Official Super Bowl Thread

[Reignman]

Just got done reading the Patriots game day thread. Twas a good read. Gave me chills. I could almost picture being as nervous, depressed, excited, and then as ecstatic as they were at the end. They have their negative nancy's over there but for the most part, quite a few of them still believed they could come back. And man oh man do they believe in Brady lol. I'm convinced he's a messiah over there. Must be nice to have a QB like that. Meanwhile us plebs fight over which check down artist gives us the best chance to back into the 6th seed every year lol. Makes me sick. The only thing that makes me feel better is knowing when their reign finally comes to an end, after Brady and Belichick are gone, and they're struggling to find a QB who can win 6 games, it's going to be that much more frustrating for them than the average fan base to endure. Like a junkie in rehab.

Now I'd like to read the Falcons game day thread to get the opposite affect, but those jackasses still haven't approved my account lol.

[Pat Williams' Belly]

Feb 9, 2017 20:04:07 GMT -6 Funkytown said:

Some craziness (mostly from Twitter):

Matt Ryan told the QB coach during the game to "run the damn ball"

Those who spoke with Kyle Shanahan at Falcons team hotel tell me he said "I blew it" #SB51 (Um, yes... ya did!) 
Peter Schrager- Wild stat. Falcons called only 5 running plays after securing a 28-3 lead.  *oops*

Julio Jones had 4 targets in the Super Bowl. His fewest since his rookie season

Matt Ryan's SB passer rating (144.1) was the highest ever by the losing QB

NFL teams were 0-124 all-time in the playoffs when down by 17+ entering the 4th quarter

Teams since 1991 trailing by 25 points or more were 4-1057 until this Super Bowl

The Patriots didn't only have the largest Super Bowl comeback of all time with their 28-3 to 28-34 comeback.... It also ties the largest comeback EVER at a road/neutral stadium

The #1 Defense has now beaten the #1 Offense in the Super Bowl 5-1

New England's 37 first downs are the most ever in a playoff game in league history

Julian Edelman is now 3rd all-time in Playoffs receptions

Tom Brady has broken the records for most completions and passing yards in a Super Bowl.

Tom Brady owns 11 Super Bowl records

Those stats I highlighted would have been enough cause to revoke the HC offer from San Francisco if I were Jed York. He absolutely choked in the most critical game of his coaching career so far. 

I understand maintaining some aggressiveness in the 2nd half. But only calling 5 run plays in the entire 2nd half? Insanity.... You had one of the best RB tandems in the league, Shanahan. You were destroying the Patriots by tossing it to Coleman/Foreman and letting them take it outside. 

The whole 2nd half game plan was stupid. Falcons fans should be pissed off. 

[Reignman]

Well things were going so well for them. They had all the momentum on both sides of the ball, and the Patriots couldn't do jack sh*t. Even Brady looked off. I think they might have been going for a blowout. A statement game. I could only imagine the dynasty talk had they won 41-10 or something. Or maybe they were concerned about exactly what happened. The Patriots ability to comeback on them so they just wanted to keep their foot on the gas and put them away. Quinn and Shanahan would have been crucified if they let up and then the Patriots came back.

We sure give the Vikings a hard time about that very thing. About not putting a team away and how it always comes back to bite us. It's difficult to get your team back into that type of rhythm after you let up so they probably didn't want that to happen. If Ryan doesn't get sacked in FG range, or if the holding doesn't happen, or if Ryan doesn't fumble the other drive ... if almost anyone 1 player screw up doesn't happen, then the Falcons most likely win.

The only thing I can really blame the coaches for is not telling Ryan to at least snap the ball with 1 second on the play clock. And not pounding the ball once they got into FG range at the end. Like you said, they have 2 good backs and a solid running game that had already been gashing the Patriots. By then the Patriots had pulled to within 1 score err possession so perhaps they panicked a bit.

Oh well, it's what got them there so it's hard to blame them for remaining aggressive. I personally hate how so many teams go into turtle mode once they get a sizable lead only to see the other team mount a comeback and make things interesting. Playing scared I call it.

[Oracle Bone Diviner]

While its fun to call them epic chokers, I think all this blaming the Falcons is actually nonsense. Brady beat their asses, pure and simple. If my team had taken their foot off the pedal I would have been screaming for heads to roll. Fortunately my team doesn't have a pedal. Atlanta should be proud they lost doing what they do best. Imagine the outcry if they had gone conservative and lost. Lets face it, fans suck lol.

[Oracle Bone Diviner]

Is it true the Vikings are the other 4 teams?

Feb 9, 2017 20:24:17 GMT -6 Funkytown said:

One more:

Falcons just the 5th team in 2656 games to blow a 25 point lead in NFL History

[Reignman]

Feb 11, 2017 11:59:15 GMT -6 Reignman said:

The only thing I can really blame the coaches for is not telling Ryan to at least snap the ball with 1 second on the play clock.

Gadzooks, it's worse than I thought.

These are all the plays the Falcons ran in the 2nd half with the clock running. Look how much time they left on the play clock. That's the inexcusable part.
     GAME                               PLAY
QT   CLOCK  LEAD  POS  DWN DIST  YARD/L CLOCK  PLAY RESULT     YARDS
3   14:11  21-3    1   2   13   own-16    6   pass to  Freeman    7
3   13:24  21-3    1   3    6   own-23    2   pass to  Gabriel  inc
3   12:07  21-3    2   1   10   own-32   11   run      Coleman    5
3   11:36  21-3    2   2    5   own-37   17   pass to  Gabriel   35
3   11:06  21-3    2   1   10   N.E-28   20   run      Coleman    0
3   10:26  21-3    2   2   10   N.E-28    3   pass to  Sanu      13
3    9:57  21-3    2   1   10   N.E-15   19   run      Freeman    9
3    9:28  21-3    2   2    1   N.E-6    17   run      Freeman   -3
3    8:43  21-3    2   3    4   N.E-9     3   pass to  Gabriel  inc
3    1:30  28-9    3   2    1   N.E-32   13   run      Coleman   -1
3    0:04  28-9    3   4   20   own-49    0   delay of game

4    9:00  28-12   4   2    2   own-35    9   run      Coleman    1
4    8:31  28-12   4   3    1   own-36   15   sack     Ryan     -11
4    5:18  28-20   5   1   10   own-49   19   run      Freeman    2
4    4:47  28-20   5   2    8   N.E-49   14   pass to  Jones     27
4    3:56  28-20   5   2   11   N.E-23    4   sack     Ryan     -12
172 seconds in 16 plays (10.75 avg). If they take each of those down to 1 second, they burn an additional 2:36 of game clock. There's your ball game.

Time of Possession:
1st half - N.E 19:38 to 10:22
2nd half - N.E 20:53 to 13:05 (could have been N.E 18:17 to 15:41)
Game     - N.E 40:31 to 23:27

[Reignman]

Feb 11, 2017 14:56:18 GMT -6 Oracle Bone Diviner said:

Is it true the Vikings are the other 4 teams?

Feb 9, 2017 20:24:17 GMT -6 Funkytown said:

One more:

Falcons just the 5th team in 2656 games to blow a 25 point lead in NFL History

Not sure who the other 4 were, but here the top teams who blew 14+ point leads entering the 4th in the past 10 years.

1. 19 Atlanta vs New England Super Bowl 51
2. 17 Seattle vs Cincinnati 2015
3. 15 Tennessee vs Cleveland 2014 <---- bahahahaha
4. 14 New Orleans vs Tampa Bay 2009
  14 N.Y. Giants vs Philadelphia 2010
  14 Houston vs Seattle 2013
  14 San Diego vs Houston 2013
  14 San Francisco vs San Diego 2014
  14 San Diego vs Kansas City 2016
  14 Carolina vs Kansas City 2016
Vikings blew a 13 point lead entering the 4th to the Packers and tied. Their largest lead and lost was 10 to Detroit in 2011. On the flip side they came back from being down 11 vs Arizona in 2010, and from being down 10 vs Chicago in 2013. Teddy was trailing Washington by 6 entering the 4th in 2014 and won, which was his largest comeback. 2 sleeves trailed Jacksonville by 4 in week 14 for his largest as a Viking. Overall the Vikings are 11-65 when trailing entering the 4th in the past 10 years, and 68-11-1 when leading. Which does't seem right at all lol.

[Oracle Bone Diviner]

Yeah you musta got those two backwards! Did you leave out the Frazier years?

[Funkytown]

The Falcons lost six games in 2016; they led five of those games in the fourth quarter.

[Pat Williams' Belly]

Feb 11, 2017 14:55:41 GMT -6 Oracle Bone Diviner said:

While its fun to call them epic chokers, I think all this blaming the Falcons is actually nonsense. Brady beat their a$$es, pure and simple. If my team had taken their foot off the pedal I would have been screaming for heads to roll. Fortunately my team doesn't have a pedal. Atlanta should be proud they lost doing what they do best. Imagine the outcry if they had gone conservative and lost. Lets face it, fans suck lol.

Were they really keeping their foot firmly on the pedal? I mean, they deviated from a game plan that was destroying the Pats D in the first half. They targeted Julio 4 times all game.. That isn't what they did best all year. If they still lost going all out, trying to put the ball in their best players' hands, then yeah, I'd say they kept the pedal floored. Shanahan and Quinn got too cute, and Brady/Belichick made them pay. 

[Oracle Bone Diviner]

Feb 11, 2017 23:29:03 GMT -6 Pat Williams' Belly said:

Feb 11, 2017 14:55:41 GMT -6 Oracle Bone Diviner said:

While its fun to call them epic chokers, I think all this blaming the Falcons is actually nonsense. Brady beat their a$$es, pure and simple. If my team had taken their foot off the pedal I would have been screaming for heads to roll. Fortunately my team doesn't have a pedal. Atlanta should be proud they lost doing what they do best. Imagine the outcry if they had gone conservative and lost. Lets face it, fans suck lol.

Were they really keeping their foot firmly on the pedal? I mean, they deviated from a game plan that was destroying the Pats D in the first half. They targeted Julio 4 times all game.. That isn't what they did best all year. If they still lost going all out, trying to put the ball in their best players' hands, then yeah, I'd say they kept the pedal floored. Shanahan and Quinn got too cute, and Brady/Belichick made them pay. 

I don't know if they had the pedal to the metal, but I know they weren't running the ball.  :)   If they had thrown to Julio more maybe NE would have intercepted more. Maybe he was well covered and thats why they didn't throw to him? I don't know. I know if they ran the ball more they would have lost anyway, although they should have used up more of the clock. But then Brady would have just sped up his comeback. They were gonna lose one way or ( if they did things differently) another. I'm apparently the only one not looking to blame Atlanta for it. New England is the better team, has been forever, and will probably continue to be. 

[Reignman]

Feb 11, 2017 21:11:11 GMT -6 Oracle Bone Diviner said:

Yeah you musta got those two backwards! Did you leave out the Frazier years?

Ha! I was quite shocked myself. I looked a few times to make sure my excel formulas were correct xD. I went specifically looking to see just how much the Vikings choke but found out we're about average. I know, I was disappointed too. It sucks when the confirmation bias doesn't get fed haha. Damn you mean I'm just an irrational fan? I mean Frazier is still bad, ranked dead last during his time. If I can get my hands on some more accurate scoring data, like the score at any point in the game rather than just at the end of quarters, then I'll take a closer look at who does all the actual choking. *crosses fingers it's the Vikings*

[Oracle Bone Diviner]

I question your sources. Did you get those numbers from the liberal media? (rofl)

[Pat Williams' Belly]

Roddy White made it known he was not a fan of the Falcons' play calling.

“I’m glad I wasn’t a part of that team because I probably literally would’ve fought him (Shanahan),” White said.

Link here

[Minniman]

The best way to run out the clock is with first downs, but a team has to mix it up and use the play clock.

The Falcons didn't play it smart, and that bit them in the behind, as did the favorable calls going to the Patriots.