Super Bowl LII(E), For The People: A Circus With An Unexpected Result

For two weeks, I had deliberated whether I wanted to do my annual tradition of an upscale sports bar to watch the game, for respect of friends of mine near where I live who have disowned football.

I decided, about 45-60 minutes before kickoff, to do so.

I'm glad I did -- had I not, there'd be about a mile-wide crater where my jaw dropped.

Vegas has just shit itself.

• Only one favorite covered this playoffs.  (IIRC, it was the Patriots in the division round.)
• Eagles won.
• Game went over well before the end of the 3rd quarter.

I can't believe I'm about to say this:  The NFL finally rigged a game for the people.

This NEVER HAPPENS.  But it happened today, as a nation finally sick of all the Patriot hype finally got one, and the league made sure it was a circus that the one-time viewers of the NFL would not forget.

• Last Chance Miss:  Hail Mary to tie it at the gun fails.
• Ends within one score, but no Cliffhanger.
• An NFL record for the most yards in ANY GAME -- regular, post, or Super Bowl.  (1,152)
• If the Eagles didn't get smart and run seven minutes off the clock for the winning touchdown drive in the fourth quarter, Tom Brady would've broken Norm van Brocklin's record for passing yards in a game, any game.  He was at 403 yards, 3:23 to go in the third, and 457 9:22 in the 4th.  I think he ended with 503.

And I'm sure I already have people saying that this proves it's not rigged.

You have three questions to answer me then:

• Why was the hit on Brandin Cookes which eliminated him from the game not penalized?  First play of the drive after New England got away with a defensive pass interference (which they got several of those no-calls in the game, let's be honest here -- they got away with a lot of nit-and-pick, but there are three calls that decided the game for the Eagles that raise serious questions...). Cookes catches for 23 yards, turns to look up field, and is helmet-to-helmet ANNIHILATED by Malcolm Jenkins.  Out for the rest of the game, head injury -- Brady's biggest deep threat gone.  No call, no penalty, and Cris Collinsworth trying to cover it up as a non-defenseless situation.  That was a penalty, and, if the league rumors are right, next year it's a toss!!!
• How is that Zach Ertz touchdown a touchdown in Minneapolis, but Jesse James in Pittsburgh was not?  This is the call that basically clinched it for me, once everything had happened, that the league actually was handing one to the general public and to the Eagles.  Two and a half minutes to go, 33-32 New England, 3rd and 8 on the New England 12.  Foles to Ertz, Ertz clearly gets three feet down field of play, then is taken to ground, but the ball pops out, far more obviously than James' "no catch" did.  After lengthy deliberation, touchdown to Philadelphia.  Now, don't get wrong:  The call was right.  But how is THAT a touchdown in the Super Bowl and James' was not in the game which might well have made Pittsburgh Philly's opponent today???  
• And, for the record, that was not the only Philadelphia touchdown which Cris Collinsworth felt ran afoul of all the Calvin Johnson chicanery either.  (The Clement touchdown in the third quarter was also similar -- but, also, to my failing eyesight, a touchdown.  The Ertz one was far more obvious, though.)
• And then, lastly, one which might get under people's radar.  NBC showed a replay of the Hail Mary, as the celebration began for the Eagles.  If you can find it again, watch the ground-level replay of a New England receiver on the play getting completely WIPED OUT of the play at about the 35.  No illegal contact??? (The camera is following Gronkowski, obviously, but the fact is that you can see, I think it's #17 or something for New England just get ERASED from the play illegally.)
  
• There was, in fact, an additional huge no-call in the Ertz TD drive for the Eagles as well...  2nd and 9, about midfield, completed pass for 10 by Foles, but only because James Harrison was being MUGGED in the open field.

EDIT TO ADD:  Why I did the overstrike above:  Someone found it and posted the still on his or her Twitter:  It was #15, Chris Hogan...

I’m more concerned about @ChrisHogan_15 getting talked 15 yards down field on the final play. #rigged pic.twitter.com/SSWHUraA7T

— Chris Howell (@NDgolfpro) February 5, 2018

As Brian Tuohy well pointed out, they were setting the table for you -- there were a number of questionable no-calls benefiting the Patriots...

• The Defensive Pass Interference on the Philly drive early 2nd quarter on 3rd down, where Foles also could've run for the first down on the same play!
• A forearm to the head by Steven Gostkowski on a kickoff return at the 2 minute warning of the first half.
• That whole reverse to wide receiver pass to Foles thing would not have been necessary if the pass interference on the 3rd down play was called (made no difference -- they got the six anyway).
• Possible intentional grounding on Brady 2nd and 6 at the Philly 22 on the first drive of the 2nd half.
• For the record, both defensive holding calls which aided drives for the Patriots were good calls.
• A bad pass-interference on the last 2 point conversion to keep the lead five.

At the end of the day, though, the NFL actually went with the public and made Anti-Patriot Nation happy.

So I'm now left with three questions of my own:

• First, to "Bettor X", who has another $10 million or so to collect:  What do you know, and who do you know?  Between that World Series and this Super Bowl, you're somebody who has the inside info on the major events.  It's clear that you have pre-information as to who's going to win and all after some of this chicanery.  You can bet (pun intended) a lot of people are going to continue to watch you in the future!
• Secondly:  Why the reversal?  The clearest answer would be to whipsaw the conspiracy theorists such as myself.  I'd agree with this to a certain extent, until you look at the three defining no-calls of the game all going to Philadelphia in a game in which one call could make the entire difference.
• And finally, and what might turn into the biggest sporting event in years:  Does the NFL have information on Alex Guerrero?  As I have said for a number of weeks, it would've taken something huge for the NFL to change off the Patriots, especially after how obviously the Patriots were installed as favorites after the debacle in Pittsburgh.  Lacking a #MeToo, it appears the cleanest route to it is that the league has information it chose not to disclose on Tom Brady's doctor Alex Guerrero which indicates Brady is not clean.  I do, however, still believe that this has been Tom Brady's last game, and I now believe that Brady's dirty and the NFL knows it.

I mean, be happy, NFL Nation...  This doesn't happen every day.  The underdog babyface usually does not win in the Roger Goodell National Religion Era.  So be happy, but understand, this was a change -- and the real news may come if we ever find out why...