It didn’t seem possible.
Then, the New England Patriots did the most “Patriots” thing ever.
This is the game my grandkids will ask about, and I will be able to tell them of the time that Tom Brady served a four-game suspension and won a Lombardi Trophy in the same season.
It wasn’t just a normal Super Bowl win either; it was the most dramatic and drastic comeback in Super Bowl history.
It all started when Julian Edelman made an unreal catch late in the fourth quarter and turned the entire game around.
I watched every single replay just waiting to see the ball touch the ground and have the catch be overturned, but every angle proved that Edelman pulled off one of the most clutch catches, maybe ever.
This historic Super Bowl LI brought me to tears, first because I saw the team crumbling through the first three quarters of the game, then because I saw the Pats do what the Pats do and turn a 19-point deficit into a 34-28 win.
The Atlanta Falcons looked tired, timid and collapsed under the pressure of the veteran New England team late in the third quarter.
Within four plays, the Pats were able to tie the game up and force overtime, while forcing my nerves and heart rate far beyond normal.
I swear it is like this franchise wants me to agonize every single Super Bowl and the Pats just don’t make it easy on their fans.
Elise Amendola/ AP Photo
This game was one for us, proving to everyone that we are the NFL powerhouse and no matter what the commissioner, other franchises or other fan bases do or say, New England comes up when it matters.
Without Rob Gronkowski for an important portion of the season, several players stepped up for the remainder of the season and into the Super Bowl.
Running back James White came up strong in this game with a total of 14 receptions and the game-winning touchdown.
Brady also now holds the record for Super Bowl yardage with a whopping 466 yards.
It all came down to the clutchness of this team and the way they make plays- find the passing lanes and crash through like a bat out of hell.
After a clutch performance like Brady showed in the last quarter and overtime, there is not a single person who can put up a legitimate argument saying that Brady is not the greatest quarterback of all time, and us New England fans don’t call him the GOAT for nothing.
And those people who would try to make an argument against it probably were also part of the Deflategate conspiracy and are mad because their team hasn’t won five Super Bowls in the past 15 years and their quarterback isn’t the winningest quarterback in Super Bowl wins.
There are some numbers that prove that this game was not one the Pats were supposed to win after halfway through the third quarter.
According to ESPN, the Falcons’ win probability was 99.6 percent after kicker Stephen Gostkowski hit a 33-yard field goal with less than 10 minutes left in regulation.
The number one rule in journalism is speaking truth to power, and one thing that we know is that the Patriots and Tom Brady overcome all odds.
What a time to be alive as a New England sports fan.
At 21 years old, I have witnessed five Super Bowl wins, three World Series Championship wins, one Stanley Cup and one NBA title.
My dad and grandparents tell me all the time how privileged I am to have been born when I was and witness all the greatness these franchises have put forth in the past 21 years, and they’re right. I still can’t believe it and have been reeling since Edelman’s catch.
While the game was obviously unbelieveable, the trophy presentations were the best, most comfortable and awesome thing I have witnessed in a while.
When NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had to hand Patriots owner Robert Kraft the Lombardi Trophy, the body language from Kraft said it all.
On top of that, the presentation of the MVP trophy from Goodell to Brady said it too, for the body language alone was enough to get me fired up. This may be the single greatest moment between a player and the commissioner of a sport.
There is just something incredible about sports and how a win or a loss can literally make or break an entire fan base.
The entire vibe in Keene, New Hampshire, on Sunday night after the win was something so unreal to witness.
Sports bring people together and people forget about what else is going on in the world as they get behind a team and a game.
This game is one that I will never forget and will live on in infamy in the minds of all sports fans.
I think Tom Brady Sr. summed it up best when he said, “We don’t need anybody’s approval to validate everything that he’s done,” according to Sports Illustrated.
Mary Curtin can be contacted at Mcurtin@kscequinox.com