Even though I’m not a football fan it’s hard to not to still be incredibly excited at the way the Patriots pulled out that Super Bowl victory. At the gym tonight that’s all you heard in conversation. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has been getting grilled over the coals all day for that second-and-1 pass call that resulted in the interception, but the debate is still raging on.
One thought: can you imagine what the scene must have been like at the Wynn Las Vegas sports book with all that gambling and dough-re-mi on the line? It must have been beyond incredible.
Here’s a question for Goodboys Nation followers from someone who ought to know these things but doesn’t: you look at the replay and you can see how Malcolm Butler kind of jams Seattle’s receiver at the same time the ball gets to him, preventing him from catching the ball. Why wouldn’t that be called pass interference?
Because they’re both going for the ball at the same time. If Butler had tackled the receiver or held him, that would have been interference, but both players have a right to the ball.
Comment by Dave Richard — February 3, 2015 @ 7:09 am
Dave is right. They were both going for the ball. Butler got there first. He made a fantastic play.
Comment by Rob — February 3, 2015 @ 8:15 am
Thanks guys! See the kind of expert resources available at just the snap of a finger at Goodboys Nation weblog? Very cool.
Comment by The Great White Shank — February 3, 2015 @ 10:17 am
Now to put you both on the spot: what about that 2nd down call? Was the call correct but the kind of pass play ill-advised? Should they have run Marshawn Lynch and called their final timeout? Or, do you buy the Seahawks simply blew it because they saw the Pats run defense on a situation where they could have gone pass or a haf and half which makes Belichick look like a genius?
Me? I think I would have called my last timeout, then kick a field call to bring the game within one point simply to torque off all the betters who had the Pats by 3? 🙂
Comment by The Great White Shank — February 3, 2015 @ 10:40 am
I fully expected the Pats to use their own timeouts when the Seahawks made the big play to get down to the five yard line. If Seattle scores there, they go up by 3 and the Pats only need to get within field goal range to send the game into overtime. By letting the clock run, he was going all in and putting the game on his defense to keep the Seahawks out of the endzone. It was gutsy on his part. Second-guessing is a coach’s scourge but I don’t think either coach made any grievous errors in judgement.
Comment by Rob — February 3, 2015 @ 11:29 am
By the way, who you calling an expert? 🙂
Comment by Rob — February 3, 2015 @ 11:29 am
The pass play was a good call for one reason only – if you go incomplete on a quick pass you stop the clock without burning a timeout. Otherwise, it was a terrible call.
The Pats had stopped Lynch a couple of times during the game, but not in a goal line situation. I doubt they could have stopped him with 2 tries given how tired everybody was.
Comment by Dave Richard — February 4, 2015 @ 6:37 am
Better than Havlicek stole the ball.
Better than Orr’s O.T. goal in 1972.
Better than a David Ortiz walk off home run.
Who would have thought this replacement
D.B. would have beaten the receiver to the ball. After that crazy catch the Seahawks receiver made i’m sure everyone thought the Seahawks would win. Now the question is: Who
is the greatest quarterback of all time?
Another Championship hat!
Cubby.
Comment by Ron "Cubby" Myerow — February 4, 2015 @ 5:59 pm
Actually, Cubby, at the gym tonight there was a jamoke still insisting that Peyton Manning was still a better QB than Tom Brady.
I’ll grant you Malcolm Butler’s play puts him near the echelon of sporting achievements in Boston sports history but nothing will top Dave Roberts’ steal of second in the 2004 ALCS. You have to remember at the time (and looking three World Series championships later) the whole “Curse of the Bambino” stuff. The Sox wouldn’t have won their first World Series in 86 years with Roberts steal. To this day it’s amazing he wasn’t called out; the play could have gone either way.
Comment by The Great White Shank — February 4, 2015 @ 10:44 pm