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The inconsistency. That’s it. That’s the story.
Brady took advantage of the call and later found Antonio Brown for the score.
After that touchdown, Tyrann Mathieu walked up to Brady and started jawing, and then put a finger in Brady’s face. He was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct but, again, officials usually just separate players and tell them to shut up.
Officiating is often in the eye of the beholder. But there’s no question the game officials called this game unusually tight, and poorly, and it likely stunned both teams.
It shouldn’t have because this is always how NFL officiating goes.
9. Tyrann Mathieu flagged in end zone
Brady didn’t exactly need any help advancing the ball, but he got some anyway. After Breeland’s penalty in defense of Evans, Mathieu got one of his own, and in the end zone — resulting in the ball being placed at the one-yard line. You can guess what happened next and, no, it wasn’t another impressive goal line stand.
Chiefs’ repeat bid doomed by struggles up front in Super Bowl LV loss to Buccaneers | NFL.com
According to Next Gen Stats, Mahomes traveled 497 yards before throwing the ball or being sacked Sunday night, the most scramble yards in a game by any quarterback in the Next Gen era (since 2016). What was once a rare sight — Mahomes dropping to pass, retreating further and winding around the field, desperately trying in vain to find an open target — became commonplace Sunday night, typifying the night for the Chiefs.
Kansas City Chiefs’ dynasty delayed by Super Bowl 2021 loss | ESPN
“We can’t let this define us,” Mahomes said. “We have to continue to get better going into next year and prepare ourselves to hopefully be in this game again. We knew it wasn’t always going to be successful and we weren’t going to be able to win 1,000 championships in a row. We knew we were going to go through times like this and adversity. I think the best thing about it is the guys we have have the leadership ability to be even better next year.”
Super Bowl 2021: Patrick Mahomes gets history lesson from Tom Brady in blowout loss | CBS Sports
Mahomes gave credit to Tampa Bay’s defense, and Kelce also praised the Buccaneers for shutting down Kansas City’s high-powered offense.
“They made us kind of dink and dunk and take what was there,” Kelce said. “They put a cap over top and didn’t let us get behind the defense. It was frustrating. It was one of those days where it felt like anything you did they had an answer for.”
For Mahomes, this was his first double-digit loss in the NFL and first since his Texas Tech team lost to Iowa State 66-10 in 2016. He had gone 35 starts without losing by more than seven points, which was the second-longest streak to start a career for Super Bowl-era quarterbacks. Russell Wilson has the most with 38.
The Winners and Losers of Super Bowl LV | The Ringer
Winner: Patrick Mahomes’s Highlight Incompletions
I honestly can’t think of a signature moment from Super Bowl LV. There were no successful trick plays, no unbelievable touchdowns, no momentum-shifting turnovers. The longest touchdown of the night was on a run by Leonard Fournette, who continued the Saga of Playoff Lenny.
And so the most incredible play of the game was … probably this incompletion from Patrick Mahomes. After yet another offensive line breakdown, Mahomes was left trying to escape Bucs pass rusher William Gholston. Gholston eventually snagged Mahomes’s ankle, but as the QB was falling, he managed to make a throw—one that traveled 30 yards in the air, sailed over the outstretched fingertips of Bucs defender Devin White, and bonked into Chiefs running back Darrel Williams’s face before falling harmlessly to the turf.
O QUE ACONTECEU AQUI. #RunItBack #NFLBrasil pic.twitter.com/XWVjFa6I7M
— NFL Brasil (@NFLBrasil) February 8, 2021
Things didn’t go Kansas City’s way Sunday night, but oddsmakers have already installed the Chiefs as Super Bowl favorites for next season.
The Chiefs, listed at +550 at Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill, are the favorite to win Super Bowl LVI. The Green Bay Packers are next at +900, followed by the champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers at +1,100.
The Buccaneers defeated the Chiefs 31-9 on Sunday, becoming the biggest preseason long shot to win the Super Bowl since the 2001 New England Patriots, who were also quarterbacked by Tom Brady.
Around the NFL
Super Bowl streaker was planted by disgraced YouTube star | New York Post
The unidentified Super Bowl streaker who wore a neon pink thong suit and had more success running than the Chiefs was part of a marketing ploy for a porn website.
The x-rated site launched by YouTube star and prankster Vitaly Zdorovetskiy was emblazoned on the man’s top.
“We did it,” the 28-year-old Zdorovtskiy tweeted shortly after the man was pinned down by security guards in the fourth quarter of Tampa Bay’s 31-9 win.
It’s not yet known what punishment the streaker will face for the incident.
Zdorovetskiy, who also has ran onto the field during World Series and World Cup games, has had several run-ins with the law.
This week they became the first pair of female coaches on a single team to coach in the Super Bowl, while referee Sarah Thomas became the first official to work a Super Bowl. Last year, Katie Sowers became the first female coach to coach in the Super Bowl, when the San Francisco 49ers lost to the Chiefs 31-20.
“It was time to knock those doors down,” said Bucs coach Bruce Arians, who made a conscious decision to seek qualified women for roles on his staff.
Rob Gronkowski says he’ll ‘remain unretired’, sees himself returning to Bucs in 2021 | NFL.com
“I’ll remain unretired. I’m a free agent,” Gronkowski said, via the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala. ... “But I definitely see myself coming back.”
Gronkowski caught six passes for 67 yards in Super Bowl LV, including receptions of eight and 17 yards that both went for touchdowns. His two trips to the end zone were Tampa Bay’s first two scores of the night, giving the Buccaneers a 14-3 lead midway through the second quarter with a connection that has proven to be all too familiar for the other 31 opponents in the NFL.
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Andy Reid says his ‘heart bleeds’ for girl fighting for her life after son’s wreck
“I know I haven’t had a chance to address you since the accident happened that my son was involved in,” said Reid after the loss. “My heart goes out to all those that were involved in the accident, in particular, the family with the little girl who’s fighting for her life. And listen, it’s a tough situation. I can’t comment on it any more than what I am here, so the questions that you have, I’m going to have to turn those down at the time, but just from a human standpoint, my heart bleeds for everybody involved in that.”
A reporter questioned Reid as to whether it had any impact on the team’s preparations for the game.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you my heart bleeds for the people involved in it,” answered Reid. “I mentioned that. And so, again, we had put the game plan in the week before — and so the distraction wasn’t a distraction as far as the game plan goes. That was already in — and how we were going to work with it and go forward. So I would tell you, anything — it’s a loaded question. From a human standpoint, yeah, it’s a tough one. From a football standpoint, two separate things. From a football standpoint, I don’t think that was the problem.”
A tweet to make you think
KC used 5 man protection on 92% of dropbacks (48 of 52). They left those two backup OT's w/o help & it was a big mistake. h/t @NextGenStats
— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) February 8, 2021
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