The Atlanta Falcons went into halftime leading the New England Patriots, 21-3. Both teams managed a touchdown in the third quarter, so Atlanta has a 28-9 lead and is just 15 minutes away from winning its first-ever Super Bowl.
Super Bowl 51 score: Falcons have 28-9 lead after 3rd quarter
The Patriots showed some life, but the Falcons still have a commanding lead.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
The Falcons got the ball to start the second half after deferring the opening coin toss. That ended up being a quick three-and-out, and Julian Edelman’s big punt return gave Tom Brady a chance to chip away at the 18-point deficit.
However, the Pats’ first drive was more of the same — Chris Hogan dropped a sure first-down catch, Danny Amendola lost two yards on a screen, and Edelman had a drop of his own. New England had to punt for the fourth time in this game.
Matt Ryan took advantage of Taylor Gabriel schooling Malcolm Butler, hitting the receiver on a huge 35-yard pass into New England territory. Mohamed Sanu snagged a catch inside the red zone and Butler got flagged for interference on Gabriel, giving the Falcons a first down. The next play, Ryan tossed a screen to Tevin Coleman, who ran it into the end zone and gave the Falcons a 28-3 lead.
With the rout on, NRG Stadium broke out into “A-T-L” chants from the Falcons faithful in attendance. The Patriots tried dialing up a trick play with an Edelman WR pass, but Dion Lewis couldn’t come down with the ball. They went for it on fourth down and Brady found Danny Amendola to keep the drive alive, and Brady made a key run on third down down to the Falcons’ 20-yard line. LeGarrette Blount pushed the offense inside the 10, and James White finally got the Pats’ first touchdown of the game with a 5-yard catch. However, Stephen Gostkowski doinked the extra point kick, and the Pats still trailed, 28-9.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, so New England tried an onside kick, but the Falcons recovered and Gostkowski got flagged for touching the ball before it went 10 yards. Atlanta couldn’t do much with the good field position, though — a holding call and a Ryan sack took the team out of field goal range and forced a punt from midfield.
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