-perfect third and ten pass to Greg Jennings down the middle for a 31 yard gain. With an incomplete pass there, the Steelers get the ball near their 40, down three points, with more than five minutes to play. Roethlisberger would have been in a great position to run his entire offense, needing only 30 yards or so to get into Shaun Suisham’s field goal range and force overtime. Instead, Pittsburgh wound up with less than two minutes to go 87 yards for a championship-winning touchdown. Sometimes the best way to kill a comeback is to prevent the other offense from taking the field. (Score: 12 out of 15)

Did the great players come through with great performances? (15 points)

Aaron Rodgers had a performance worthy of his stature as one of the best passers of his generation. The Packer quarterback won the Super Bowl MVP award, completing 24 out of 39 passes for 304 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. His Pro Bowl receiver, Greg Jennings, scored two touchdowns and had a huge third down conversion in the fourth quarter.

Green Bay receiver Jordy Nelson, not exactly a great player but consistently among the better  receivers in the NFL, caught nine passes for 140 yards and a score. Weirdly, Nelson probably should have had an even better night, having dropped a few passes he normally would catch. With those additional catches, Nelson could have set the all-time Super Bowl record for receptions in one game.

The Packers’ star defensive players were a bit more of a mixed bag. Pro Bowl DB Nick Collins had an interception return for a touchdown. Charles Woodson was injured in the first half and didn’t return to the game. Clay Matthews forced a fumble but only had three tackles.

For the Steelers, Ben Roethlisberger didn’t have a great game. The big quarterback completed 25 of 40 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns. That’s the good news. The bad news was that the Packers picked him twice, including that Collins touchdown. In a Super Bowl where the other team committed zero turnovers, those two interceptions but the Steelers in a big hole.

Pittsburgh had zero Pro Bowl offensive players in this game. Their only player on offense to earn a Pro Bowl invitation was center Maurkice Pouncey, who missed the Super Bowl due to injury. The Steelers’ second-tier offensive stars were mostly pretty good but none of them were great. Rashard Mendenhall only got 14 carries, but ran for 63 yards and a score. Hines Ward had 78 receiving yards and a touchdown. Mike Wallace had 9 grabs for 89 yards and a TD. Emmanuel Sanders had two catches and missed most of the game due to injury.

The Steelers’ star defensive players, Troy Polamalu and James Harrison, were largely missing in action. Harrison had one tackle in Super Bowl XLV, a third quarter sack of Aaron Rodgers. Polamalu made zero tackles in the first three quarters but had three in the fourth. Some of this is almost certainly a result of the Packers making an effort to avoid Pittsburgh’s best defenders, but that’s an extremely quiet output for a pair of players with real shots to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. (Score: 11 out of 15)

Were the teams historically great? (10 points)

Neither was, but both were very good.

The Packers were in the middle of a four-year span in which they went 47-17 in the regular season, but as of this writing, 2010 is their only NFC championship in the past two decades. In a conference and era with no dominant team like the recent Patriots or the 49ers of the eighties, it’s difficult to make a case that this Packers team is historically great. They’re historically good but nothing more.

This was the Steelers’ third trip to the Super Bowl in six years, which is quite an accomplishment. On the other hand, they also finished in the lower half of the AFC North twice in that six year span. It’s tough to gauge how good this team was. Certainly they’re nowhere near legendary status, but it is difficult to hand-wave away those three conference titles in six years. (Score: 9 out of 10)

Were there memorable moments that will be talked about for decades? (10 points)

Nothing like we’ve seen in the past few Super Bowls. The closest thing to a classic moment in Super Bowl XLV was the third down conversion I mentioned earlier from Rodgers to Jennings coming across the middle. As I discussed above, that one play was the only thing preventing the Steelers getting the ball in good field position, needing a field goal, with plenty of time on the clock. Instead, it allowed the Packers to burn a few more minutes, kick a field goal, and make Roethlisberger’s job extremely difficult.

Still, there’s a difference between “important” and “iconic”. Nobody outside of Wisconsin or Western Pennsylvania will be able to conjure a vivid memory of Greg Jennings’ 31 yard catch near midfield in Super Bowl XLV. (Score: 3 out of 10)

How was the quality of play? Were there a lot of penalties, punts, and turnovers? (15 points)

Good. Not incredible, but good. The Packers didn’t turn the ball over and the Steelers’ lone fumble was caused by a great defensive play rather than a miscue by the ballcarrier. Both offensive lines did a consistently good job of protecting their quarterbacks; there were a total of four sacks for 18 yards. The teams combined to convert 50% of their third downs. Penalties weren’t generally a factor in the game.

On the negative side of the ledger are the two interceptions that Roethlisberger threw. The first pick, the Collins interception for a touchdown, was just a bad throw. The Pittsburgh quarterback was under pressure and couldn’t step into the throw, and as a result it just sort of floated out there. The second interception was more of a good defensive play than a bad throw, but the pass was forced a bit into traffic. (Score: 11 out of 15)

Are there any other factors that add to the greatness the game? This covers things like weather, story line, rivalry matchup, legacy franchises, unexpected results, etc. (15 points)

These are (were?) the two most successful organizations in NFL history. The Steelers had an NFL record six Super Bowl championships heading into the game, while the Packers had a record 12 NFL titles. As a result of the past successes of these franchises, Super Bowl XLV became the single most-watched television program in American history.

With this appearance, the Steelers had earned a trip to the Super Bowl in all five decades since the NFL merger. The Packers were the first #6 seed to win an NFC championship and became only the second #6 seed to appear in the Super Bowl. (The other was the Steelers team that beat Seattle in Super Bowl XL after the 2005 season.)

The spotlight shone brightly on Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers. A few years earlier, there had been a messy and public dispute between the Packer organization and superstar QB Brett Favre. Favre hinted at retirement near the end of the 2006 season but decided to return to Green Bay in 2007. Favre did retire after the 2007 season, handing the reigns over to Rodgers. A few months after walking away, Favre decided to come back but the Packers made it clear to him that Rodgers was now the starting quarterback. Had they made the right decision? (Yes.) Was Aaron Rodgers a quarterback who could lead a team to a Super Bowl title? (Yes.) The jury was still out at this point, and Super Bowl XLV was an opportunity for Rodgers and the Packers organization to end those questions once and for all. (Score: 12 out of 15)

How does the game grade overall? (sum of all previous categories, 100 points)

68 out of 100. Roughly in the 67th percentile of Super Bowls, which seems about right. The first half was ho-hum, but the second half was good. Both teams played well but unremarkably. The stars did about what you’d expect but not much more. There could have been a successful comeback but there wasn’t one. Nearly everything about this game was good but nothing about it was incredible.

Ratings and rankings of Super Bowls I-XLV:

1. Super Bowl XLII - New York Giants 17, New England 14 - 91 points T2. Super Bowl XIII - Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31 - 87 points T2. Super Bowl XXXVIII - New England 32, Carolina 29 - 87 points 4. Super Bowl XXXVI - New England 20, St. Louis 17 - 86 points 5. Super Bowl XXIII - San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16 - 85 points T6. Super Bowl XXV - New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 - 84 points T6. Super Bowl XXXIV - St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 - 84 points T8. Super Bowl X - Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17 - 80 points T8. Super Bowl XLIX - New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 - 80 points 10. Super Bowl XXXII - Denver 31, Green Bay 24 - 77 points 11. Super Bowl VII - Miami 14, Washington 7 - 74 points 12. Super Bowl XLIII - Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 - 71 points 13. Super Bowl XXX - Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 - 69 points T14. Super Bowl IX - Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6 - 68 points T14. Super Bowl XXXI - Green Bay 35, New England 21 - 68 points T14. Super Bowl XLV - Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 - 68 points T17. Super Bowl XVII - Washington 27, Miami 17 - 67 points T17. Super Bowl XXVIII - Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 - 67 points 19. Super Bowl XXXIX - New England 24, Philadelphia 21 - 66 points 20. Super Bowl XIV - Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles 19 - 65 points 21. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21 - 62 points T22. Super Bowl XL - Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 - 61 points T22. Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 38, Miami 16 - 61 points T24. Super Bowl III - New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7 - 58 points T24. Super Bowl XXII - Washington 42, Denver 10 - 58 points 26. Super Bowl XXI - New York Giants 39, Denver 20 - 57 points 27. Super Bowl XXVII - Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 - 55 points 28. Super Bowl XXXIII - Denver 34, Atlanta 19 - 53 points 29. Super Bowl VI - Dallas 24, Miami 3 - 52 points 30. Super Bowl XX - Chicago 46, New England 10 - 51 points T31. Super Bowl I - Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10 - 50 points T31. Super Bowl XXXVII - Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 - 50 points T31. Super Bowl XLI - Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 - 50 points T34. Super Bowl XVIII - Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9 - 49 points T34. Super Bowl XXIV - San Francisco 55, Denver 10 - 49 points 36. Super Bowl XXVI - Washington 37, Buffalo 24 - 48 points 37. Super Bowl VIII - Miami 24, Minnesota 7 - 47 points 38. Super Bowl XV - Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10 - 44 points 39. Super Bowl IV - Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7 - 43 points 40. Super Bowl XXXV - Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7 - 42 points T41. Super Bowl II - Green Bay 33, Oakland 14 - 40 points T41. Super Bowl V - Baltimore 16, Dallas 13 - 40 points 43. Super Bowl XXIX - San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 - 39 points 44. Super Bowl XII - Dallas 27, Denver 10 - 38 points 45. Super Bowl XI - Oakland 32, Minnesota 14 - 35 points

#nfl #football #super bowl #super bowl xlv #green bay packers #green bay #packers #pittsburgh steelers #pittsburgh #steelers