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Sheil KapadiaESPN Writer
The New England Patriots delivered the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history on Sunday, rallying from a 25-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime.
Time to hand out awards from what turned out to be an epic Super Bowl LI.
Biggest head-scratcher: The Falcons’ aggressiveness after Julio Jones’ spectacular grab.
This is the sequence that will haunt Falcons fans for years. Jones’ ridiculous 27-yard catch near the sideline set Atlanta up with a first-and-10 from New England’s 22-yard line with 4 minutes, 40 seconds left.
The Falcons held a 28-20 lead at the time, and a field goal would have made it a two-possession game. But Atlanta decided to stay aggressive, and the results were disastrous.
On second-and-11, Matt Ryan was sacked for a loss of 12 yards. And on third-and-23, left tackle Jake Matthews was called for holding, knocking the Falcons out of field goal range.
Granted, Atlanta ran the ball better in the first half than it did in the second, but the Falcons averaged 5.8 yards per carry for the game. Had they kept it on the ground, they would have forced the Patriots to use their timeouts, and Atlanta would have been well positioned for a field goal.
Matt Bryant was 28-for-29 from inside 50 yards on the season. But he never got on the field. Instead, Atlanta punted, and the Patriots got the ball back with 3:30 left and two timeouts for the game-tying drive.
The GOAT: Tom Brady.
He threw for 466 yards and caught fire after halftime, leading the Patriots on five scoring drives (four touchdowns, one field goal).
Brady absorbed five sacks and eight quarterback hits. In the first three quarters, the Falcons pressured him on 45 percent of his dropbacks. But in the fourth quarter and overtime, as Atlanta’s defense wore down, that number dropped to 20 percent, per ESPN Stats & Information tracking.
This wasn’t even Brady’s best game. The pressure affected him at times, and he missed some throws. But down the stretch, when protection held up, he continuously fit the ball into tight windows against Atlanta’s man coverage.
At 39, Brady has his fifth Super Bowl title and is showing no signs of slowing down. The Patriots were 14-1 in games he started this season.
The goat: The Falcons’ offense.
The defense fatigued and fell apart down the stretch. But the Falcons knew going in their offense would have to lead the way. It has been that way all season.
And for the first three quarters, Ryan & Co. did what they’ve been doing for the last five months. But the Falcons’ final four drives resulted in three punts and a fumble. Three of those drives lasted four plays or fewer.
Atlanta went 1-for-8 on third down and ran 46 plays, compared to 93 for the Patriots. The 47-play discrepancy was the biggest in NFL postseason history, per Elias Sports Bureau research.
The Falcons were the more explosive team, averaging 7.5 yards per play. But they knew they weren’t going to be able to stop Brady for an entire game. Atlanta’s offense had several opportunities to put the game away and didn’t do it.
Most uncomfortable experience for viewers: The Arthur Blank shots.
The Falcons owner and his wife received a lot of camera time. Never in Super Bowl history has one couple’s emotional roller-coaster been on full display for an entire nation to witness.
First they were in the box, celebrating, dancing awkwardly and preparing for a postgame celebration. Then they were on the sideline, clutching each others’ hands in sheer terror, watching the greatest collapse in Super Bowl history. It’s difficult to feel badly for a man who is worth $3.3 billion, but this was almost too much to handle.
Honorable mention here has to be the Gisele Bundchen selfie celebration after the Patriots scored the winning touchdown.
Tweet of the night:
Fast and Furious 8!? Looks cool. #F8
— Papa Roach (@paparoach) February 6, 2017
Never before has one band so effectively captured the feelings of an entire nation.
Honorable mention here:
#RiseUp heading to the locker room up 21-3 like…….#SB51 pic.twitter.com/YHm5SnNQVV
— 120 Sports (@120Sports) February 6, 2017
This really would have been an all-timer had the Falcons held on to win.
Most memorable play: The Julian Edelman miraculous grab.
Words can’t really do it justice. Twenty years from now, this will be the one play everyone remembers from Super Bowl LI.
And how about the officials? They get crushed when they screw up, so it’s only right to give them credit here. They somehow ruled it a catch on the field right away. How could they possibly have figured that out so quickly? Were they just guessing and hoping for the best? If there is an officiating Hall of Fame, that call deserves to go in.
Quickest exit: Roger Goodell.
He spoke through the boos, handed the Lombardi Trophy to Robert Kraft and got off the stage faster than you could say, “Ideal gas law.” It was almost like Lady Gaga disappearing into the earth as soon as her set was over.
Perhaps the Patriots’ victory will close the book on one of the strangest controversies — Deflategate — in NFL history. Maybe Goodell will even get invited to Gillette Stadium for the opener next season.
Then again, maybe not.
