Lost in the shuffle of the greatest Super
Bowl ever played, capped by the biggest comeback in the game’s history, was the
startling number of records broken throughout the course of the contest.
Some of them you already know — like the
aforementioned 25-point comeback and Tom Brady’s unprecedented seventh
appearance — but the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons combined to set
or match 31 records in the Super Bowl, including a whopping eight broken by
Brady alone.
The four-time Super Bowl MVP set single-game
Super Bowl records for completions (43), passes (62), passing yards (466)
and career marks for appearances (7), completions (207), passes (309), passing
yards (2,071) and touchdown passes (15). Brady also tying the record for Super
Bowl victories, equaling former Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers defensive end Charles
Haley’s total of five rings.
Bill Belichick set head coaching records
for Super Bowl appearances (7) and victories (5).
Patriots running back James White,who
Brady said was deserving of the MVP trophy, set Super Bowl records for receptions
(14) and individual points scored (20), while matching the standards for most
touchdowns (3) and most successful two-point conversions (1, along with
teammate Danny Amendola).
As a team, the Pats broke Super Bowl records
for biggest comeback (25) and most appearances (9), first downs (37), first
downs passing (26), passing yards (422), offensive plays (93), passes (63),
completions (43), and — because this was the first overtime in Super Bowl
history — most points in an OT (6). They also matched records for most
two-point conversions (2) and first downs by penalty (4).
The Patriots and Falcons combined to set
Super Bowl records for first downs (54), first downs passing (39) and passing
yards (682) in addition to matching the most two-point conversions in a game
(2).
Individually, the Falcons equaled just one
record on the evening — defensive tackle Grady Jarrett’s three sacks tied the
standard previously shared by Darnell Dockett, Kony Ealy and Reggie White.
Probably the most
ridiculous of all these records is Brady’s 2,071 career passing yards —
almost a thousand more than the next-highest total (Kurt Warner’s 1,156) and
more than four-time Super Bowl champion Terry Bradshaw threw for in eight of
his 14 NFL seasons. What a game. What a career.
In a game that never should be political, America and the world were treated to several historic firsts.
Beyond the many highlighted in the following article, perhaps the least mentioned was the incredible gift Fox game the world when for the first time in history they live-streamed the Super Bowl for free, and you did not need to be a cable TV subscriber to watch it.
It was a bold move, the most popular show on network television is also streamed for free but it will certainly give Fox Sports the lead in reaching the millions of television viewers who have disconnected their cable service. These viewers had no way to watch a sports event of this magnitude without cable service in the past.
Tens of millions of Americans have cut the cord to cable service because there is no choice in channels, the news services have disintegrated into babbling idiots, and the service providers keep raising rates. Perhaps the Fox experiment will demonstrate to the networks that live streaming with no cable requirement is the key to future market penetration.
Unfortunately, the program directors seem to be brain dead as after the program Fox returned to streaming shows, not just hours, but days old. It seems a terrible waste of network assets.
As for the game, a few ads tried to get political, there was a nod to politics by Lady Ga Ga but not much, and the liberals tried to get the world to oppose the New England Patriots because the owner, the coach, and the star quarterback were all friends of Donald Trump.
In the end the far left proved wrong again as President Trump predicted an eight point New England victory and after the overtime the Patriot victory was six points. For the entire first half and throughout most of the third quarter it looked like a massacre by Atlanta over the Patriots as the Falcons built up a 28-3 lead.
Atlanta was dominating on offense, defense, and in all the statistics much to the delight of the liberal rabble rousers, but then the the Patriots, behind the bruised and battered star quarterback Tom Brady, began clawing their way back into the game.
As Brady commented, there were about 30 plays by the teams during the last quarter any one of which might have changed the outcome of the game. In the end, two astounding touchdowns followed by two point conversions, with the last with one minute left in the game, brought the world to a standstill, well at least fans of American style "football," as the game was tied and headed into the first overtime in fifty-one years of Super Bowls.
When New England won the coin toss and got the ball first in overtime, Brady meticulously drove them the length of the field for a touchdown and victory leaving the highest scoring offense in the NFL, the Atlanta Falcons, never getting a chance to play in overtime.
It was the greatest Super Bowl in history and perhaps one of the greatest sporting championships of all sports of all times. Three-quarters of all American TV households watched the game on network television, according to preliminary ratings, but that does not include the tens of millions who live-streamed the game and are not counted by Nielsen.
Here is what the Brits had to say about our American pastime.
Super Bowl 2017, New
England Patriots 34 Atlanta Falcons 28: MVP Tom Brady leads comeback from 25
points down to stunning overtime win - and his fifth Ring
Tom Brady led one of
the greatest comebacks in sports history, lifting New
England from a 25-point hole to the Patriots' fifth NFL
championship in the first Super Bowl overtime.
The Patriots scored 19
points in the final quarter, including a pair of 2-point conversions, then
marched relentlessly to James White's 2-yard touchdown run in overtime to beat
the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 on Sunday night.
Brady, the first
quarterback with five Super Bowl rings, guided the Patriots (17-2) through a
tiring Atlanta
defence for fourth-quarter touchdowns on a 6-yard pass to Danny Amendola and a
1-yard run by White, which came with 57 seconds remaining in regulation. White
ran for the first 2-pointer and Amendola did the deed with a reception on the
second.
Before
the stunning rally - New England already held the biggest comeback in the final
period when it turned around a 10-point deficit to beat Seattle two years ago - the Falcons (13-6)
appeared poised to take their first NFL championship in 51 seasons. Having
never been in such a pressurised environment, their previously staunch pass
rush disappeared, and Brady tore them apart.
"Deflategate" far behind them, Brady
and coach Bill Belichick won their 25th postseason game, by far a record. It's
hard to imagine a tenser victory. Belichick became the first coach with five
Super Bowl crowns.
The Patriots won the
coin toss for overtime and it was no contest. Brady completed six passes. A
pass interference call took the ball to the 2, and White scooted to his right
and barely over the goal line.
His teammates streamed off the sideline to
engulf White as confetti streamed down from the NRG Stadium rafters.
It was almost an impossible dream for the
Patriots a bit earlier. But helped by Matt Ryan's fumble on a sack, a
spectacular catch by Julian Edelman , and Brady's passing, they never stopped
coming.
White had 14 receptions for
110 yards as the key weapon, but Brady hit seven different receivers.
Until the Patriots took
charge with their late surge, league MVP Ryan was outplaying Brady. It didn't
last.
Falcons head coach Dan Quinn admitted the
loss was hard to take. "No doubt that was a tough one for us,"
said Quinn. "That's a hard one in the locker room."
Quinn felt the Falcons were
worn out by the end by the pressure the Patriots applied. "I think for
sure we ran out of gas some," Quinn said.
Back in Boston, hundreds of fans gathered late on
Sunday night and early Monday morning in a downtown public park to celebrate.
They were dancing, cheering and chanting "Brady."
The mayor of Boston ordered the city
to "fire up the duck boats" for the New England Patriots victory
parade.
Democratic Mayor Marty
Walsh took to Twitter late Sunday night to offer his congratulations "to
the greatest team, the greatest coach and the greatest quarterback of all
time."
Mr Walsh said a parade
celebrating their championship would be held on Tuesday, adding the Pats
"have made Boston and New
England proud."
What an amazing comeback and
win by the Patriots. Tom Brady, Bob Kraft and Coach B are total winners. Wow!
Donald Trump was also quick to offer his
congratulations. The president, who has often boasted of his friendship with
Brady, tweeted: "What an amazing comeback and win by the Patriots. Tom
Brady, Bob Kraft and Coach B are total winners. Wow!"
.
Giants edge Patriots 21-17 in Super Thriller. Eli Manning led the New York Giants to a last minute victory for the 7th time ths season, and this was for all the marbles. In a stunning conclusion to a rather erratic season, the younger Manning proved his birthright to a family of champions.
At the same time Tom Couglin, the sof spoken coach of the Giants, won his 2nd Super Bowl over long time friend and coaching rival Bill Belichek. Both were assistant coaches under Bill Parcells at the New York Giants.
Thrilling, unpredictable and played with great intensity, it was a game to remember.
Another favorite, Madonna, played the halftime show and put on a great production in the most difficult of all venues. With only 15 minutes to set up and dismantle a major production, and no sound checks before the concert, Madonna still pulled off one of her best performances for an audiience estimated to be around 111 million in the USA and untold millions more around the world.
By the way, I picked the Giants to win by 3. They won by 4.
.
Long Time Friends and Former Teammates While much has been written about the Super Bowl I can share with you my personal experience and it concerns the two coaches of the Super Bowl gladiators.Back in the decade of the 1980's I had the pleasure of working for Tom Kean, Governor of New Jersey. It was during that time newly opened Giants Stadium at the Meadowlands Sports complex was home to the New York Giants and Jets and the Giants, who had struggled for years to regain the stature of past teams, recruited a young New Jersey native Bill Parcells to lead the team back to greatness. Indeed he did leading them to Super Bowl championships in 1987 and 1991 before moving on to the Dallas Cowboys and then New England Patriots.Since the Giants stadium was owned by the State of New Jerseyand the governor and designated state commissioners were on the Meadowlands Board on occasion I got to represent the governor at meetings during the first Super Bowl season.
Through this unusual opportunity I also got to meet Coach Parcells on several occasions and his assistant coaches.Over the years I became great fans of Parcells, along with two of his many successful assistant coaches Bill Belichick and Tom Coughlin. These are the same people who are now head coaches for this year's Super Bowl teams, the New England Patriots and New York Giants.Their individual success stands as a testament to Bill Parcells and the many assistants who went on to head coaching and successful careers.All should and will be in the NFL Hall of Fame. They once worked toward the same goals: Win a Super Bowl as an assistant coach. Become a head coach. Become a Super Bowl-winning head coach. For Patriots coach Bill Belichick and Giants coach Tom Coughlin, those were yesterday’s dreams. Based on their successes, each has had to readjust their career objectives. On Sunday, they will again have the same achievement in mind. However, only one will leave Indianapolissatisfied. “He’s a good friend of mine that I’ve been with a long time,” Belichick said last week when asked about Coughlin.
For three years, from 1988 through 1990, they worked together on Coach Bill Parcells’ Giants staff. Belichick, who had been with New York since 1979, was the defensive coordinator, while Coughlin acted as the wide receivers coach on a staff that included the likes of Romeo Crennel, Charlie Weis and Al Groh. Following a Super Bowl XXV victory over the heavily favored Bills in January 1991, each jumped to head coaching positions: Coughlin to BostonCollege, Belichick to the Cleveland Browns. Twenty-one years later, they meet in the Super Bowl for the second time, branches of Parcells’ coaching tree getting tangled up once again.They first met in 2008 when Coughlin's Giants stunned the odds makers and beat the Patriots. The three coaches will have coached in 10 Super Bowls, winning 6 after this game, a remarkable record for three members of the same Giants coaching staff.
Right now, one man sits alone among NFL head coaches in the Super Bowl era. That man is Chuck Noll, the legendary former head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the only NFL coach to win four Super Bowls. Enter Bill Belichick. Even if he loses Super Bowl XLVI and never wins another game, Belichick's legacy will still be strong. With a victory this weekend, the Patriots' coach will tie Noll with four Super Bowl wins, and, in essence, elevate himself to a status only Noll has known.
. .
