Madeline Hubbard ‘19
Contributing Writer
Football fans everywhere were stunned by the history made on Sunday at the Super Bowl. Even the fans just watching for the commercials, the halftime show or the snacks were blown away by the outcome of the game. The first half looked absolutely dismal for the Patriots. After a drawn-out scoreless first quarter, the game was still undecided. The Falcons’ offense picked it up, firing on all cylinders to generate two touchdowns. The Falcons looked like a far superior team, and Ryan’s passes outshined Brady’s easily. Falcons’ defenses were shutting everything down, pressuring Brady hard and tightly covering all the receivers. Brady was sacked two times in the half and threw a pick-6 costing the Patriots a touchdown and putting them behind 21-0 with two minutes left in the second quarter. The Patriots were fighting for any points they could get their hands on, and managed to score a 41 yard field goal and end at halftime 21-3. Before Sunday’s game, the largest comeback ever in Super Bowl history had been 10 points. The game seemed like a done deal and Pats fans were disappointed with their team’s pitiful performance thus far.
The third quarter began and the game was still dominated by the Falcons. The Patriots struggled to make any plays and punted the ball away. The Falcons responded with another touchdown, increasing the lead to 28-3. Any hope of a Super Bowl victory for the Patriots had surely been quashed. Then finally, a touchdown for the Patriots occurred followed by a botched field goal attempt! The Patriots were back in the game, but was it too little too late? The Patriots were 19 points behind with only 15 minutes left in the game. After the defense reached Brady twice, the Patriots were forced to settle for a field goal and their prospects looked grim.
With six minutes remaining, the Patriots managed to score a touchdown and make the two point conversion. The gap was closing and the Falcons were losing the lead as the score changed to 28-20. The Falcons, beginning to see the game slip away from them, tried to generate some offense and couldn’t quite make it, so they punted the ball back to New England. The Patriots made it 20 yards outside the zone with two minutes to go. Brady lobbed a pass to White and a touchdown was completed. The Patriots successfully made the two-point conversion and tied up the game. The Falcons couldn’t get close enough to try for a field goal and the Super Bowl went into overtime for the first time in history. As the Falcons wondered how they were stripped of their sure victory, overtime began and the Patriots had the ball.
Brady made crisp passes to his teammates in O.T. worthy of his unofficial title as the G.O.A.T. The Patriots battled their way up the field and made it to one yard in front of the touchdown zone. Brady threw an incomplete pass to Bennett and then connected with White to score the game-winning touchdown ending the game 34-28. This game was a huge victory for New England, setting 24 new records and making history with the greatest comeback and first ever Super Bowl overtime. For all the Pats fans out there, this win is a triumph and a tale of perseverance. As for the Falcons fans, better luck next year.
