THIS was one of the best Super Bowl games in years, not only because the PHILADELPHIA EAGLES beat the New England Patriots, WHICH IS SO SWEET!!!!!!. It was a close game, and generally a clean game and the EAGLES VICTORY was decided with the last play of the game. WAY COOL AND WELL DONE PHILADELPHIA EAGLES!!!!! From NPR and the Washington Post (by the by mark maske, the Eagles won the Super Bowl).....
Underdog Eagles Pull Out A Shocker, Beating Patriots In Super Bowl LII
You'd be forgiven if you went to bed early having chalked up another win for New England.
After all, the Patriots may have been losing to the Philadelphia Eagles with just a few minutes to play — but they had Tom Brady under center, the man who has helmed countless fourth-quarter comebacks, including a rather historic one to win last year's title game. He had thrown for nearly 500 yards and three touchdowns already by this point. Surely this Super Bowl would play out just like so many we've seen before, with Brady steering the Pats down the field to pull out the win — right?
It didn't exactly pan out that way.
In a slobberknocker of a matchup, with both offenses looking unstoppable for much of the game, it was ultimately Philadelphia's defense that made the decisive plays in the final minutes to win Super Bowl LII, 41-33. First, they forced an uncharacteristic fumble by Brady, then — after a brief drive by Philadelphia — they stopped the Pats again on the last drive of the game.
Now, the Eagles are Super Bowl champs for the first time in franchise history.
And, in a development that even a psychic would have had a hard time believing at season's start, Nick Foles has been named Super Bowl MVP. The oft-maligned quarterback — who had been a backup riding the pine until a late-season injury sidelined franchise QB Carson Wentz — threw for more than 370 yards and went blow for blow with Brady, arguably the greatest player in NFL history.
In fact, it was Foles who connected on the game's final haymaker, hitting tight end Zach Ertz for the go-ahead score with just a couple of minutes left on the clock.
But it was far from just Foles who led the Eagles' relentless attack. Rookie running back Corey Clement racked up 100 receiving yards, including a touchdown, while ex-Patriot LeGarrette Blount gashed his former team's defense for 90 rushing yards and a touchdown of his own.
The shootout saw both teams combine for more total yards than any other Super Bowl in history.
All the while, NPR and member station reporters were covering the action, both on the field and off — and, since poetry mixes well with everything, we mixed in a few #superbowlhaiku contributed by all of you while we were at it. Scroll down to read the latest on our live-blog, or head to the bottom of this post and scroll up to relive the dramatic night from the very beginning.
Live Blog
Update at 10:02 p.m. ET
After a season defined by disputed calls, it is fitting that a decisive play in the season's final game will — once again — come down to instant replay.
But once more, just as with Corey Clement's touchdown earlier, tight end Zach Ertz's touchdown had to be looked at — and ultimately affirmed — by instant replay. That's a huge go-ahead score for the Eagles.
Update at 9:39 p.m. ET
It took more than 50 minutes of football, but the New England Patriots have finally taken their first lead of the night on another Tom Brady strike to tight end Rob Gronkowski.
And their timing could hardly have been better: Now, with just over 9 minutes left on the clock, the ball is in Nick Foles' hands — and so is the Eagles chance at a championship.
Also, remember that missed point-after attempt by the Eagles in the first quarter? That lost point now marks all that separates the Pats from the Eagles at this point, with the game at 33-32.
Update at 9:24 p.m. ET
Haiku break, folks. Here are a few more we love:
Update at 9:15 p.m. ET
This game is beginning to resemble a couple of go-for-broke heavyweights, clobbering each other with haymaker after haymaker and with regard for defense. The drives so far this half have been fast, efficient and above all, met with little resistance.
Not long after Philadelphia scored, New England double-timed a march back down the field and answered. Within just a few minutes 14 points have been tossed up on the board between them, and both teams have combined for the most total yards in Super Bowl history — already, before we've even gotten to the fourth quarter.
And there's no reason to believe the pace will slow anytime soon.
Update at 9:09 p.m. ET
Shira Springer of Boston member station WBUR observes there's been a clear enthusiasm gap between Eagles fans and Pats fans in the stadium in Minneapolis.
"After every touchdown they're playing 'Fly, Eagles, Fly," she reports. "Between that and the enthusiasm gap, it's beginning to feel a lot like we're playing in Philadelphia, not Minnesota."
Update at 9:05 p.m. ET
It wouldn't be a true NFL game without a dispute over what constitutes a catch.
In this case, running back Corey Clement just added to his rather impressive Super Bowl performance so far by nabbing a pass in the back of the end zone. It was ruled a touchdown at first — and, after the instant replay appears to show him juggling the ball ... the touchdown still stands.
"I give up," NBC announcer Chris Collinsworth said on the broadcast, and he's probably not the only one.
But Philly fans would be happy to help explain it to him, one can be sure.
WBUR's Martin Kessler reports the Eagles fans around him, while watching the replay from the stands, "chanted 'one! two!' in unison as the receiver's feet touch the ground."
Update at 8:52 p.m. ET
"Ire is building online against Dodge for using a speech from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in an ad for its RAM trucks," NPR's Eric Deggans notes.
"They were going for a poignant plea to show that anyone can be great in America. Instead they snarked off everybody from MSNBC's Joy Ann Reid to actor John Cusack for making it look like our nation's greatest civil rights leader is posthumously shilling trucks."
Update at 8:49 p.m. ET
Call that the Gronk Drive. Or, you know, something a little more clever than that.
Anyway, tight end Rob Gronkowski dominated that possession, hauling in grab after grab in a fashion that's become familiar for anyone who's seen a Pats game this decade. Still, as expected as dominance may be for the massive pass-catcher, he hadn't had much of an impact in the first half.
That's got to change in the second if the Patriots are to manage a comeback — and, after four catches for 69 yards on that drive alone, including the touchdown capping it, it appears Gronk is well on his way to doing so.
Update at 8:38 p.m. ET
NPR's TV critic Eric Deggans has some praise (or, perhaps better put: relief) for Justin Timberlake's halftime show, after the pop star decided against his reported plans to bring Minnesota's favorite son, Prince, out on stage as a hologram. Instead, the late great Purple One made an appearance as a projection.
"Thank God they didn't do a Prince hologram," Eric tweeted. "And no chance for a wardrobe malfunction with Prince projected onto a large sheet. Still, nice touch."
Update at 8:15 p.m. ET
It's halftime. And that means one thing. Well, two things, perhaps: a Justin Timberlake performance, and much more importantly, your haiku.
Here are a few of our favorites from the first half that was — courtesy of all of you out there on Twitter:
Update at 8:06 p.m. ET
Now that is a playcall.
On fourth down, from the Patriots one-yard line, Nick Foles fakes an audible before the snap — and just as he taps on a lineman to change the play, the ball is snapped, the running back gets it, flips to tight end Trey Burton, who lofts a toss and ... well, here's a sentence I didn't imagine writing at the start of the day: Nick Foles caught a touchdown pass.
Fancy reverse play / Ball slips through Brady's fingers / Study Foles next time #SuperBowlHaiku
And, in a turn of events almost just as stunning: Philadelphia hit a point-after attempt. I know, your trusty blogger couldn't believe it either.
All of a sudden, those underdog Eagles look very much in control. But before they get too confident, they can ask the Atlanta Falcons how much control at halftime helped them. There's still a whole half of football yet to play.
Update at 7:58 p.m. ET
A new dispatch from ad-land:
"NBC aired 30 seconds of dead air instead of an ad," NPR's Eric Deggans reports. "One of my commenters joked that it was an ad for the Sopranos finale. I could only think 'there goes $5 million out the window.' "
Update at 7:53 p.m. ET
Rumbling, bumbling, stumbling, zigging and zagging — through it all, Pats running back James White somehow stayed on his feet. And good thing he did: Those feet took him to paydirt.
It was a play reminiscent of White's spectacular performance in last year's Super Bowl win — and it's that kind of run the Patriots will continue to need to keep pace with this Eagles offense.
And then ... well, and then the point-after attempt happened. I'll leave it to the statisticians to decide, but this certainly seems that we're on pace for a record number of missed PATs. Stephen Gostkowski didn't miss on the kickoff, though — the New England kicker took out his frustration with a monster of a hit to put the Eagles kick return to bed.
Update at 7:45 p.m. ET
We have our first turnover of the game, folks: In one of those nifty, bobbling plays that appear to have become a Super Bowl staple in recent years, Alshon Jeffery struggles to come down with the ball — and doesn't, batting it into the waiting arms of the Pats' Duron Harmon.
Now, the Patriots have it within their own 10. This may very well be the break they needed to begin digging themselves out from this hole before the half ends.
Update at 7:33 p.m. ET
The story remains the same for the Eagles offense — and the Pats' defense. Nick Foles and Alshon Jeffery are showcasing an all-but-unstoppable connection, while Philly's running back committee continues to gash this Pats defensive line. Now, LeGarrette Blount has joined the party against his former team: the former Pats running back just scored for the Eagles.
To this point, it appears the Patriots are dumbfounded as to how to stop this steamroller of an offense.
... except on point-after attempts, apparently. The Eagles failed to convert their two-point attempt, a bid to get back the point they missed earlier on the missed PAT. No dice on this one either.
Update at 7:27 p.m. ET
After taking a massive hit from Malcolm Jenkins, at the end of what had been a huge reception, New England wide receiver Brandin Cooks has been ruled out for the rest of the game with what appears to be a head injury.
The hit presented not just a scary sight. It also strips the Pats of one of their biggest pass-catching threats — arguably their second most-important receiver, after only tight end Rob Gronkowski.
Update at 7:16 p.m. ET
Hey, remember those Rocky clips our Boston member station colleagues were remarking upon — politely, of course, and without even a shade of indignation?
Well, Boston got its moment on the big screen, after all.
"We were hoping that it would be a Good Will Hunting scene to pump up the Pats' fans," WBUR's Martin Kessler reports. "But instead it was 'I'm Shipping up to Boston' by the Dropkick Murphys."
Update at 7:13 p.m. ET
Another shank on an easy one, this time from New England. After a remarkable tackle brought the Patriots' drive to a fourth down inside the 10, a botched kick attempt means the score is precisely where we left it at first quarter's end.
Remember that tally of lost points as the game goes one, everyone: That's one for Philadelphia, three for New England.
Update at 7:11 p.m. ET
The first ad agency guy to notice that Danny DeVito looks like a living M&M deserves a raise. whoever scripted the rest of the M&Ms ad, not so much. #Superbowlads
Update at 7:08 p.m. ET
Are you not entertained?
After one quarter, both offenses are firing on all cylinders: Philadelphia has between New England by land and by air; meanwhile, New England has matched them stride for stride on offense.
On the goal line again now, the Patriots are poised to even the score — or top it. Remember that missed PAT by the Eagles, after all.
Update at 7 p.m. ET
Nick Foles delivers a long-range strike to Alshon Jeffery for an acrobatic touchdown catch, from more than 30 yards out. This game almost could not have started any better for Philly, which has dominated on the ground and — as showcased in that TD reception — has shown the Patriots will pay if they start selling out to stop the run. It appears the New England defense is on its heels to begin the game, getting beaten from just about every angle.
Nick Foles is 8 of 11 for 102 yards and one TD. #SB52
Now for that almost: The Eagles failed to convert possibly the easiest element of that drive, sending the point-after attempt wide right. Don't be surprised if that lost little point plays a rather big role later in the game.
Update at 6:54 p.m. ET
Another solid drive — this time from the Patriots — that ends in field goal. The scoreboard now features a pair of threes after both defenses managed to bend but not break, holding the goal line just when they needed to.
They both start the same. Looks like these two match up well. Good commercials too. #SuperBowlHaiku
Update at 6:51 p.m. ET
Our colleagues at WBUR, the Boston member station, have remarked on the fact that it appears the crowd is a little Eagles-heavy tonight. Lots of green, lots of noise while the Patriots have the ball — and, fittingly, a Rocky montage on the big screen. Because of course.
Update at 6:42 p.m. ET
Impressive start from the Philadelphia Eagles. This is precisely how the game must go if these underdogs are to take the reins: long drives, third down conversions — even on third-and-longs — and above all, reliable play from quarterback Nick Foles.
So far, they've gotten all three — but they also settled for three on the scoreboard, after the Patriots defense found their spine on the goal line.
That field goal gets the Eagles on the board first — now, it's Tom Brady's turn.
Update at 6:33 p.m. ET
Update at 6:28 p.m. ET
A helpful reminder from ESPN's Darren Rovell that people will bet on anything.
Unofficial finish of P!nk's National Anthem (started at "Oh say can you see...) is ONE MINUTE, 53 SECONDS.
Over/Under from @bovadalv was 2 minutes flat.
Update at 6:25 p.m. ET
NPR's TV critic will be filling us in on that other main event going on tonight: the Super Bowl commercials. And he opens on a note of togetherness — which you can probably expect from a whole lot of commercials tonight.
Watching Mass Mutual commercial telling stories of neighborly togetherness while a group sings "I'll Stand By You." I have a feeling lots of commercials tonight will offer just such a reaction to today's divided times, with few other political statements. #superbowlads.
Update at 6:20 p.m. ET
THE HAIKU HATH BEGUN.
Hey friends, want to tweet some haiku using the hashtag? I could use some help with all this live-blogging stuff. I'll include some of my favorites here as the night goes on.
Update at 6 p.m. ET
President Trump declined an invitation for a gameday interview, breaking with a recent tradition that dates back to the George W. Bush administration. But earlier Sunday, he still offered a message for the occasion, dedicated to "the brave men and women of our Armed Forces."
"We owe these heroes the greatest respect for defending our liberty and our American way of life. Their sacrifice is stitched into each star and every stripe of our Star-Spangled Banner," he said in a statement released by the White House.
"We hold them in our hearts and thank them for our freedom as we proudly stand for the National Anthem," he added.
The remark appears to refer to players kneeling for the national anthem — a gesture intended to protest police violence in the U.S. Trump has condemned the protest multiple times, including calling on Twitter for the protesting players to be fired.
Meanwhile, outside the stadium, another kind of protest gathered.
Minnesota Public Radio reports about 100 protesters blocked light rail lines leading into the stadium for about an hour, singing and wearing shirts saying "No More 45: Black Lives Matter." More than a dozen demonstrators have been arrested, according to MPR.
Update at 5:45 p.m. ET
And then there were two — and we're not talking about the two teams taking the field this evening. Nope: In this instance, at least, we're talking about a much more pressing numeral: 2 degrees F.
That was what the thermometer was reading outside U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, even at the height of midday Sunday. It's expected to continue to hover in the single digits throughout the game.
All of this sets this game on a course to be the coldest Super Bowl on record. Quartz explains only the Super Bowl game day in Detroit in 1982 had an average temperature anywhere close, at 12 degrees F.
Happily for fans and players, the Minnesota Vikings had the good sense to put their home field under a dome — and pipe plenty of heat into the building while they were at it. It is positively balmy once fans make it indoors.
Martin Kessler of WBUR has spotted at least one fan in a tank top, another in shorts. It is unclear, though, how much warmth this, um, rather unconventional hardhat offers.
Met Douglas Towle from Bolton, MA in stadium concourse. Clever fan gear...Gronkowski license plate attached to hard hat w/ two cows mounted on a ski. Sound it out. Also look at his jersey for a clue. He’s even earning “that’s cool” praise from Eagles fans passing by. pic.twitter.com/mCLtsQTCEa
NFL players were as blown away by the Nick Foles touchdown catch as everyone else
Philadelphia’s Nick Foles catches a touchdown pass against New England. (Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports)
The first half of Super Bowl 52 provided its share of memorable — and, in the case of Brandin Cooks, painful — plays, but none was more remarkable than one on which the Eagles’ Nick Foles caught a touchdown.
That would be Eagles quarterback Nick Foles, whose scoring reception from tight end Trey Burton came on a fourth-and-goal play from the Patriots’ 1-yard line with just 38 seconds left in the half. The play, which came after a Philadelphia timeout, fooled New England and helped the Eagles go into the locker room with a 10-point lead.
The remarkably aggressive call by Eagles Coach Doug Pederson and his staff immediately provoked a strong reaction on the Internet, not least from other NFL players, including those currently and formerly in the league. “Wow what a play,” exclaimed Cardinals cornerback Justin Bethel.
Aggressive #PHIvsNE
Doug Pederson #LEGEND
Yo @Eagles, keep your foot on the gas!!!
That's how you knock out a champ, you gotta keep swinging!! #SuperBowl
gonna do
“Nick Foles got better hands than Brady,” free agent wide receiver Eddie Royal said, adding the hashtag “#Facts.” That was a reference to an unsuccessful play the Patriots tried earlier in the game, when New England quarterback Tom Brady was unable to corral a pass thrown his way.
Matt Chatham, a former linebacker for the Patriots and Eagles, claimed the play should not have been allowed because the Eagles were in an illegal formation. No flag was thrown, and the touchdown stood.
Of course, the Eagles still had plenty of work to do to seal the deal in the Super Bowl, especially against a Brady-led Patriots squad that has made an art form out of comebacks from double-digit deficits in second halves of huge games. But Foles and Co. could take credit for authoring the most eye-opening play of the first half, one that most certainly did not go unnoticed by other NFL players.
Read more from The Post:
Email the author
MINNEAPOLIS — A backup quarterback playing like a Hall of Famer and a fearless coach who somehow made everything work managed to put a major, Super Bowl-size dent into the greatest dynasty in NFL history here Sunday evening.
Tom Brady was at his legendary best for the New England Patriots. But it was the Philadelphia Eagles who emerged as the champions of a wildly entertaining Super Bowl LII, riding the passing of fill-in quarterback Nick Foles and the daring of Coach Doug Pederson to a pulsating 41-33 triumph before a delightedly partisan crowd at U.S. Bank Stadium.
“A lot of people counted us out,” Pederson said of a season in which Foles took over for injured standout Carson Wentz in December. “But that locker room believed in each other, believed in me.”
That belief paid off handsomely as the Eagles won their first Super Bowl title, securing their first league championship since 1960 in the pre-Super Bowl days. They denied the Patriots what would have been a sixth Super Bowl crown with Brady as their quarterback and Bill Belichick as their coach.
“They’re all pretty disappointing,” Brady said of his three Super Bowl defeats. “Losing sucks. You show up and you try to win, but sometimes you lose and that’s the way it goes.”
Brady certainly did his part, throwing for a Super Bowl-record 505 yards and a trio of second-half touchdowns. It was a frantic game in which the two teams combined for 1,151 yards of total offense, breaking the Super Bowl mark in that category by the end of the third quarter.
The Patriots took their first lead of the night in the fourth quarter on Brady’s second touchdown pass of the game to tight end Rob Gronkowski. But the Eagles converted a fourth-and-one gamble by Pederson on their own 45-yard line with less than six minutes remaining.
“I trust my instincts,” Pederson said. “I trust everything that I’m doing.”
Pederson’s team cashed in with Foles’s 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Zach Ertz with 2:21 to play. The touchdown was upheld after an instant replay review in which it was ruled that Ertz had the football long enough to become a runner, under the rules, before diving into the end zone and having the ball hit the turf. An NFL season filled with “What’s a catch?” intrigue included more in the biggest game of all, and the Eagles benefited twice.
After defensive end Brandon Graham poked the football from Brady’s hand on a sack for a fumble and turnover, Eagles kicker Jake Elliott drilled a 46-yard field goal with 1:05 to go. The Patriots had one last chance, but Brady’s desperation throw into the end zone fell to the turf incomplete as time expired.
“It’s disappointing,” Belichick said, “but I’m proud of the way our team competed. . . . It’s a tough way to end up.”
Foles threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns to cap a wondrous postseason run. He threw touchdown passes to wide receiver Alshon Jeffery in the first half as the Eagles raced to a lead and to running back Corey Clement in the third quarter. Tailback LeGarrette Blount ran for a touchdown, and Foles even had a touchdown catch on a beauty of a trick play dialed up by Pederson.
“I felt good,” said Foles, who was named the game’s most valuable player. “I felt calm. The big thing for me was knowing I didn’t have to be Superman. . . . I was just playing ball.”
Brady threw a touchdown pass to wide receiver Chris Hogan, along with the two to Gronkowski, and the Patriots got a touchdown run by tailback James White. They had to play without wideout Brandin Cooks after he suffered a concussion on a legal first-half hit by Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins.
Belichick mysteriously benched cornerback Malcolm Butler, a former Super Bowl-saving hero. Belichick did not explain in detail the reasoning behind not having Butler on the field to try to help a defense that was in dire need, saying only that it was a football decision and not a disciplinary move.
“We never really got control of the game,” Brady said. “We never really played on our terms. We didn’t make enough plays when we needed to.”
The Patriots must regroup from here. Gronkowski said after the game that he will ponder his football future in the coming weeks, leaving open the possibility of retirement. He was cleared to play in this game Thursday after suffering a concussion during the AFC championship game on an illegal helmet-to-helmet hit.
Brady said again that he plans to continue playing, but he turns 41 in August. Belichick turns 66 in April, and there was speculation even Sunday that he could walk away from coaching. That, the speculation held, could keep offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels from exiting to become the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, as expected. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia is to become the head coach of the Detroit Lions. He did not exactly leave on a high note, as the New England defense was dominated by Pederson and Foles.
Foles was sharp from the outset, to the delight of the decidedly pro-Eagles crowd. The Eagles took control early when Foles teamed with Jeffery for a 34-yard touchdown. Cornerback Eric Rowe, starting for Butler, had good coverage, but Jeffery made a fantastic leaping catch in the back of the end zone.
The Patriots were not quite in sync in the first half. Belichick opted at one point against a fourth-and-one gamble, and kicker Stephen Gostkowski sent the football off the left upright after a mishandled low snap on a 26-yard field goal try. The Patriots had Brady wide open as a receiver on a second-quarter trick play. But Brady could not haul in wide receiver Danny Amendola’s throw, as the football bounced off his hands. Belichick’s fourth-and-five gamble resulted in an incompletion.
The Eagles did far better on their version of throwing a pass to their quarterback — called “Philly Special,” according to Pederson — later in the first half. A fourth-down direct snap to Clement was followed by a toss to tight end Trey Burton, who threw a pass to the open Foles for the touchdown. Foles, unlike Brady, made the catch.
Pederson had his former Green Bay Packers teammate, Brett Favre, address Philadelphia’s players Saturday. Favre warned the Eagles not to let up and not to believe at any point they had the Patriots beaten, or they’d suffer the same fate as the Atlanta Falcons did a year ago when they surrendered a 28-3 lead and succumbed in overtime.
And while the Eagles gave up the lead Sunday, they regrouped and did not allow the Patriots to add to their collection of Lombardi Trophies. They joined the New York Giants as the only teams to beat Brady and Belichick in a Super Bowl. The Giants did so twice.
“In games like this against a great opponent,” Pederson said, “you have to make those tough decisions that way and keep yourself aggressive.”
Read more:
No comments:
Post a Comment