With 30 seconds left in Super Bowl XLIX and trailing by four, the touchdown-hungry Seattle Seahawks offense hurriedly prepared for a second-down snap after running back Marshawn Lynch’s attempt was stopped one yard short of the goal line.
The clock was running and it seemed the Patriots’ hopes were fading as each second ticked away.
Yet, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick calmly watched the scenario unfold. He opted to let the clock run instead of calling a timeout to salvage time for his offensive line.
Over the course of the next five seconds, the ball was snapped to Russell Wilson, Lynch preposterously ran a passing route instead of taking a handoff and Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler intercepted a slant route intended for Ricardo Lockette to seal the game for New England.
It was as perplexing a play call as you will see in the NFL. The Patriots would win the Super Bowl with two kneel downs.
Despite having Lynch in the backfield, widely considered the best short yardage back in the NFL, the Seahawks threw the ball on the one-yard line because of the defense’s formation and lost the championship because of it.
“It seemed like a regular game. There was no pizzazz until the final four minutes of the game. Then the emotional roller coaster ensued,” Denver sophomore Blaise Mariner said after the game.
Indeed, the game’s concluding drive was incredibly entertaining, from Seahawks wide receiver Jermaine Kearse’s diving catch to the interception by Butler.
In a Super Bowl with many underlying storylines, including Brandon Browner and Pete Carroll versing their former teams, there was one clear theme which stood out until the ending: the Seahawks and Patriots simply cultivate young talent and implement less talented players into their systems better than anyone else.
Every team in the league has high-paid, statistically dominating players. But the greatest teams, like Seattle and New England, are able to make champions out of the overlooked players.
At the top of the totem pole, Wilson was only a third-round pick and Tom Brady was a mere sixth-round selection. The Seahawks’ top four receivers–Doug Baldwin, Jermaine Kearse, Ricardo Lockette, and Chris Matthews–went undrafted. The Patriots’ secondary includes Darrelle Revis and a host of undrafted corners – Brandon Browner, Kyle Arrington and Malcolm Butler.
In all, many undrafted free agents started this Super Bowl as first round picks. To win in the National Football League, you need a good quarterback and the ability to acquire “cheap” talent every year; guys that can provide depth at minimal salary and plug into the lineup at an injury’s notice.
In the same stadium he was beaten in Super Bowl XLVII by the infamous David Tyree helmet catch, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady could only watch as Jermaine Kearse hauled in an equally awe-inspiring catch during the 2015 Super Bowl. This time, however, Brady’s defense held steadfast and forced a turnover.
“As a fan of neither team, that was one of the best games start to finish to watch. Endless excitement and a lot of emotional ups and downs,” DU sophomore Hunter White said.
Super Bowl XLIX was one for the ages-one that will add to the Brady legacy and was fittingly capped off with an interception by Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler-an undrafted cornerback out of West Alabama.
