Super Bowl 2015: Patriots pick off Seahawks for the win

UPDATE: You’ll see this play no fewer than a dozen times when the Seahawks play the Patriots on Sunday night in Week 10 of the 2016 season. Might as well relive the moment with us.

Malcolm Butler’s heart has to be made out of pure Adamantium steel.

It’s definitely football, right? Just football. Playing football, not messing with footballs or doing anything strange to them.

T’S PLAYING FOOTBALL, OKAY?! THAT’S THE JOB. IT’S NOT THE JOB ABOUT EMPLOYING SOMEONE TO MESS WITH THEM, SO STOP ASKING.

“When I was on the sideline, and I saw where they had the ball in the situation, we were trying to get some plays together for the offense to try and get at least a field goal to tie the thing up,” Vereen said, via NFL.com, “So my focus was mainly more on that, ‘cause I definitely thought they were going to hand it to him and he was gonna punch it in.”

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The NFL handed out almost $35,000 in fines for the Super Bowl brawl that erupted in the Patriots end zone as they tried to kill the clock and end the game. Rob Gronkowski told Jimmy Kimmel earlier this week that he entered the fracas because, “Screw it, last game of the year, I’m throwing some haymakers.”

Bruce Irvin, who was ejected for the final few seconds of the game for his part in the fight, will start his offseason with $10,000 less than he planned. There were certainly more than four players doing some shoving on the field, but in total, the league decided to fine two from each team for the incident:

I said at the time that I realized this isn’t a nuanced piece of analysis, but it was, and remains, true. The Patriots demonstrated again that they’re among the most difficult teams to defend in the world by putting up 28 points on arguably the best defense in the NFL. This offensive performance helped win it all, and the things they did to execute weren’t exotic or particularly surprising. They lined up and dictated matchups that they wanted to exploit, then exploited them. Pure and simple.

Brady threw four touchdowns against a team that hadn’t allowed more than two since Week 2, and in doing that, cemented his legacy as the greatest quarterback of his era ,and probably of all time, by winning his fourth Super Bowl. Let’s review some of the situations that got him there.

Let’s start with the play everyone wants to talk about. I hate to disappoint the tin foil hat, conspiracy minded among you, but the play itself was a good play. We all can agree it wasn’t the correct call in that circumstance, but the play had a high probability of success had it been run correctly. The correct play was giving Marshawn Lynch the ball so he could grab his nuts as he dove over a host of Patriots defenders into the end zone.

For whatever reason head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell decided to play the “what if” game instead of the “lets go ahead and run right down their damn throat to end this” game, and it cost them the Super Bowl.

It’s a pretty big deal that he was able to play in the Super Bowl and look as effective as he did. The surgery will sideline Thomas for quite some time, with an expected timetable of 6-8 months, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

Sherman was reportedly expected to undergo Tommy John surgery on his elbow, but that may no longer be the case. Chancellor, on the other hand, is expected to have surgery at some point this offseason. He was listed as having a “knee bruise” leading up to the Super Bowl, but wound up playing with a torn MCL.

SB Nation presents: What the Seahawks should have done on the Super Bowl’s final play

Still, Carroll defends the decision despite the finish:

“Yeah, I would be lying if I said it didn’t bother us,” Baldwin said. “He’s a coach, and so you take that criticism or whatnot and you look in the mirror and figure out what you could have done with it. It’s harsh.”

But Baldwin also knew that tensions were high after the loss and chalked the comments up to Bevell speaking “in the heat of the moment.” He also wouldn’t directly put the blame the offensive coordinator for how the game ended, saying the team needs to learn from it and move on:

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell have been the central targets of criticism in the days since the Super Bowl ended, but there are still those wondering what Belichick was thinking, including Tom Brady. Belichick told WEEI radio that he considered calling timeout, but changed his mind after seeing that the Seahawks were putting three wide receivers on the field.

“We put our goal-line defense in probably around the same time they were sending in their multiple receiver group, and that’s kind of what we wanted to be in there, to make sure they didn’t run the ball in,” Belichick said.

The fourth-year wide receiver pretended to poop out a football after his third quarter touchdown that put the Seahawks up, 24-14. Television cameras cut away from the celebration just as it was beginning, but plenty of photographers in the stadium managed to capture it.

Baldwin spoke to reporters Tuesday about the celebration and didn’t express much regret about the fact that it drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty (via The Seattle Times):

Tom Brady was on the sideline while the New England Patriots were attempting a goal-line stand against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 49. As the clock ticked down toward the end of regulation, he was unsure of head coach Bill Belichick’s decision to save the team’s final timeout.

“And then they gave it to Marshawn [Lynch] on whatever, first down,” Brady told the Dennis & Callahan Morning Show on WEEI in Boston. “And then it was second down. And then it all happened so quick. The clock was running. I was like, ‘Are we going to call timeout? What are we going to do? We chose not to.

It was no miracle, not anymore,

But Providence, simply, signaled by Kearse.

“There was not a thought about running it, and then I changed the play,” Carroll said Monday. “That did not happen.”

The Seahawks have been universally criticized for not giving Lynch a chance at the goal line. Lynch ran for 102 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries against New England, but motioned out of the backfield on the final play. Still, Carroll insists Seattle’s staff had a concrete plan.

The New England Patriots overcame the Seattle Seahawks in spectacular fashion Sunday night. Unsurprisingly, a lot of Americans tuned in to watch. The Super Bowl attracted 114.4 million viewers, making it the most-watched program in U.S. TV history, according to the Sports Business Journal.

The game pivoted on Malcolm Butler’s interception of Russell Wilson at the goal line with less than a minute remaining. The pick helped seal a 28-24 victory for Tom Brady and company, giving New England its fourth championship win since 2000.

There are a million things that happened after the Super Bowl. If you predicted “Robert Kraft dancing with Rick Ross,” then you’re a liar or we want next week’s lottery numbers. Yes the two are already BFFs, but TMZ obtained this video, and it’s amazing.

Wait a second ... we’ve seen moves like this before!

Seattle’s other starting safety, Kam Chancellor, officially played in the Super Bowl with a knee bruise, but that injury appears more severe. Chancellor wore a knee brace during the game after a collision with a teammate during practice. Carroll said that the Chancellor might require knee surgery.

The good news for the Seahawks is none of the starters are currently expected to miss time next season. Carroll said he expects to have Sherman, Thomas and Chancellor when the season begins, according to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times. The prognosis for Lane remains unclear, though he too could return for the start of 2015.

It’ll be some time before we stop questioning Seattle’s decision to throw the ball one yard away from the go-ahead touchdown, but what would your team have done in the same position against the Patriots? We asked* the staffs of all 30 other NFL teams what play they’d have called.

Arizona - Andre Ellington off-tackle.

Atlanta - Steven Jackson stopped for two-yard loss.

Baltimore - Justin Forsett dive.

Buffalo - Kyle Orton sneak/dry heave.

Carolina - Cam Newton bootleg.

Chicago - Interception that is somehow even more baffling than what Seattle did.

Cincinnati - Delay of game.

Cleveland - Brian Hoyer pass incomplete, but “the gutsy kind of incomplete.”

Dallas - Run off tackle with DeMarco Murray, pray there isn’t a replay angle where you can see the ball coming loose before it crosses the goal line.

Denver - John Fox looks at scoreboard pensively until a frustrated Peyton Manning calls timeout.

Detroit - Matt Stafford leaps over line, crowd agrees it’s the least athletic thing they’ve ever seen.

Green Bay - John Kuhn.

Houston - Arian Foster dive, during which whoever is quarterback breaks all of his fingers.

Indianapolis - Andrew Luck pretends headset doesn’t work when coaches call in play for Trent Richardson.

Jacksonville - Toby Gerhart up the middle.

Kansas City - Wait, what? Who has the ball now? Punt? Should we punt? Aw, hell. I got distracted.

Miami - Ryan Tannehill sneak.

Minnesota - Toss to Matt Asiata stopped for loss.

New Orleans - Quick out to Jimmy Graham.

New York Jets - Handoff to Chris Ivory bobbled, somehow accidentally kicked out of the back of the end zone.

New York Giants - Run up the middle with Andre Williams.

Oakland - Sack.

Philadelphia - Jet sweep with Jeremy Maclin.

Pittsburgh - Le’Veon Bell up the middle.

San Diego - Philip Rivers sneak, spontaneously combusts after he scores.

San Francisco - Colin Kaepernick scrambles after play action.

St. Louis - Tavon Austin dive.

Tampa - Missed field goal.

Tennessee - Kneel down.

Washington - False start.

According to MyNorthwest.com, Mayor Ed Murray wants to coordinate a celebration. The mayor’s office plans to wait to “follow the Seahawks’ lead,” which could mean any festivities could take time while the players and coaching staff deal with their heartbreaking Super Bowl loss.

“The Seahawks are a class act,” the mayor said in a statement. “While (Sunday’s) outcome was heartbreaking, the team played with tremendous heart and guts to the very end. They never quit. Even when others were ready to count them out, whether early in the season or during their playoff run, the Hawks and the 12s always believed. All of Seattle is proud of everything they accomplished this year and I know we’ll be back next year.”

We’re required to remind you that these strong takes are SATIRE. Sorry, not sorry. All spelling errors are intentional, we think. -Ed.

PHOENIX -- Well I guess were all Monday Morning Quaterbacking this thing and pointing fingers at anyone with a butthole and a pulse. I’ve heard people blame Pete Carrol. I’ve heard people blame Darrell Bevell. Heck, Ive even heard people blame global warming probably. (By the way isnt it ironic how scientists think cant predict todays weather but they think they can acurateley predict centurys of recorded temperatures from the past?)

Oh, to be a fly on the wall. Marshawn and Snoop probably had so much to talk about. I bet there isn’t a single person who’s better to be around after a tough loss than Snoop. Dude’s so chill you’d feel better by osmosis.

SB Nation presents: Final thoughts on the unbelievable finish to Super Bowl XLIX

Edelman finished the game as the Patriots leading receiver, hauling in nine passes for 109 yards. Three of those catches and 33 of those yards came after the Chancellor hit, as did Edelman’s game-clinching touchdown. The 3-yard score with two minutes left put New England up 28-24, their final margin of victory over the Seattle Seahawks.

Though he may not have suffered a concussion during the Super Bowl, Edelman has dealt with head injuries in the past. He missed New England’s final two games this season while recovering from a concussion.

If you’re not familiar with Left Shark, get familiar with Left Shark:

Left Shark is sloppy and uncoordinated and possibly drunk. But that didn’t stop Left Shark from being Left Shark with 150 million people watching. If you’ve got a problem with Left Shark, that’s your problem. Left Shark is comfortable in Left Shark’s skin. Its coarse, cartilaginous skin.

We’re required to remind you that these strong takes are SATIRE. Sorry, not sorry. All spelling errors are intentional, we think. -Ed.

Wellcome to the Monday Morning BM,, just a word of warning your probably not prepared to handle the strong football takes and barrelfire NFL truths that you never knew your Mondays were missing. This column is written for and by a REAL fan of the NFL. Its designed to be read on your Monday Morning commode break after a long Sunday eating bad-for-you food and drinking beers. If you care more about SPELLING then you do about TELLING theres the door because this columns not for you.

As it turns out, New Yorkers were FURIOUS about this. Strange, I know!

Oh, well. Better luck next year, New York football teams!