BOYZZZ!
...had Lynch not made the end zone they would have had to throw the next time anyway after burning their last timeout.
Numerous sources reported the same information. Lynch had faced the exact same situation 5 times during the year, and he only succeeded once. That's a 20% chance of success based on numbers alone. What many miss is the Butler interception was NOT really a fluke as many suggest. He had made several key plays from the 3rd quarter on, being involved in plays that helped directly in stopping two Seattle drives. This was going on exactly when the Patriots began a succession of 4 straight successful drive stops against the Seahawks...PUNT, PUNT, PUNT, INT. Butler being there at the last Seattle play was no accident. He had well earned his place. There's no way he is on the field at the most critical juncture of the game if he hadn't been very good. Remember, it was he who defended Kearse needing three miraculous bounces to get the ball.
The idea that a seemingly bad decision is the only thing this game turned on is plain NUTS.
I am a Lions fan and I will never see my team in the Superbowl but I can appreciate good play by others.
It will come Hungry though it can seem eternal. I got through 30 tough years with the Patriots and 38 with the Red Sox. Look at us now.
The stupidest call that I have ever witnessed in professional sports, Carroll needs to be fired just for the stupidity of the call, he handed the Patriots the win on a silver platter, he has one of the best running backs in the league and he pulls a stunt like that(could a fix been in the works considering the amount of money bet on the game?), ...
You kill me. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :crazy:
YOU MAD JOE!!! What an obsession with conspiracy you have. If you don't like something it's a conspiracy. This time the Seahawks, the refs, the NFL or just everyone and everything. At least it's an equal opportunity paranoia. Oh wait, I get it. The bookie won..again. Seeinh what was going on and being in the right place to jump the route for an interception against a guy who has 20 to 25 lbs on you is brilliance with toughness, NOT being handed anything.
Football analysts defend Seahawks’ controversial play call
http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl...versial-play-call/ar-AA8UDoX?ocid=mailsignout
Everyone from fans to reporters to former NFL players is ripping Seahawks coach Pete Carroll’s play call in the closing seconds of the Super Bowl.
Yet there are a few brave souls who have come out to defend Carroll’s decision, saying that despite conventional wisdom, Carroll’s call made statistical sense. The ultimate result, Malcolm Butler’s spectacular interception of Russell Wilson at the goal line with 26 seconds left, sealed the Patriots’ 28-24 victory.
MORE: Must-see Super Bowl photos | Butler seals Super Bowl with INT | Russell Wilson: 'We thought we had 'em' | Watch fans react to Wilson's game-ending interception
Brian Burke, founder of Advanced NFL Stats, defended the decision in a column Monday on Slate.com, noting that, "Had Seattle run on second down and failed, it would have had to use its final timeout. This would mean that New England would know a pass was very likely on third down. If that had happened, the Internet would now be bashing Carroll for an entirely different reason.”
Burke echoed Carroll’s statement after the game that the Seahawks had their passing set on the field (three wideouts) facing the Patriots’ goal-line defense, making a pass much more likely to succeed.
MORE: The Tuck Rules: No, it was the worst call ever
Burke isn’t alone in the NFL statistical universe in defending the controversial play call. Alok Pattani, analytics specialist for ESPNStatsInfo, tweeted that, “Execution, i.e. Butler’s great play, had MUCH bigger impact than call, based on prior knowledge. Easy to second guess knowing result.”
Other statistical odds were in the Seahawks favor by passing on that play. First, five times this season, the Seahawks gave the ball to Marshawn Lynch on the 1-yard line; four times he failed to get into the end zone. ESPN also reported Monday that NFL teams this season on the 1-yard line were slightly more likely to score a touchdown by passing than running; teams that passed scored a touchdown 61 percent of the time, versus a 58 percent success rate for running the ball.
Finally, there had not been an interception thrown from the 1-yard line by an NFL quarterback all season.
Then, there is the factor few are talking about: Butler made an exceptional read, break to the ball and interception. It’s the type of play that defies any analysis of probable outcomes.
“We were going to run the ball in to win the game, but not on that play,” Carroll said Monday. “I didn't want to waste a run play on their goal-line guys. It was a clear thought, but it didn't work out right. The guy (Butler) made a play that no one would have thought he could make.”
IE - Butler the defender was an unknown with very real talent. You just don't walk on as a total unknown to a team like the Patriots and be on the field at the most critical moment of the season without having shown a heck of a lot. No way Belichick allows that otherwise, never mind any other coach would feel the same.
Cheers,
Merlot
