JNR
Elio Addict
As a Pats fan, my initial reaction was thank you Pete Carroll for that stupid call, but as time passed I realized what you and Ty have said. I also initially thought Belichick was stupid for not calling a time out.Yep, agreed on your points. Also, Seattle chose to let the clock run down for at least 25 seconds before that pass play. And yes, it was a good idea to let the clock run down, because they didn't want to leave much time for Brady to bring the Pats back for a tying field goal attempt.
Here's a likely scenario: Seattle chooses to run the ball instead of throw on that play, and let's say NE stops them. Now it's 3rd down from the 1 or 2 yd line, Seattle stops the clock with their last timeout, there's around 20 seconds left. You can try a run play then, but that would pretty much be the last play of the game if they don't get it. Can you see it coming? People would then be saying "oh, you've run the ball on 1st and 2nd down, and didn't make it... why did they run again on 3rd down, knowing that if you don't make it there, the game's over??!!" lol It's what we humans do best.
It's a big chess match for the coaches: at any point in the game, maybe you're trying to look like a pass when you want to run on offense, trying to line up to stop the run then drop 7 into pass coverage on defense. For this particular play, it's 2nd and goal from the 1 yd line. Most football minds say the offense is going to run the ball. After that, it's a guessing game for the coaches.
Carroll and the Seahawks honestly thought the pass play called was a "waste" play... if a TD, great. If no TD, it's incomplete and the clock stops. They still have 1 timeout, maybe they caught NE looking to stop Lynch. It's really not the much of a stretch. It was a just an amazing defensive play by the NE player.
Other than the Celtics, my first 30 years of life was watching one championship disappointment after another and had become accustomed to second guessing (taking injured Bill Buckner out of game 6 for defensive purposes, Grady Little leaving Pedro in for too long against the Yankees, etc...). However, the last 15 years has helped to give me a more relaxed outlook.
There are many possible outcomes, but for me it comes down to #1, it is just a game, and #2 luck is involved, and #3 it does depend on execution. Think about Kearse's catch to get it to the 6 yard line, if Patriots #30 Duron Harmon kept playing the ball, Kearse probably would have never caught the ball. The interception by Butler is a great play and probably would not happen more than 1 out of every 100 plays, Browner kept Kearse from setting a pick of Butler that allowed the interception to occur. Butler also perfectly timed the play and was hit pretty hard upon catching the ball. Think about how often DB's can't catch a ball because their hands just aren't as good as receivers.