Super Bowl 51 will be forever known as one of the greatest in NFL history as not only did it feature a massive collapse and comeback, but it was also the first game to go into overtime. With Super Bowl LVI quickly approaching, we look back on the madness of Super Bowl 51 between the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots.
The first quarter of Super Bowl 51 was a snoozer despite the high-powered offenses
In order for there to be a comeback, there needs to be a deficit. Yet, rarely do you see a team getting blown out of the water the way New England was early on. Representing the AFC with a 14-2 record, the Patriots were the clear favorite. Tom Brady was on a quest for ring No. 5, but the Falcons were not a team to be taken lightly.
While the Patriots were third on the season in points scored at 441, the Falcons dwarfed them and the league with a staggering 540. They were No. 1 in yards per play as a team (6.7) and knew how to hold on to the ball, ranking sixth in time per possession.
The first quarter was nothing but a feeling-out process by both teams. Neither could get much done offensively despite gaining decent yards. Both teams traded punts on their opening four drives, and the first quarter ended in a 0-0 draw, with New England having possession of the ball.
This is where the tides of the game began to change and set the scene for arguably the most remarkable comeback in not just Super Bowl but NFL history.
Atlanta pours it on in the second quarter of Super Bowl 51
The first miscue takes place on the second play of the second quarter. LeGarrette Blount fumbled the ball on a run to the left, which the Falcons’ Robert Alford recovered. This set the Falcons up with the ball on their own 29-yard line.
It took Atlanta only 1:53 to capitalize on this mistake. In just 2 receptions by Julio Jones, the Falcons were on the New England 29. Three Devonta Freeman runs, including a final 5-yard carry, had the Falcons in the end zone for the game’s first points. After a successful Matt Bryant kick, they led 7-0. This only started the barrage of points.
After a three-and-out by the Patriots on the next possession, the Falcons drove 62 yards in under 110 seconds. A TD pass from Matt Ryan to Austin Hooper made it 14-0. Then the wheels fell off for New England. On a drive that consisted of 9 Brady passes, the final one was costly and nearly broke the Patriots’ back.
Having driven 52 yards on 11 plays, Brady and the Patriots were on the Atlanta 23. Targeting Danny Amendola on a slant route, Alford read it perfectly. He undercut the route, intercepting Brady, and was off to the races. Alford never stopped, recording an 82-yard pick-six to put the Falcons up 21-0 over the Patriots, who seemed lost. While the Patriots did manage to kick a field goal on their next possession, they trailed 21-3 going into halftime of Super Bowl 51.
Atlanta was running the ball down New England’s throats, and Ryan posted a perfect passer rating. Not a single person — aside from maybe the people in the Patriots’ locker room — thought this Super Bowl had a shot of being close, let alone go to overtime. What came next was the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history.
New England gained momentum in the third quarter of Super Bowl 51
After Lady Gaga entertained the crowds in the halftime show, little did anyone know what was about to take place. Both teams traded punts coming out of the intermission following halftime adjustments. On the Falcons’ second possession, they found the end zone for the fourth time. An 8-play, 85-yard drive that took 4:14 off the clock was capped off by a Tevin Coleman 6-yard rushing TD to place the score at 28-3. Well, we all know what this number means now.
Brady and the Pats answered with a long drive of their own. They drove down the field, seeming to wear down the Falcons’ defense. After going 75 yards on 13 plays spanning just under 6.5 minutes, RB James White caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Brady. However, Stephen Gostkowski clanked an extra point off the upright to leave the score 28-9. The Falcons punted the following possession to end the third quarter. While the gap was still 17 points, it seemed the tides were close to swinging in New England’s favor.
History was made in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl 51
Following a three-and-out by Ryan and Atlanta, the Falcons punted on the first play of the fourth quarter. New England then marched down the field on a 12-play, 72-yard drive. Gostkowski converted the 33-yard field goal to bring the score 28-12. Remember, no team had ever come back in a Super Bowl by more than 10 points. The last team to come back from a 10-point deficit was the Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX against Seattle. But 25 points? No way.
Atlanta got the ball back, and disaster struck. On third down, Ryan was strip-sacked by Dont’a Hightower at the Atlanta 25-yard line, which was recovered by DE Alan Branch. Five plays later, Amendola was in the end zone, and the score was 28-18. A successful 2-point conversion by James White meant this was a one-score game at 28-20.
The Falcons were reeling but not dead. A 39-yard short-pass to Freeman got them breathing room and out to their own 49. Two plays and a 27-yard catch by Jones had them in field-goal range on the New England 22. Then it fell apart.
First, Ryan was sacked back to the 35. Then, a holding penalty pushed them back to the 45 and out of field-goal range, which likely would have iced the game. There were less than four minutes on the clock, and the Patriots already had burned a timeout. Instead, the Falcons did the worst time management imaginable. They punted and gave the ball back to Brady and gave him a chance to take the Super Bowl to overtime.
New England comes up clutch and forces overtime in Super Bowl 51
On their own 9-yard line, the Patriots were 91 yards and a 2-point conversion from immortality and Super Bowl history. No Super Bowl had ever gone to overtime. They needed to be clutch. After two incomplete passes, Brady hooked up with Chris Hogan to convert a third-and-10 to move the sticks.
Then we got one of the most absurd catches ever, rivaling David Tyree in Super Bowl XLII. Julian Edelman somehow got his hands around a ball that Alford of the Falcons initially deflected and bounced off his foot and shin. Edelman trapped the ball against Alford’s foot, then got both hands underneath the pigskin. The catch was upheld on review. It was good for 23 yards and a first down at the Atlanta 41 with 2:03 left.
Four plays later, White plunged into the end zone to make it 28-26. A successful 2-point conversion by Brady to Amendola capped off the comeback and set up overtime in Super Bowl 51.
At this point, we all knew what was about to happen. Atlanta was defeated. There was no other way this game was going to end.
Brady and the Patriots win Super Bowl 51 in overtime
“Heads.” The referee tossed the coin and confirmed the Patriots had won the toss. Less than 15 minutes later in real time, confetti was flying in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Brady was on fire. He striped a 14-yard pass to Amendola and an 18-yard throw to Hogan. He then found Edelman for 15 yards. A well-designed screen to White got 10 more. A pass interference call put the Patriots at the 2-yard line. It was elementary now. White ended the game with a 2-yard run up the right to seal the deal and any doubt on who the greatest player in NFL history was in the process.
In the end, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had to hand the Vince Lombardi Trophy over to the Patriots and Brady, who he had suspended earlier in the year for four games in the Deflategate scandal.
White’s 20 points set a new Super Bowl record for points scored by a single player, knocking down Denver Broncos RB Terrell Davis and 49ers’ greats Jerry Rice (twice), Ricky Watters, and Roger Craig, all of whom had 18 points. In total, 24 records fell, most of which involved Brady, including passing yards (446), pass attempts (62), completions (43), MVP awards (4), and career Super Bowl wins (5). Super Bowl 51 was historic, not only for the comeback but to be the first Super Bowl ever to enter overtime.