Super Bowl XLIX Instant Classic: Patriots Hang On For Crazy 28-24 Win vs. Seahawks

David Tyree. Mario Manningham. These names of Giants wide receivers that made miraculous catches have haunted the Patriots ever since New York knocked off New England in both the 2008 Super Bowl and 2012 Super Bowl. Seahawks wide receiver Jermaine Kearse appeared ready to add his name to that cringe-inducing list as he made an absurd juggling 33-yard grab in the dying moments of Super Bowl XLIX tonight in Glendale, Arizona at University of Phoenix Stadium. Fortunately for the Pats and their fans around the world suffering PTSD, they got a major break this time around as Seattle made one of the worst calls in Super Bowl history: to throw the ball at the New England 1-yard line instead of running it in.

Patriots rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler made his first career interception count as he picked off Russell Wilson (12 for 21, 247 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 39 yards rushing) in the end zone to clinch a thrilling 28-24 victory for New England. It is the fourth Super Bowl title for the Patriots and their first since 2005. Tom Brady (37 for 50, 328 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs) earned his record tying third Super Bowl MVP in a game that will truly be talked about for as long as we live. Perhaps the best part is that this is one that should leave the many Patriots haters shut up for a quick second. I mean really, what can they possibly say now?

It was a bizarre game to say the least that felt like 2012 when Julian Edelman (9 catches, 109 yards) caught a 3-yard touchdown with 2:02 left in the fourth quarter that put the Pats up 28-24. The Seahawks had gone 80 yards in 29 seconds at the end of the first half to score on a gift 11-yard touchdown catch by something named Chris Matthews (4 catches, 109 yards) that tied it at 14 with two seconds left. We worried that Seattle had too much time left on the clock and another heart-breaking loss looked guaranteed after that circus catch by Kearse.

Nobody even scored a point until Brandon LaFell's 11-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter. That opened things up as Marshawn Lynch (24 carries, 102 yards) answered with a 3-yard touchdown run. The Patriots took a 14-7 lead with 31 seconds left in the half when Rob Gronkowski (6 catches, 68 yards) caught a beautiful 22-yard pass from Brady.

Brady was far from perfect, he threw a truly awful red-zone interception to Jeremy Lane (who gruesomely broke his arms on the return) in the first quarter then Bobby Wagner jumped in front of a pass intended for Gronk in the third quarter. It got bleak since the Seahawks outscored the Patriots 10-0 in the third on a 27-yard field goal by Needham's Steven Hauschka and 3-yard touchdown catch by Doug Baldwin (his only target of the game, thanks Darrelle Revis).

That just set the stage for the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history as the Pats rallied from 10 points down with a 14-0 fourth quarter against the defending champs. New England's defense finally stepped up and pitched a shutout. Danny Amendola (5 catches, 48 yards) cut it to 24-21 with 7:55 left thanks to a 4-yard touchdown catch. Shane Vereen also deserves plenty of praise after he caught 11 of 12 targets for 64 yards. The Patriots were forced to basically abandon the run and they eventually found success with some old school dinking and dunking.

This was billed as a legacy game for Brady and New England head coach Bill Belichick (who tied Chuck Noll with his 4th Super Bowl title) so they certainly delivered the goods. Seattle is a fantastic team and it wouldn't be a shock (sorry rest of the NFL) to see them meet again in next season's Super Bowl. At least we know that they are pretty much guaranteed to play each other in regular season, hopefully at Gillette Stadium after the Pats went to Seattle in 2012.

As Boston sports fans, we ran out of things to legitimately complain about since this is our ninth champion since 2002: Patriots (4), Red Sox (3), Celtics (1) and Bruins (1). However, I also realize that the older I get, the more I appreciate these since I understand more and more how difficult it is to do this time and again.

This never gets old; it also doesn't get any better in sports than this to see an unselfish team struggle in the beginning of the season, tune out the critics, listen to their coaches, steadily improve and then peak at the end when it matters most.

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Welcome To The AFC East: Where Everybody Is 3-3 After 6 Mediocre Weeks In 2012

Do you remember when the Patriots could put teams away when they had a comfortable lead? Can you recall a New England defense that made timely stops? Finally, what has happened to Tom Brady (36 of career-high 58, 395 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs) who used to be one of the most clutch athletes in sports history?

We are left with all these unanswered questions after yet another unexpected loss by the Patriots (3-3, 2-2 away) to an inferior team. In this case, the Seahawks (4-2, 3-0 home) benefited this afternoon from all of New England's mistakes in a 24-23 win by Seattle at rain-soaked CenturyLink Field.

The funny thing is that the Patriots' three losses so far this season are by a combined four points. That means two things: they've been in every game and they simply don't know how to close out a win against a decent opponent anymore. New England led 23-10 with 9:21 left in the fourth quarter but apparently, that's exactly where Seahawks rookie quarterback Russell Wilson (16 of 27, 293 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT) and his awful receivers wanted them.

Former Jets great Braylon Edwards cut it to 23-17 with a 10-yard touchdown catch with 7:21 left in the fourth quarter. Sidney Rice (3 catches, 81 yards) had the winning score, a 46-yard touchdown catch with 1:18 remaining. The Patriots bungled two chances to get a bigger lead between Seattle scores there but they were forced to punt both times. That's not even as bad as their bungled possession at the end of the first half that ended with Brady's intentional grounding penalty so a 10-second run off and no points. Brady had another intentional grounding called in the fourth quarter, what's with that (remember the last Super Bowl)?

He was off his game, especially in the second half. Brady badly underthrew a deep ball to Deion Branch (and why look for him in that spot?) in the third quarter which led to Richard Sherman's interception. Then he forced a pass to Wes Welker (10 catches, 138 yards, TD) in the fourth quarter and it deflected for Earl Thomas who picked it off.

After running the ball so well in the first five games, the Patriots seemed to leave that part of their team at home. Stevan Ridley, Brandon Bolden (who left with a knee injury) and Danny Woodhead combined for 87 yards rushing. The lack of a dependable running game really killed them at the end since they were forced to pass on every down which played into the top defense in the NFL's hands.

This game unfolded eerily similar to the loss at Baltimore in Week 3. In the same manner, the Patriots built up a lead after playing well on both sides of the ball then everybody (including the coaches) had a complete meltdown where everything went wrong.

Needham and Middlebury's Steven Hauschka gave Seattle a 3-0 lead with a 34-yard field goal. Welker answered with his second touchdown in as many games. He went 46 yards in the first quarter for a 7-3 advantage. Doug Baldwin (2 catches, 74) ensured that Kyle Arrington would see extended time on the bench in the second half with a 24-yard touchdown catch late in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Aaron Hernandez returned and made an impact with a 1-yard touchdown catch on a beautiful fade pass by Brady to the corner of the end zone. Gostkowski's 25-yard field goal made it 17-10 in favor of the Patriots but as I said before, it should have been more.

The only points of the third quarter came on Gostkowski's 35-yard field goal that extended the lead to 23-10. Brandon Lloyd (6 catches, 80 yards) and Rob Gronkowski (6 catches, 61 yards) had decent performanecs but I'd love to see them get more cracks in the red zone. Chandler Jones (9 tackles, 4 solo, 2 sacks, 3 quarterback hits, forced fumble) was a beast as usual.

As pathetic as this loss was, to a team that the Patriots normally should wipe the floor with, they still have no chance to lose the AFC East to the assorted cupcakes around them. More importantly, they will look to get back on track as they host the Jets (3-3) on Sunday afternoon (4:25 p.m., CBS) at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots will have to put another disappointing loss behind them as they try to put together the first full 60 minute effort of the season.

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