That Was One Terrible Super Bowl

The Super Bowl happened last night.

I watched it.

I hated it.

And it ended as I should have expected.

I have been pretty vocal about my dismay for this particular Super Bowl. I was not looking forward to it, but I watched it anyway because, as I have stated, I am a football junkie. But boy oh boy was this game an absolute clunker. I said last Friday that I thought it was going to be a "slog", but this game was horrible. It was so much worse than a slog. The game started off bad, got worse and just grew and grew in its horribleness from there.

For example, Tom Brady's first pass was an interception. No need to worry though, the Rams immediately went three and out, something they would do most of the game. This game set the record for fewest points in a half. It set the record for fewest points ever in fact. Neither team could really ever establish the run. I know that Sony Michel got close, or maybe even eclipsed, 100 yards, but a ton of that came on one long run deep into the fourth quarter. He was also the only person to score a TD in the game by the way. Tom Brady just seemed kind of off all night too. He made a couple of beautiful throws, but he also had some that were way off. His interception was a horrible throw. He skipped a ton of passes. It was rough.

Julian Edelmann played really well, but he was so wide open, how could he not catch the ball. He got the MVP, I think Michel, or someone from their defense deserved it, but Edelmann got it. Rob Gronkowski had a few nice catches, but again, he didn't really do much of anything that jumped off the screen to me.

The Rams were god awful offensively. They could not do anything at all. Jared Goff was atrocious. I know he is still young, but man did he look scared and flustered and out of his element. The Rams O line could not block at all. Goff was under constant pressure. Brandin Cooks was blanketed all game long. None of the other receivers got any separation either. And where in the hell was Todd Gurley? I mean, is he hurt? Did he do something wrong? Did he not feel well? Was he too tired to play? I have no idea why he barely saw the field. I know that CJ Anderson played very well against the Saints, and since he was signed by the Rams. But he is no Todd Gurley. The Rams needed him, and they needed him badly last night. I do not get his almost total absence.

Sean McVay really shit the bed as the head coach last night. He, much like Goff, just seemed in over his head. He too was out of his element. He did not seem ready. He did not seem like the "wunderkind" that he has been praised as sine last season. And to his credit, he is still a very new head coach.

But the monster that is Bill Belichek simply put him in his place last night. That is the thing with the Patriots. They don't care how they win, as long as they win. Belichek did just that. His offense was so god damn ugly, but his defense shut down one of the top offenses in the NFL. As I just stated, the Rams could not move the ball at all. Any time they had any momentum, the Patriots shut it down pretty quickly. Any time Goff had time, he either took a sack, or he missed throws. He had Cooks WIDE OPEN in the third quarter, and the pass was underthrown and lazy. Anderson never got going. The Patriots shut them down.

The Rams defense was also great. They held the Patriots to 13 points. That should have been more than enough for them to win. Sure, Suh and Donald didn't play as great as they usually do, but they still got occasional pressure, causing Brady to make those bad throws. The Rams secondary did an okay job of stopping every Patriots receiver except for Edelmann.

This was just a disaster of a game. I was not, at any single moment, excited to be watching the game. The halftime show was super forgettable. The commercials were fine, but nothing that I will think back on as great.

Some final thoughts, Edelmann got the MVP, as I said, but he is not a Hall of Famer, no matter what Nate Burleson or anyone at The Ringer says. He is a fine player, but he is not a Hall of Famer. The Rams are not ready for primetime, and neither is Sean McVay or Jared Goff. Bill Belichek proved, again, that he is a great head coach. The Patriots need to stop this whole, "no one believed in us" narrative. They are great and no one has ever counted them out. And Todd Gurley deserved to play more. This was a boring game, I'm glad it is over and I hope Roger Goodell leaves as commissioner and the NFL gets back to being fun again. I mean, I like defense, but this game was not about two great defenses, it was just a very, very poorly played football game.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He was shocked that the awesome Tony Romo never reminded the audience that Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelmann missed the first four games of the season because of a PED suspension. Wonder why that was left out?

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A Halfhearted, In Depth, Look at Super Bowl 53

There is a big football game this Sunday, and no I am not talking about any college football all star game, or the XFL or the American Alliance of Football. I am talking about Super Bowl 53. The Los Angeles Rams are playing the New England Patriots. And yes, it sounds just as boring as you may feel right now. But I’m a professional so I must do what all us internet sports writers do, talk about the game.

I have said it on the podcast, and this is the first time I am writing it, but I have ZERO interest in this game. I have no rooting interest. I am sick of seeing the Patriots in the Super Bowl. For a sport that is supposed to have parity every year, this is the third straight year they are in the game. This is, I don't know, something like the tenth straight time they have been to the AFC title game. And this is the, I want to say, eighth time, the Patriots have been in the Super Bowl in the last 17 years. That is more than half of the Super Bowl's in almost 2 decades. I'm over them.

I also loathe this whole narrative that they are somehow the "underdogs". That "no one" believes in them. That Tom freaking Brady has to go to a party and chant, "We're still here". It is so, so, so stupid. No one buys it except dumbass Patriots fans. They are not the underdogs. The majority of people I read, and myself and RD included, picked them to be in, at the very least, the AFC title game this year. Knock that shit off.

As far as the Rams go, I am from Saint Louis, and it bums me out that they moved, but I have no ill will towards them. I despise Stan Kroenke, and what he did, and how he did it. But he is the only person I truly hate that is involved with the Rams. I think Sean McVay is a solid coach. Jared Goff is a decent QB. Todd Gurley is totally awesome. I like Ndomankong Suh. Aaron Donald is the best defensive player currently in the NFL. But, they do not deserve to be in this game. They got in because the refs blew a massive obvious pass interference. The DB admitted it. The NFL admitted it. The NFL fined the DB that hit the receiver after the fact. But the refs did not call the penalty during the NFC title game. They blew it. They put the Rams here. They wanted the story lines that are now being blown way out of proportion during Super Bowl week. It is, at least in my lifetime, the worst no call ever.

With all this being said, like a good pop culture / sports writer, I am going to pick the game. But, I truly don't care. This is the first Super Bowl I can remember in my lifetime that I have no real interest in the game. At least in year's past I had team's I could root against, if the Packers weren't playing. I don't like the Seahawks, so it was fun to root for whoever they played. I have never liked Peyton Manning, so when he played, it was easy for me to root for the NFC team. I like to root against the Steelers, so when they played, I just stood up for the other team. Even last year, I had the Eagles to root for because of Brandon Graham, and I wanted Mike Lombardi from The Ringer to have to eat crow. But this year, I just do not care. I know I keep repeating that, but it is true. This game is going to be a slog. But, I will watch it because I am a football junkie, and this is the Super Bowl.

If I look at it with just a fan's eye, the Rams should win. They have the better, younger players overall. Yes, the Patriots have Tom Brady, and he is the greatest QB ever, but that seems to be the only advantage they have. The Rams have better receivers. They have much better backs. They have the better O line. And this is the time for McVay to prove his "offensive genius". The Patriots are not good defensively. They can be run on, and they are susceptible to the play action pass. That is where the Rams thrive. As far as the defensive side of the ball, again, on paper, the Rams are better. They have a ferocious pass rush led by Suh and Donald. They have heavy hitting linebackers that can cover. They have a solid secondary. The Patriots have experience, but that is not always what will win the game. Sometimes talent just wins out. And that should happen this Sunday.

Notice I keep saying "should". The reason you may ask, two things, Tom Brady and Bill Belichek. Ooh, and lets add a third, the refs. Belichek is, for all his shortcomings as a human being, gosh I despise him so much, is a genius football coach. He knows how to take away your best players and plays and frustrate you. He usually thrives in the biggest games. The same thing can be said for Brady. Even if you look at the Super Bowl's the Patriots have been beaten in, he played well. He threw for over 500 yards last year. He puts the ball on the money, even if Wes Welker drops it. He is legit the best QB ever. And then we have the refs. They are clearly on the side of the Patriots, no matter what they and their boneheaded fans say. The refs love Brady, Belichek and anyone involved with them. They will give them the benefit of the doubt. There was the no PI call in the NFC title game, but look at the roughing the passer call in the AFC title game. Brady got his shoulder touched, and the refs called roughing. That is clear evidence that the refs are in their pocket.

On paper, I have the Rams winning, and wining with ease. But, when I really look into everything, the players, coaches, refs, star players, I still have the Rams, but in a much closer than it should be game. I think the Rams will win because they will be able to run the ball and keep Brady off the filed. They will control the clock. I also expect Suh, but more so Donald, to make a few big time plays, be it sacks or forced fumbles or even just making Brady release the ball a hair earlier than he would like. So I have the Rams winning a very ugly game by a score of 23-17.

There you have it. Enjoy the game I guess.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He wants to know when the sports media will proclaim Ty as the greatest football caller guy in the world, you know since they are eager to anoint an overrated retired qb.

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