AN A-TO-Z RUNDOWN OF SUPER BOWL WEEK
College bowls? Done. Senior Bowl? Done. Pro Bowl? Done, and thank goodness for that.
That leaves one bowl game to be played this football season: the big enchilada, the Super Bowl, next Sunday night in Houston.
The NFL championship game pits the AFC champion New England Patriots (16-2) against the NFC champion Atlanta Falcons (13-5), in what’s shaping up as a shootout-for-the-ages between the NFL’s two most accomplished passers this season, Matt Ryan and Tom Brady.
The hype kicks off Monday evening at the home of baseball’s Houston Astros, Minute Maid Park, with the interview rodeo once known as media day. Here’s an A-to-Z primer on the week ahead’s principal characters and storylines, before the game: A ATLANTA
Connector city has played host to more Super Bowls (two, after the 1993 and 1999 seasons) than its home NFL club has reached (in the 1998 season). B BILL BELICHICK
Cheating charges aside, the Patriots’ chief curmudgeon can coach football like few, if any, in the history of man’s inhumanity to cowhide. Belichick would be as likely as any to pull off in real life the line Bum Phillips once Texasdrawled only in theoretical homage to Alabama’s Bear Bryant: he not only takes his and beats yours, but could take yours and
beat his. C CASH INCENTIVES
Players get paid salaries only during the regular season. The paltry-by-comparison winner’s share for each player on this year’s Super Bowl champion is $107,000. Loser’s share: $53,000. D THOMAS DIMITROFF JR.
The Ohio-born, Ontario-raised general manager of the Falcons maxed out his own football-playing abilities at Burlington’s M.M. Robinson High School (1984-85) then at the University of Guelph (1986-89). As the namesake son of a football coach and scout long respected on both sides of the border before his death in 1996, Thomas Jr. got his big break in 1995. E JULIAN EDELMAN
Tom Brady’s go-to receiver, and the only pass-catcher in this game who already has snared a Super Bowl-winning touchdown pass, two years ago against Dan Quinn’s Seattle Seahawks defence. F DEVONTA FREEMAN
After Ryan, this fast, powerful, under-regarded running back is the key to the Falcons’ attack. G ROGER GOODELL
Instead of on the usual Friday morning, the NFL Commish this year will evade probing questions on Wednesday morning. And on Thursday he’ll presumably do it again, at a different presser to reiterate the league is allocating another hundred-mil toward brain-injury prevention and research. H HALL OF FAME
On Saturday, veteran members of the Pro Football Writers of America will huddle for hours,
and finally decide on this year’s inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Likeliest of the finalists: RB LaDainian Tomlinson, S Brian Dawkins, QB Kurt Warner, DE Jason Taylor. I MATTY ICE
That’s the nickname of Atlanta QB Matt Ryan. Despite a couple of statistically impressive seasons, the No. 3 overall selection in 2008 had been viewed overall as something of a disappointment before this season. One more win would dispel such assessments. J JULIO JONES
Probably the most physically gifted player at his position in this game, the Falcons wide receiver appears fully healed from the toe injury. K KEANU NEAL
The Falcons’ standout first-year safety forced five fumbles, and finished second on Atlanta to fellow rookie Deion Jones in tackles (with 105, 72 solo). Has a tough job against the Pats, weighing run-stop responsibility with pass coverage against New England’s field-spreading attack. L LADY GAGA
Halftime performer. M MVP
The league MVP, that is, and it’s likely to be Ryan, although Brady is in the running, too. This and other regular-season awards will be handed out late Saturday afternoon, and aired on TV Saturday night. N NUMERALS
As in Roman numerals. They’re back as the official Super Bowl identifier. Last year’s (Super Bowl 50) was a one-off. This year’s is Super Bowl LI — ‘L’ for 50, ‘I’ for 1.
O OWNERS
Arthur Blank, the retired cofounder of Home Depot, owns the Falcons. Robert Kraft, one of the most influential men in the league, owns the Patriots. P MATT PATRICIA
Next to the Houston traffic-complaints head operator, the Patriots defensive coordinator has the toughest job of anybody. Q DAN QUINN
He’s the Falcons head coach, finishing up Year No. 2. R RISE UP
The Falcons’ rallying cry. S MOHAMED SANU
Was there a player relocation in 2016 that impacted two teams more than when Sanu — the big, blazing-fast wide receiver — waved bye to Cincinnati and signed as a free agent in Atlanta? Answer: no. T TOM BRADY
Patriots quarterback. You may have heard of him. U UNDERDOG
That would be the Falcons. V VINCE LOMBARDI TROPHY
What both teams are playing for — the NFL championship trophy, named in honour of the famed Green Bay Packers and Washington Redskins head coach shortly after his death in 1970. W WE ARE ALL PATRIOTS
New England’s rallying cry. X XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX
Previous Super Bowls won by Kraft, Belichick and Brady. Y YARDS RECORDS
Plenty of these have been set between the two offences this season. Z ZEBRAS
That is, the game officials. The seven refs have over 90 years of experience among them. JoKryk@postmedia.com