Rewatching SB49 and SB51...

[mosslost]

I could see another, I'd not be surprised NOT to see another.

We must appreciate the ones we have, because NE fans are currently living the sports dream. SBs have been won. But they are difficult to get. Very lucky fanbase to be following a team so well assembled with so much heart / skill.

AFC is a dumpster fire, we should get at least one more.

 

[mosslost]

and I have come to the conclusion that SB49 was better all around... don't get me wrong..51 was amazing but if I could choose to only have 1 game it would be 49 hands down. The more improbable comeback was against Seattle. The emotions I felt were way higher in 49. The drought that we went through was lifted. After 49 I felt Brady cemented himself as #1 in popular opinion. 51 was icing on the cake. That comeback was an extra scoop of ice cream but the cake itself was SB49.

I thought after a week I would feel different but I don't.

The best part is the Pats aren't done. I can easily see 2 more SB wins in the TFB/BB era.

I have to admit that I find myself thinking perhaps Brady should walk off into the sunset after 51. What an absolutely amazing walk off career that would be. It will be hard for him to top.

Another issue I have is do NOT want him to have a single tarnish/down year before he walks away. (Very unlikely to happen, but nothing is impossible)

Don't get me wrong, I want Brady to keep playing and at this level. But if he did walk away after this game it would be epic, and the Jimmy G. era could begin without all the hand wringing that we might be letting the second coming of Steve Young slip away. lol

 

[mosslost]

I could see another, I'd not be surprised NOT to see another.

We must appreciate the ones we have, because NE fans are currently living the sports dream. SBs have been won. But they are difficult to get. Very lucky fanbase to be following a team so well assembled with so much heart / skill.

The strange thing is, for this team, it has not been hard to get there at all. Brady has played 15 years, got there 7 times! Lost in AFCCG 4 additional times. 11 out of 15 playing seasons they have reached at least the near summit of one game away. The AFC is not good for the forseeable future and there is no Peyton Manning any more and Denver is not a worry anymore imo.

If Brady really played 4 more years at his level, the recent past would suggest at least a couple of SB appearances. I think they should at least be in the Super Bowl (against some tough team) trying to repeat in 2017.

 

[mosslost]

"The more improbable comeback was against Seattle"

Stopped reading after that.

yes that is absurd comment.

 

[mosslost]

49 was a close game thru out, everyone turned off tv after 2 1/2 qtr last week hence the lower rating

Actually the word got around somehow, because once it was in OT it was at the highest point ratings wise of any SB, but over all it was down

 

[PortPatriot]

49 was such a thrilling, wild finish and 51 was a slow burn and gradual build up of excitement. I think I was still still in shock when OT kicked off, I think I blew an excitement fuse.

 

[mosslost]

The comeback yeah, but the Seattle game was just as intense for longer. The Falcons game you had the full range of emotions.. pumped up at the start.. then you see the game starting to slip away.. then its turning into a blowout.. you start doing the math in your head if its even possible for them to come back.. then they start coming back.. but then they only managed a FG down by 19.. and your thinking well there might be enough time for 2 TD drives with 2 2 point conversions but its probably not gonna happen.. and then they get the 1st one.. and now everyone starts getting there hopes up.. And then they tie the game and everyone is going ****ing crazy because of the amazing plays and now everyone thinks they are going to pull it off.. and it goes to OT and they win and disbelief mixed with a Super Bowl euphoric win takes hold.

Not to mention that win made the NFL offices mad.. and then we made them look like fools by booing Roger off the Stage, and then the Parade was the mic drop... Dola has a fire goodell hat on lol.. Patricia with his clown t shirt.. I can see why the last one is someones favorite Super Bowl.

Only thing is there was a little luck involved with that last Super Bowl.

I love digging up all the game threads from every other fan base site I can find and reading through them, knowing the results of the game. To me it is amazing, just how early in the come back many opposing fans declared "Brady is coming back".. "Brady is gonna win this thing." "Too early to celebrate against Brady" etc...

 

[mosslost]

I was just thinking this the other day. I actually think SB 49 was worse on my heart then SB 51. With 51 I was almost resigned to the fact it was gonna take a miracle and I just wanted them to at least make it interesting. So I went from being completely dejected and feeling bad and it slowly building up to pure jubilation lol. Where as 49 was a complete roller coaster going 100 mph with so many ups and downs. The score before the half and then Seattle scoring in less than a minute. To us going down by 10 and then coming back to take the lead. Then the freaking Kearse catch and of course Butlers interception. Honestly no sporting moment has ever made me feel like Butlers interception. I've never gone from so sad to so happy in such a instant lol. I was literally screaming in shock cause I could not believe what happened. The closest SB 51 came to providing a moment like that was Edelmans catch but it still doesn't compare for me.

Yes. The more sudden reversal of fortune made 49 far more jarring (in the wrong then right direction too.. Brady gets us the lead, then pretty suddenly we are about to lose again.. then BOOM the most improbable pick.)

 

[mosslost]

49 was incredible but for me 51 was much more valuable considering Brady's b.s. suspension and his 5th ring not to mention the greatest comeback ever of all time.

it's hard to imagine either without the other for me now

 

[brdmaverick]

and I have come to the conclusion that SB49 was better all around... don't get me wrong..51 was amazing but if I could choose to only have 1 game it would be 49 hands down. The more improbable comeback was against Seattle. The emotions I felt were way higher in 49. The drought that we went through was lifted. After 49 I felt Brady cemented himself as #1 in popular opinion. 51 was icing on the cake. That comeback was an extra scoop of ice cream but the cake itself was SB49.

I thought after a week I would feel different but I don't.

The best part is the Pats aren't done. I can easily see 2 more SB wins in the TFB/BB era.

You know, my wife asked me if SB 51 was may favorite Super Bowl. She was surprised when I told her it was SB 49.

As a whole, I just think that SB 49 was an overall better game. It was two juggernauts going at it punch for punch. Plus I think SB 49 is elevated by the quality of the defense that Brady carved up. It was still a dramatic comeback, and the rollercoaster was even crazier between go ahead TD, Kearse juggling catch, and then the PIC. I mean, that series of events is still just absolutely crazy.

 

[brdmaverick]

Have to agree that SB49 was a better four quarter game. I've rewatched SB51 a couple times this past week, and the first two and a half quarters are brutal.

Agreed, but FAR easier to watch after knowing the outcome.

I'm sure most of us spent the wee hours of the morning watching highlights of the Suepr Bowl following the victory. Everytime they showed the pick six I wasn't even bothered by it. In fact, I found it more humorous knowing that the player essentially thought he won the Super Bowl.

I hear waht you are saying though. It's tough to consider any game the greatest ever when you essentially would rather not watch 2.5 quarters.

 

[chris_in_sunnyvale]

It's tough to consider any game the greatest ever when you essentially would rather not watch 2.5 quarters.

I know where you're coming from, but those first 2.5 quarters were great from an x's and o's standpoint. Atlanta's coaching staff brought their A game and it showed. Watching those 2.5 quarters and how the Pats tweaked their own plan in response is actually pretty compelling...well, to me anyway.

Even during the furious comeback, Atlanta still forced the Pats to make several tough plays, particularly on the sidelines. Unlike Buffalo's comeback against Houston in '92, the Pats were not gifted cheap TD bombs on broken coverages. Atlanta mirrored the Pats bend-but-don't-break defense until the very end. Brady was able to break it because he put up a game for the ages.

Regards,
Chris

 

[ivanvamp]

I'm watching the 2nd half right now and wow... Alford was holding a lot.

2 near INTs came on plays where he was grabbing Edelman.

That's totally true. They were *blatant* and egregious. If they had made an INT on a play where they were literally mugging Edelman, that would have made me so angry (and obviously not just me but a whole lot of people).

They seemed willing to make the proper calls - including the PI in overtime - so I don't get why they didn't throw flags in these cases.

 

[brdmaverick]

A comeback of 25, and 19 in the fourth quarter will never be broken in the SB.

.

You knew it was a matter of time before someone completed a comeback....ok, maybe not 25 points.

The 49ers were down 28-6 when they made a ferocious comeback in which they had a goal-to-go situation that likely would have won the game had they converted.

Likewise the Steelers ended Super Bowl 45 with the ball and a chance to take the lead despite having been down by 18 points earlier in the game.

 

[Simpelton]

I dunno which one was the better Superbowl, I'm no judge of that kind of thing, I know only which one I enjoyed better. And it was SB51.

The reason is the difference in the fanbases.

Both Seattle and Atlanta were arrogant fanbases, That's fine, so are we at times. The fact of the matter is though that the Seahawks had earned the right to be arrogant. Their team was a perennial contender and the defending champions. They were very, very good and knew that they would continue to be very good for years to come, and had no reason to be afraid of us. As last season's champs, the fans had earned the right to strut a bit, and they as a team were trying to build a dynasty of their own. The fans not only were confident, they had every reason that they should have been confident, especially against a Pats team that while still very good, was beginning to look like its best years were behind it. They thought that they were going to cement a new dynastic legacy on the ashes of the old one, and the team was more than good enough to do it, except for one bad play right at the very end of the game they would have managed it.

And when it didn't work out for them, for the most part, after a moment to grieve and deal with the initial emotions of a defeat of that magnitude, Seahawks fans started asking the right questions, talking about the playcalling and mistakes their team made, talking about how to do better the next year, they acted like fans that had been there before, disappointed but still committed to their team and determined to keep trying to put it over the top.

Atlanta on the other hand hadn't proven crap, they'd made the Superbowl for the first time ever, fans were excited but clearly had no idea how to handle the excitement. The overexuberant braggadocio that is the hallmark of the bandwagon fan was their calling card. They were the nouveau-riche trying to impose their noise on the old guard who'd been there, seen that, and knew just exactly how silly they were being in their overreaching presumption.

And when their team failed? Oh boy. First of all half of them didn't seem to have any idea of the rules of the sport, Amendola's 2 point conversion was widely seen as illegitimate because many of them didn't know the end zone mechanics, just for one esample. TV's were smashed, jerseys were burnt, a team that's probably going to be back in the playoffs next year is going to make a lot of money on fans replacing their regalia after the petulence of a fanbase not used to the heights and so not deserving of victory. It felt so good to tell those fans to shut up and sit down, and be the team that has been there before and knows how it's done.

So yeah. SB51 for me. I don't want to try to analyze which one was harder. But I know which one felt better.

 

[Bella*chick]

SB 49 definitely was a better overall game. SB 51 was a better story though. Whoever said that is so dead on.

One of the things I liked about 49 is that because it had been so long since the last SB victory, it just felt liked everything was a lot...I don't know, fresher or something. The Butler play was incredible and the emotion from it....Brady jumping up down and grabbing McDaniels, Butler nearly collapsing as his teammates surrounded him....it certainly made for a compelling moment. Not to mention in that last second it truly was "we can win or they can." Whereas on the final drive of 51, I think the inevitability had been building more and more so as crazy and improbable as the comeback was overall, that final drive felt more inevitable than the craziness of Butler's pick.

Also, Brady jumping up and down and screaming "Oh my god, Josh!" is better TV than everyone going "It needs to be reviewed. Oh, it's been reviewed?"

 

[The Gr8est]

You know you have a favourite...

And I have to say it is close. But I loved 51 more because of the team, especially the under-rated defense and the dozens of contributions from different people to pull it off.

Add in the Deflate gate ********, and it's by far the sweetest one as Kraft said.

BOTH 49 and 51 were played after Defamegate.

 

[brdmaverick]

BOTH 49 and 51 were played after Defamegate.

Agreed, in terms of deflategate I think there was more pressure to win SB 49.

 

[Bella*chick]

Agreed, in terms of deflategate I think there was more pressure to win SB 49.

Without a doubt it was a bigger distraction in 49. Brady's press conference, BB's experiments when they should have been preparing....it pisses me off remembering it.

 

[Crazy Patriot Guy]

I want to laugh every time I watch the replay of Super Bowl 49. After the Butler INT and the first kneel down, that's when the fight breaks out.

Collinsworth starts his rant while the fight is still going on. "You know if you're Seattle, then......whatever. But if you're the Patriots, you're 18 seconds from winning the Super Bowl, you don't touch anybody!!"

Yep, if I had a nickel for every time possession was awarded to the opposing team because of a fight on the field..........