The 28-3 Super Bowl
The biggest comeback in Super Bowl history. Trailing the Falcons 28-3 in the third quarter of Super Bowl LI, Tom Brady and the Patriots scored 31 straight points to win the first overtime Super Bowl.
Tom Brady, 2017: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY 4.0
Atlanta in control
The Atlanta Falcons had the highest-scoring offence in the NFL in 2016, led by MVP quarterback Matt Ryan and receiver Julio Jones. In Super Bowl LI they ran away from the New England Patriots. Robert Alford returned an interception 82 yards for a touchdown, and midway through the third quarter Atlanta led 28-3.
No team had ever come back from more than 10 points down in a Super Bowl. Some fans began leaving, and plenty of people at home changed the channel.
New England, coached by Bill Belichick, had allowed the fewest points of any defence in the league that season, which made the early collapse even more shocking.
Chipping away
Tom Brady led a touchdown drive to make it 28-9, though the extra point was missed. A field goal made it 28-12. Then, in the fourth quarter, linebacker Dont'a Hightower strip-sacked Ryan and New England recovered. Brady hit Danny Amendola for a touchdown, and a two-point conversion made it 28-20.
Atlanta drove into field goal range but lost yards on a sack and a holding penalty and had to punt. Brady got the ball back with three and a half minutes left.
The catch and the tie
On that final drive Julian Edelman made one of the most amazing catches in NFL history, grabbing a deflected ball inches from the turf between three defenders. James White scored on a short run, and another two-point conversion tied the game 28-28.
For the first time ever, the Super Bowl went to overtime. New England won the coin toss and marched 75 yards, and White ran in from two yards out. The Patriots had scored 31 straight points to win 34-28.
The legacy
Brady threw for 466 yards, a Super Bowl record at the time, and won his fifth ring and fourth Super Bowl MVP award. The game is still the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history, and 28-3 has become shorthand in sports for any lead that is not as safe as it looks. Brady later won two more titles, one with New England and one with Tampa Bay, and retired with seven Super Bowl rings, more than any single NFL franchise. Coaches still show the game to young players as proof that calm execution, one play at a time, can turn hopeless numbers around.
Running back James White was the quiet hero, scoring three touchdowns and setting a Super Bowl record with 14 catches.
- Tom Brady, 2017: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY 4.0
- NRG Stadium, Super Bowl LI: VOA News - B Allen, Public domain
Text written by Shining Champion.
