NFL Conference Championships Usher In Seahawks-Patriots Super Bowl
The combattants of Super Bowl XLIX were decided on Sunday in the NFC and AFC conference championships, in which Seattle came back to win against Green Bay 28-22 in overtime and the Patriots steamrolled the Colts 45-7.
The Green Bay Packers walked onto CenturyLink Field in Seattle with naysayers every which way. An away game against returning Super Bowl XLVIII champions, not to mention an indomitable defense, were odds nobody thought the Packers could overcome.
However, the Packers soared to a 16-0 lead in the first half, shocking many. Seattle’s quarterback, Russell Wilson, underperformed to an unheard-of degree in his successful career. Three interceptions and hardly any yards showed an unsure, sloppy side to Wilson that had never been shown before.
Despite their lead, the Packers played more conservatively than the GOP’s political views throughout the game, which spelled their end in the long run. On two separate occasions in the first half, Green Bay found themselves on the one yard line on fourth down, but kicked field goals rather than punch in seemingly easy touchdowns. In the next two quarters, they slid down after the fourth interception and attempted to run the clock out with running plays with five minutes to spare.
Seattle finally got themselves onto the scoreboard in the second half with a fake field goal and a pass from kicker Jon Ryan to lineman Garry Gilliam to build some unstoppable momentum. This combined with a lackluster defensive performance - Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch went uncovered on a deep pass and a two-point conversion was completed across the field to a very covered man (rookie safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix assumed the play was over and did not attempt to make a play) - saw the score advantage dwindle, until the teams were sent into an overtime in which Seattle won in their first attempt with a final score of 28-22.
In the other conference, the game was a very different story from start to finish. The New England Patriots came into the game as favorites to win over the rebuilding Indianapolis Colts, and they took no hesitation to prove that.
In the first half they took a ten point lead on the Colts at 17-7, and then proceeded to score 28 unanswered points in the next two quarters for a total score of 45-7. The Patriots took a lead two thirds the size of Green Bay’s at half and hammered the opposition until there was no chance of a comeback.
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady threw for 226 yards and three touchdowns, a performance that makes his sixth Super Bowl start a deserved one. Running back LeGarrette Blount took the ball to the end zone on three separate occasions, with an impressive average of almost five yards per carry over thirty carries.
For the Colts, their collective performance wasn’t nearly as laudable. Young quarterback Andrew Luck struggled to find his receivers all game, only completing a little over a third of his intended passes and giving up two interceptions. His yards came up to merely half of Brady’s, and the rushing yards of running back Dan Herron were negligible.
Some controversy was sparked shortly after the game, however. Rumors have spread about deflated balls to give the Patriots an advantage. A tweet on Tuesday confirmed that eleven of the twelve balls used by New England were deflated by two psi, and an invenstigation by the NFL is underway.
Pigskin trickery aside, the Super Bowl is shaping up to be an intense one with New Engand’s Tom Brady returning for yet another appearance in the final dance and Russell Wilson coming back for his second consecutive shot. Seattle and New England have only allowed for a total of 13 and 12 points, respectively, in the fourth quarter of their last eight games, so a defensive battle may be in store.
