The confetti fell, the Gatorade bucket was splashed, and just like that, the NFL season is officially over. Down four points to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX, the Seattle Seahawks ran a pass play from the 1-yard line, and it was intercepted with 27 seconds left. After 11 years of waking up in cold sweats from the dumbest call in the history of the NFL, Seattle fans can finally get a full night’s sleep after the Seahawks dominated the Patriots 29-13 to win Super Bowl 60. This season truly belonged to the Seahawks and Mike Macdonald, 38-year-old head coach, who turned a mediocre franchise around in just two years.
As for the game itself, quite frankly, unless you are the kind of person who loves to watch a defensive battle — I do not know many — the game was pretty boring. The score at the end of the third quarter was 12-0, and even though it was only a two-score deficit for New England, it felt like the game never really got close. The Patriots’ young and exciting offense, led by MVP candidate quarterback Drake Maye, was completely stifled by the Seahawks defense, who — to their credit — put on one of the greatest defensive performances in NFL history.
The game brought up a legitimate question as to whether Maye is overrated. His talent is undeniable, but only time will tell whether he can distinguish himself from the new crop of quarterbacks. It was arguably his first real challenge of the season, as the Patriots had the easiest schedule of any NFL team since 1999. His best victory came when he played the Los Angeles Chargers in the first round of the playoffs, but it was the defense that won that game for them by holding the Chargers to a measly 3 points.
The most exciting part of the Super Bowl came from the performance of the MVP, Kenneth Walker, who rushed for 135 yards and had a staggering 27 carries, the most in a Super Bowl since 1998. He was pretty much unstoppable in the backfield, bursting through a gap with top-notch speed after waiting patiently behind his linemen. It was his dad’s first time seeing him play in the NFL: How is that for a first?
Although he didn’t have a standout performance in this game, Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold solidified one of the great resiliency stories in NFL history. Many people, including myself, counted Darnold out, concluding that his career was an unfortunate and all too familiar story of a top draft pick never really finding his stride, inevitably teetering out of the league as a backup.
Boy, did he prove me wrong. On his fifth team in eight years, he led the Seahawks to a 14-3 season, secured the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and won the Super Bowl. Somewhere out there, every former New York Jets quarterback just nodded proudly.
Many Super Bowl headlines included the star-studded halftime performance by Bad Bunny and the overwhelming number of artificial intelligence commercials. By halftime, it felt like the NFL was sponsored by robots, and the eerie commercials felt more like a reminder that we’re entering a ‘brave’ new world in which it’s not exactly clear what role humans will play, if any. That’s not to say there weren’t some funny moments, like this Good Will Dunkin’ commercial featuring old sitcom stars.
A few of the big storylines from a season full of surprises: the powerhouse teams of last season, like the Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens, all severely underperformed, but none more than the Kansas City Chiefs. Is the dynasty over? Rest in peace to the old guard of quarterbacks, who have been replaced by a new and exciting group, including Jordan Love, Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix, who will lead the NFL into the next decade.
Make an exception for Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who won the MVP award but fell just short of the Super Bowl in the NFC championship game. In one of the biggest trades in NFL history, defensive end Micah Parsons was sent from the Dallas Cowboys to the Green Bay Packers, who showed they’re going to be a problem going forward.
If you’re like me and already miss the football season, check out these way-too-early ESPN power rankings and mark your calendars for April 23 when the first round of the draft commences. The Las Vegas Raiders are currently on the clock and are strongly expected to select University of Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, coming off his Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff National Championship year.