The Seattle Seahawks were on the verge of repeating as Super Bowl champions before Pete Carroll and company completely dropped the ball at the end of the game.
With Seattle at New England’s one-yard line and less than 40 seconds remaining and down by four, the Seahawks inexplicably called a passing play instead of handing it off to Marshawn Lynch.
The result was a game-ending interception by rookie undrafted free agent Malcolm Butler, who became one of the least likely heroes in the history of the Super Bowl.
Falling down 14-7 prior to a late touchdown-scoring drive in the second quarter, things were not looking good for Seattle. Russell Wilson went the first 23 minutes of the game without completing a pass, while Tom Brady dazzled onlookers with a solid early-game performance.
However, it was the two Brady interceptions that seemed to do the Patriots in at that time.
The first one came in the initial stanza when Brady threw a ball up for grabs, which led to an interception by Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane in the end zone. Needless to say, New England couldn’t afford to come away without points inside Seattle’s red zone.
And then with Seattle up by three points about halfway through the third quarter, Brady threw a second interception into the waiting arms of one Bobby Wagner. Following an illegal block in the back penalty on Richard Sherman, Seattle set up shop at midfield.
Coming from absolutely nowhere to record four receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown, former undrafted Free Agent Chris Mathews made a first-down catch to set Seattle up inside New England’s 40. And a few plays later, Russell Wilson hit Doug Baldwin for a three-yard touchdown with five minutes left in the third quarter to put Seattle up 24-14.
Not to be deterred, Brady led the Patriots down the field more than halfway through the fourth quarter with an impressive touchdown-scoring drive that culminated in a four-yard touchdown to Danny Amendola to pull the team to within three points.
And after Seattle went three-and-out on the ensuing possession, Brady was up to his old tricks again. He added another touchdown, this time to Julian Edelman from three yards out to cap off a 10-play drive with just over two minutes remaining to give New England a 28-24 lead.
On the very next drive and with everything on the line, Wilson hit Lynch on a 31-yard pass into New England’s territory with two minutes left in regulation and his team down four. A few plays later, Seattle’s in-game play-calling pretty much ended any hope that the team would earn a second consecutive Super Bowl title.
So many turning points in the 28-24 Patriots win. But New England proved why it was the best team in the NFL. It took advantage of Seahawks’ mistakes, made its own luck, and came out on top in Glendale.
With the win, Brady ties Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana for most Super Bowls at the quarterback position in the history of the NFL (four). He also broke Montana’s record for most career Super Bowl touchdown passes with 13, finishing with four on the night while taking home MVP honors.
Photo: USA Today