FEELING PATRIOT-IC
Super Bore? Maybe, but Brady’s Patriots worked hard for record sixth title
Tom Brady celebrates with daughter Vivian after Patriots knock off L.A. Rams in dreary Super Bowl. Brady cemented a place in NFL history with sixth title.
ATLANTA— It wasn’t a night of all-around brilliance for the New England Patriots or perfection by quarterback Tom Brady. But it was an evening of grit and resourcefulness, of the Patriots demonstrating their unmatched ability to do what it takes and to be just good enough.
That translated into yet another Lombardi Trophy, as they outlasted the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in a far-from-elegant Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday night.
A pro-Patriots crowd watched an NFL season that was all about offence conclude with the lowest-scoring Super Bowl in history. It was a 3-3 game entering the fourth quarter, with the only scoring coming on field goals by kickers Stephen Gostkowski of the Patriots and Greg Zuerlein of the Rams.
The Patriots struck for one moment of offensive excellence, as Brady zipped a pass to tight end Rob Gronkowski for a 29-yard gain to the two-yard line to set up a touchdown run by rookie tailback Sony Michel with seven minutes remaining.
The New England defence made cer- tain that lead held up, as cornerback Stephon Gilmore intercepted a deep pass by Rams quarterback Jared Goff intended for wide receiver Brandin Cooks with 4:17 left. Safety Duron Harmon had broken up a would-be touchdown catch by Cooks moments earlier. That led to Gostkowski’s 41-yard field goal to seal the outcome with 1:12 to play. The celebration began in earnest when Zuerlein missed a field goal try with five seconds to go.
The Patriots secured their sixth Super Bowl triumph, in their ninth appearance in the big game, with Brady as their quarterback and Bill Belichick as their coach. They are playing against themselves and against history at this point, having long ago cemented their place as the most prosperous and lasting dynasty of the modern NFL of free agency and the salary cap.
But this night was not about Brady, who threw an early interception and was a bit out of sorts all night in a 21for-35, 262-yard passing performance. He did manage to get the ball regularly to wide receiver Julian Edelman, voted
the game’s MVP, who had 10 catches for 141 yards.
It was about the defensive coaching wizardry of Belichick and his de facto defensive coordinator, linebackers coach Brian Flores, who is set to become the head coach of the Miami Dolphins.
It was about the execution of the players on a New England defence that sacked Goff four times, harassed him all night and kept tailback Todd Gurley from doing much of anything. The Patriots remained unwavering even after one of their defensive leaders, safety Patrick Chung, left the field in the second half with his right arm in an air cast.
Sean McVay, the Rams’ boywonder coach, could not solve the riddle of Belichick’s defence on the sport’s grandest stage. And the Rams lost a Super Bowl many felt they shouldn’t have even reached, given the officiating gaffe that helped them to beat the New Orleans Saints in the NFC championship game.
The Patriots were playing in a third straight Super Bowl and a fourth in five years. Brady had said there was no chance he would retire after this game. Still, he seemed cognizant that while the end of the dynasty might not be quite at hand, it is near.
“We came up short last year and I think that stuck with me all year,” Brady said in a pregame interview with Westwood One, “and I know how badly I want this one … I asked God this week, ‘One more, and I’ll never ask for one more.’ ”
Few expected a Super Bowl like this, beginning with a first half in which the two teams combined for a mere three points.
The Rams punted six times in the first half while managing only two first downs and 57 yards of total offence. Goff was shaky. Gurley was a non-contributor again, following an NFC title game in which he ran for only 10 yards. The 33-year old McVay didn’t look quite so genius-like.
The Patriots dominated the half, with 195 yards on offence. Edelman had seven first-half catches. Even so, the Patriots were not clicking on offence. They squandered two timeouts in the first quarter. Brady had his first pass of the night intercepted. He was sacked for the first time during this postseason and absorbed hits on several other occasions. The Patriots passed up a field goal try, then failed on a fourthdown gamble in Rams’ territory shortly before halftime.
The Patriots ran the ball effectively on their opening drive, but Brady had a pass tipped by cornerback Nickell RobeyColeman, the anti-hero of the NFC championship game, and intercepted by linebacker Cory Littleton. Brady joined Jim Kelly and Ron Jaworski as the only quarterbacks to have thrown an interception on their first pass of a Super Bowl.
Robey-Coleman was called for an illegal hit on the Patriots’ second possession — two weeks too late for the New Orleans Saints and their fans — but the drive ended with an ugly se- quence for the New England offence. The Patriots called timeout, then failed to get a first down with a third-and-eight running play, then had Gostkowski miss a 46-yard field goal.
The Patriots also came up empty on a third possession on which Brady was stripped of the ball on a sack, with New England recovering the fumble, and then was flung to the turf by Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald on a third-down incompletion. Gostkowski connected from 42 yards. But with just over a minute to play in the half, Belichick left his offence on the field for a fourth-and-one bid from the Rams’ 32-yard line. Brady threw incomplete for Gronkowski, and the Super Bowl had its second-lowestscoring first half.