2-Point Conversion Question

[Dorito Dink]

That was my biggest worry as they were mounting the comeback. I had all the faith in the world that they could score two more touchdowns but successfully getting both 2-point conversions is extremely difficult/improbable....for most teams. NOT THIS TEAM!

 

[1960Pats]

Maybe it was more recent then I recall, but I am wondering...

When is the last time a team was down by 16 and successfully tied the game up in two possessions by scoring then getting two point conversions in a row?

I honestly can't remember the last time that actually happened. Plenty of times I've seen teams in this position but end up missing either both or at least one.

That was one of the most (of MANY) improbable aspects of the game to me, even when driving down the field, you have that dread in the pit of your gut knowing you still need to get two 2-point conversions on top of things, which is such a stressful ****ing feeling.

Amazing.

My son mentioned the difficulty of making two two-point conversions when the Pats were going for the first one. I thought at the time that a miss meant that they'd need to get a TD and a FG to win, which they could have done. I was only really stressed on the 2nd 2 point attempt. That was the game.

 

[1960Pats]

Direct snap to Kevin Faulk, haven't seen it in a while....

It seems to work whenever they call that play. I wonder how much, if any, Brady's leap has to do with the effectiveness of that play.

 

[libra957]

We actually suck at them too. Ever since they change the extra point rule, the Patriots haven't converted much if any...Until the super bowl.

 

[BethelJohnson]

I have to admit, I kept rewinding to McLellin's penalty for leaping the center, which was called by the side judge when a back judge was right there watching it.

As Troy Aikman said, he jumped the guard more than the center, though he was over the gap.

It a completely legal block, and I was thinking about that as they went down 16.

whats funny is if that penalty wasnt called then the score would have been 27-3 and i think with the timing and everything they wouldve gone for 3 tds and 3 2 pt conversions so in essence i think they wouldve gone for 4th down on the fg drive that got them to 12 assuming they even convert the 2 pt conversion on their first td

who knows what would have happened then

 

[PatsFan2]

Gostkowski is lucky the Patriots won. He would be a goat once again...

Those Two Plays were well Practiced with the Personnel Package attention to detail.

 

[MainePatsFan26]

For this game, I think our chances of converting the 2 points was greater than Ghost hitting two extra points. My God, that would have been brutal for us.

It was strange seeing him miss after he apparently righted the ship. I like him on the roster for his strong leg for kickoffs and long kicks. But he needs to see a specialist in the offseason to work on those short kicks. For a while I thought it might be the New England weather/wind, but shanking it in an indoor stadium throws that theory out the window. He just isn't hitting it right.

 

[MainePatsFan26]

This is one of those things we will hear about in the next couple of days that they have practiced these plays all season.. and were waiting for the right situation. Thought both plays were very well designed and caught Atlanta off guard..

As much as I am upset about Gostkowski missing the Extra Point, his kickoffs were spot on..

Ghost is a solid kicker overall and we need him for his ability to pin teams deep on the kickoff (or line drive it out of the back of the endzone against dangerous returners). However, I don't think a paradigm shift on 2 point conversions is worth taking off the table. The statistics don't lie: teams would benefit if they went for two more often, provided they keep making them at the same rate. While many of the Patriots tricks on 2 point conversions might be exposed after going for them a number of times, I'd be willing to roll the dice if we've got Gronk healthy next season. I could see him catching two out of every three passes thrown his direction, especially if he is in the back corner of the endzone.

 

[brdmaverick]

this is a great point, I was torn with how quickly i wanted them to score. Needed time for onside kick and a FG if they failed on the 2 pointer...but certainly didn't want to give ATL enough time either. 56 seconds was about perfect.

Certainly, and it was great that Atlanta did us a favor by using all of their time outs earlier in the half. Oh, that and making a meaningless 6 yard dump off pass essentially kill the clock on them.

 

[brdmaverick]

Serious question: do we really want Gostkowski trotting out there to tie a Super Bowl with 55 seconds left after missing 2 out of his last 3 (last one in AFCCG and nearly hooked his FG) if we are in fact down 7 there?

Turns out it was a free play on the Dola' catch but still, would rather have the ball in Tommy's hands than Gost's foot with how much lack of confidence he had.

.

You know, I actually made this point to the my brothers as well at the time.

I said, normally I hate having to go for 2, but since Gost has already been shaky I think I preferred it in this spot.

 

[DarrylS]

Ghost is a solid kicker overall and we need him for his ability to pin teams deep on the kickoff (or line drive it out of the back of the endzone against dangerous returners). However, I don't think a paradigm shift on 2 point conversions is worth taking off the table. The statistics don't lie: teams would benefit if they went for two more often, provided they keep making them at the same rate. While many of the Patriots tricks on 2 point conversions might be exposed after going for them a number of times, I'd be willing to roll the dice if we've got Gronk healthy next season. I could see him catching two out of every three passes thrown his direction, especially if he is in the back corner of the endzone.

That would be "predictable".. all an opposing D would have to do is force him out of the end zone and render him ineligible..

To have had two two point conversions in a row is unparalleled in the NFL.. the Pats made it look easy, and it was easier against a D who had been out there for 80+ snaps at a that point..

 

[bormio]

Harvard did it (16 points in 42 seconds) to "beat" Yale 29-29. Of course that was nearly 50 years ago.