PHILLY’S SECOND-STRINGER OUTGUNS BRADY IN EPIC TILT
Rather unexpectedly, it turned into what has to be remembered as one of the most entertaining Super Bowls ever played.
And a quarterback battle between Philadelphia Eagles’ Nick Foles and the legendary Tom Brady of the New England Patriots that will go down as the stuff of legends.
Foles got the better of the old master on this night in a 41-33 win and was named the Super Bowl LII MVP.
Along with all the passes, completions and touchdowns, both Brady and Foles each called a play that saw them turn receiver.
Foles, on a fourth-down gamble from the one in the dying seconds of the second quarter, pulled in a pass from tight end Trey Burton for a touchdown.
Only a few moments earlier, Brady called his own number.
Even though he is 40, he should have been able to pull in a toss from Danny Amendola on a trick play in the second quarter. It would have been the third reception of his career and first in postseason play. And there’s a chance, albeit a small one, he could have rambled for a touchdown.
Brady was not happy about having the ball glance off his fingertips. When Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins gave him a playful pat on the bum, Brady didn’t even look at him.
Perhaps it fuelled him into cranking his throwing game up to another level. Maybe it led to the unexpected gunslinger’s duel with Foles.
In the end, however, it came down to the storyline most of us thought it would be: the Eagles needed to get pressure on Brady to have a chance.
For all intents and purposes, they secured the first Super Bowl win in Philadelphia history when Brandon Graham stripped the ball from Brady’s hands and Derek Barnett recovered.
Still, you held your breath when Brady heaved the ball half the length of the field with time ticking off the clock.
Not until it touched turf could you count this one out.
IN OTHER WORDS: Trailing by 10 at the half, the Vegas line had shifted. At that point it had Patriots by seven. The game started with the Patriots favoured by 4.5. “That’s all you need to know,” said a columnist from Vegas. Yeah, the Patriots had the Eagles right where they wanted them ... After talkin’ the talk, Alshon Jeffrey was walkin’ the walk. Especially in the first half. That was a great catch he made against Pats DB Eric Rowe for a 34-yard TD near the end of the first quarter and it was a valiant try he made on what turned out to a spectacular interception by Duron Harmon near the New England goal-line. Jeffrey, who guaranteed a victory, had 73 yards receiving by the time Justin Timberlake took the field for the halftime show ... That interception was and wasn’t Foles fault. Can’t blame him for a deflected pick, but the throw wasn’t very good in the first place ... The Eagles only picked up a field goal from the game-opening drive that consisted of 14 plays and covered 67 yards. But that also kept Brady off the field until there was 7:55 left in the first quarter.
SECOND AND TWO: Bothoffences must have had difficulty communicating early. When Philadelphia had the ball, the Dropkick Murphys “Shipping Up To Boston” pumped up the Pats fans. When New England had it, the Eagles crowd was going wild watching scenes from Rocky on the video board. One second-quarter play could have been devastating to the Pats. As Brandin Cooks was getting demolished by Malcolm Jenkins, linebacker Nigel Bradham was driving his helmet into Brady’s chest. Brady survived. Cooks did not return and suddenly the Pats were without their deep threat. When the Eagles lost Darren Sproles to a broken arm and torn ACL in Week 3, it created an opportunity for Corey Clement. The rookie back
showed he was deserving in the Super Bowl. He had a strong game.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: The game has ended. The green confetti has completely fallen to the ground. And the ecstatic screaming says the party is just beginning in Philly. At one point during the week, I asked Torrey Smith about the touchdown pass Foles threw him in the conference championship. For some reason, it never seemed to get the tongues wagging like it should have. “It was a dime,” Smith said. “He threw a dime.” After a pause, he added: “It was a good catch, too.” Yeah itwas.
RANDOMLY SPEAKING: With 3:23 left to go in the third quarter, Brady had already passed for 404 yards. It was the third-highest total at that point in Super Bowl history ... Best in-house commercial was an NFL production that featured the New York Giants doing some Dirty Dancin’ and ended with Odell Beckham Jr. leaping into the arms of Eli Manning, who held him high over head. It was pretty funny ... Among the hundreds of celebrities, it was most exciting to see Jennifer Lopez ... And now I know what the cast from This Is Us looks like. My life is complete ... Donnie Wahlberg was booed when he took off his sneaker and held it up to show a Patriots logo. Thought you needed to know that.
EXTRA POINTS: The sign said the lot across the street from U.S. Bank Stadium was charging $100 for parking. Pretty sure that’s not Canadian dollars, either ... The Patriots were in trouble from the opening coin toss because they won it. Teams calling correctly in Super Bowls were 24-27 entering the game.