In the end, the New England Patriots’ improbable 34-28 Super Bowl win Sunday night will be remembered for the right reasons.
It was supposed to be the culmination of the Revenge Tour, a methodical beating of the Atlanta Falcons to stick it to the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell for inflicting two years of punishment on the Patriots for the football-inflation mess known as Deflategate, including quarterback Tom Brady’s four-game suspension to begin this season.
But as Sunday’s game unfolded with spectacular drama and swings in emotion over the course of four hours, revenge became a mere footnote in the best of the 51 Super Bowls.
New England’s rally ranks not only as the most incredible in a Super Bowl, but surely also as one of the most unexpected endings for any sports championship. And while Brady was the headliner on the field, the Patriots’ win was truly a team effort with contributions from many including James White, Julian Edelman and Dont’a Hightower.
After falling behind 28-3 and with no margin for error, the Patriots overcame the largest deficit in Super Bowl history, scoring the final five times they had the ball. That included the first-ever Super Bowl overtime, when Brady led the Patriots on the game-winning 75-yard drive.
That capped a record-setting night for Brady, in which he completed 43 passes for 466 yards. Brady and coach Bill Belichick each won their fifth Super Bowl, the most ever for an NFL quarterback and coach. And Brady was named the Super Bowl most valuable player for a record fourth time.
While New England fans focused on Deflategate as a factor motivating the Patriots this season, it turns out there was another much more personal story line for Brady, with its details emerging in the days leading up to the Super Bowl and its aftermath. Brady’s mother Galynn was diagnosed with cancer 18 months ago and had not attended a game all season until the Super Bowl.
Brady, who was unusually emotional as he talked about his parents before and after the Super Bowl, dedicated the game to his mother. “She’s the one I want to win it for,” Brady said in a pregame interview.
Afterward, the fans at NRG Stadium in Houston made sure Goodell knew how they felt about Deflategate with their boos the backdrop for his brief remarks when he presented the championship trophy to Robert Kraft, the team’s owner.
Kraft then made an oblique reference to the controversy, which was overshadowed by his tribute to the Patriots’ sustained success. “Two years ago we won our fourth Super Bowl down in Arizona, and I told our fans that was the sweetest one of all. But a lot has transpired over the last two years and I don’t think that needs any explanation.
“I want to say to our fans and our brilliant coaching staff, this is unequivocally the sweetest, and I’m proud to say for the fifth time we are all Patriots, and tonight for the fifth time, the Patriots are world champions.”
It was particularly sweet for Brady. Not only did he and his teammates win a football game against which Super Bowls in the future will be measured, but he also got to celebrate the victory with his family.
He talked again Monday about his mother. “She’s been through a lot. Way harder than what I went through last night. Way harder than what our team went through last night.”
“… (I) was just happy last night to be able to celebrate with her. She hadn’t been a game all year, so what a helluva game for her to be at.”
That’s how Super Bowl LI will be remembered: A hell of a game.