Super Bowl XLVIII Review

Super Bowl XLVIII

Seattle Seahawks 43,. Denver Broncos 8

East Rutherford, New Jersey

February 2, 2014

Wow! Who saw this coming?

This game reminded me of the Super Bowls of the late eighties, when the Broncos managed to get to the big game, again and again, only to get pounded and ultimately humiliated by a far superior NFC opponent.

Back then, it was the New York Giants, Washington, and San Francisco.

This time, it was Seattle. 

You knew something was wrong right from the get go. On literally the first play of the game after the kickoff, some miscommunication between Peyton Manning and his center resulted in the ball flying well past Manning, going to the back of the end zone, for an early safety, and a 2-0 Seattle lead. It took just 12 seconds for the Seahwks to take a lead, and that set the tempo for the rest of the game. They never gave up the lead, and Denver never seriously challenged them, or even remotely got back in the game, after their horrendous start.

Not only did they give up the two-point safety on their first offensive play of the game, but also, Denver gave up the ball to the Seahawks, who were able to move it down the field, although they were not quite able to get the touchdown. Instead, they got the field goal, and a rather bizarre football score with their 5-0 lead. 

And still, the Broncos did nothing with the ball. 

But, perhaps like most people at that point, I just assumed it was nerves, and kept thinking, "Just wait until Denver gets into gear offensively!"

Well, we're still waiting. At this point, we'll be waiting until next season for that. 

Seattle seemed to be having some problems of their own in the first quarter, settling for field goals instead of touchdowns. With Denver's dangerous offense, it seemed unlikely that that would be enough. 

But as it turned out, on this day, Denver's offense was exposed. They had seemed to be the most dominant, well-oiled offensive machine in NFL history. But by the end of this game, it was clear that a very solid defense in the mold of great defenses of the past could expose their weaknesses. The Broncos offensive line could protect Peyton Manning, and give him enough time to get the ball to receivers consistently. Plus, the Seahawks were far faster than Denver, and their secondary more than adequately kept the Broncos vaunted wide receivers in check. Denver receivers were bobbling balls all day, and Manning was pressured and hit all day. Several times, Seahawk defenders were able to hit his arm while he threw passes, forcing him into bad passes, including two very costly interceptions (both of which turned into Seattle touchdowns). He was also stripped of the ball by a defender as well in the second half.

You look at many of the numbers, and they really don't seem all that bad for the Broncos. The time of possession was more or less even, and Denver actually had one more first down than Seattle did in the game. Even in total offensive yards, both teams did well numerically, with over three hundred yards of offense each. The Broncos had half the penalties that the Seahawks did. Manning completed 34 passes - a Super Bowl record - in 49 attempts, for 240 yards. Thirteen of those passes were caught by wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, also a new Super Bowl record, for 118 yards and one touchdown. 

The problem? Well, those stats are deceptive. The number of completions was probably the result of the necessity of Manning's passing game, because they had fallen so far behind. The touchdown pass to Thomas was the only touchdown pass that Manning threw - at least to a Bronco. He threw two interceptions, including a pick six in the second quarter, when the Broncos actually seemed to be finally getting into gear, and threatening to at least put points on the board, finally. They were down at the time, 15-0, and urgently needed something, some kind of scoring. Instead, that interception by Malcolm Smith, who was named the Super Bowl MVP, put Seattle ahead, 22-0. They never looked back after that. 

Any slim and flickering hopes of a possible Denver comeback in the second half were pretty much extinguished on the first play to open it up again, when Percy Harvin took a bouncing kickoff that was pretty clearly intended so that he would not get the ball, and still nonetheless ran it the distance for another Seattle touchdown, and a stunning 29-0 lead. From there on out, the game was effectively out of reach for Denver, and they almost looked like they were going through the motions, wanting to get this game over with, and go home. The touchdown that they did manage to eventually score, far from appearing like a serious bid to et back in the game, looked more like an effort simply to avoid the embarrassment of being the first team in Super Bowl history to get shut out - which would have been especially humiliating given Denver's status as a record breaking offense this season.

I had personally wondered if Seattle's defense would be stretched too thin, and find themselves overmatched -  and possibly overwhelmed, by Denver's offensive might. Denver could stretch the field after all, right?

Fact of the matter is that Denver never faced a defense that was as capable of containing them as Seattle's proved to be. It seemed that the Broncos offensive style actually played right into the strengths of the Seahawk defense. The short passing game, constantly chopping away at their opponents, was Seattle's specialty. Far from stretching the field, Denver found themselves unable to do anything offensively for the first time all season - and it couldn't have happened at a worse possible moment. 

Nothing worked for Denver on this day. Not their record setting offense. Not their defense. not their special teams. Except for one relatively meaningless touchdown drive late in the third quarter that, in effect, prevented a shutout, the Broncos never seemed to even show up. 

In the meantime, Seattle's offense did make big plays. Russell Wilson, who I thought might have a bad case of the nerves, being so young (he is only in his second year, after all), actually played brilliantly, completing 18 of 25 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns, for a whopping quarterback rating of 123.1. Also, his scrambling abilities kept Denver's defense guessing pretty much the whole game through. They never had an answer for him.

Denver got beat in almost every way one team can be beaten by another. Seattle scored plenty of points on offense, and they got that touchdown to open the second half on special teams. But perhaps the most telling statistic is that the Seattle defense scored more points than Denver's offense. 

I picked Denver to win, and obviously, I was way off. Yes, we all knew Seattle's defense was good. But this good? Sure, I knew Seattle winning was a distinct possibility. In fact, I even admitted that my head told me that looking at it logically, great defense, especially one with a solid, punishing running game, will beat great offense. But admittedly, I thought this Denver team was an exception. They established all sorts of records, after all, right? I was taken in by the numbers, and by the flash.

In truth, Seattle left no doubt that they were not only the better team, but the far, far better team, to boot. They seemed to have Denver beaten on virtually every play. 

The one part of Seattle's game that Denver really did seem prepared for was the running of Marshawn Lynch, who only had 39 yards on 15 carries, although that included a second quarter touchdown that gave Seattle a 15-0 cushion. 

Seattle Seahawks - Super Bowl XLVIII Champions

Some Asides:

The Seattle Seahawks won their first ever Super Bowl trophy. They had only been there once before, back in the 2005 season, and lost a game which was largely forgettable to the Steelers. That game is best known for the relatively poor play of the stars involved, as well as for the poor refereeing involved in that one. They won this game decisively, and now have a 1-1 record in Super Bowls.

As for the Denver Broncos, they earned the dubious distinction of becoming the first franchise to have lost five Super Bowls. This was their seventh overall appearance, and they now own a 2-5 record in the NFL's biggest game.

Halftime Show - I think Bruno Mars did a pretty decent job with it, all told. It was funny to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers there, a band that I have liked for a very long time, now. They still have quite a lot of energy to them, and still seem very fit, given their age. But they were pretty rocking, and truth be told, I was hoping for more than just one song from them. But, all in all, a solid halftime show! Yes, at least this dud of a game featured a halfway decent halftime show! Not sure if it qualifies as a saving grace, but it kept things interesting, at least. That's more than can be said of the Denver Broncos!

Nationalism - One aspect of quite a few sports, but especially football, that troubles me, is the prominent display of nationalism (as opposed to thoughtful patriotism) that is on prominent display. But for the Super Bowl, the league seems to go into hyperdrive. Watching the nationally televised broadcast, there were numerous displays of nationalism throughout, including a lengthy segment where players and prominent Americans recited the Declaration of Independence, which was shortly followed by the singing of "America the Beautiful", which was itself then soon followed by the national anthem. I know that Americans like to pat themselves on the back quite a bit, and still remain stirred by shows of nationalistic flare, but it has become a fairly major distraction, and something that I do not feel all that comfortable with, frankly. 

The Weather - For all the talk about how adversely the cold weather of northern New Jersey could be for the game, it turned out to be one of those rather freakish warm days for February in the region. Ironically, as I write this just hours after the game, it is now snowing here, and we are expected to get several inches of snow. But, for the game, the weather really could not have been more ideal. 

Peyton Manning & His Legacy - I do not know what this loss will do for Manning's legacy. I would hater to think that he walks away from the game after this beat down. But, given his health concerns, particularly with his neck, it's not impossible. My guess is that he will return. The question is whether this was the last we will see of Peyton Manning in the Super Bowl? Denver is still a very talented team, but this humiliation will likely have an effect on them. Seattle really exposed many of the weaknesses that Denver's offense probably had all along. It just took a an exceptionally capable defense to expose them. Also, although everyone knows his strong credentials, it's hard to imagine that people won't remember the actually rather forgettable performance that he had in this game, simply because it was a Super Bowl - and a highly anticipated game, at that! This was a huge loss that Denver suffered, and the images of the most visible face on that team, Peyton Manning, frowning and frustrated, both on the field and on the sidelines, through what turned out to be a very long evening for the Broncos, will likely last for a very long time and, indeed, be part of his legacy. He had the opportunity to become the first quarterback to win the Super Bowl with two different teams. Instead, he will be remembered for what could have been, but wasn't meant to be. Fair or unfair, this will be remembered, although few are those who will actually question his greatness. He surely must rank as one of the top five quarterbacks of all time, no question.