NFL: Richard Graves looks back on a memorable week in Phoenix for Super Bowl XLIX
Thursday 5 February 2015 12:15, UK
Stunning! Incredible! Sensational! Unbelievable! These are all words I heard used at the end of Super Bowl XLIX and all described, in part, the drama and sense of disbelief inside the University of Phoenix stadium as the curtain came down on a thrilling and at times, controversial NFL season.
It was a fitting end to a week in Phoenix where the contrast between both the teams and fans could not have been starker. The defending champions, Seattle Seahawks flew into Arizona on Sunday and went straight to their team hotel where they were greeted by a raucous, confident group of Seahawks fans - numbering at least 1,000. The players loved it!
The New England Patriots followed 24 hours later. Instead of fans, uniformed police officers sat with lights flashing on top of their vehicles, waiting to escort the Patriots’ bus up a long and secluded road to their hotel.
Then came the impromptu statement from owner Robert Kraft, vehemently defending the team, but in particular head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady against any suggestions they tampered with footballs ahead of the AFC Championship game against Indianapolis.
Kraft went so far as to say the NFL should publicly apologise to the Patriots unless they uncover hard evidence of any wrongdoing! It was a statement which ensured 'Deflategate' would be the underlying story all week.
The chaos of media day came on Tuesday in the confines of the US Airways Center. A man dressed in little more than a barrel wandered around, asking questions of anyone who'd listen and giving a few interviews of his own.
One Hispanic station resorted to using puppets to grab the attention of players and coaches while thousands of fans were able to watch on from the stands. A giant screen gave them close up views of the most sought after players, while they were able to listen through radio earpieces and look on as thousands of the world's media asked questions about anything from pre-game preparations to how well they could salsa dance.
Demeanour
It must have looked surreal to those watching. Again though, the difference in demeanour was clear for all to see. Coach Belichick and his players rarely strayed from the team line - everything focused on the game. The Seahawks were relaxed, enjoying the moment, happy to crack jokes and in some cases actually show off their salsa dancing moves.
It was remarkable to be so close to the action on the field and see the pure, unadulterated ecstasy on the faces of the New England Patriots players mixed with the despair of the Seattle Seahawks.
Marshawn Lynch was the one exception, showing little emotion and rarely saying anything other than: "I'm just here to avoid getting fined." His distaste for these occasions was a story in itself for many of those present but his team-mates weren't concerned and for those fans in attendance, it further enhanced the aura surrounding the player and the team.
By Thursday, fans of all teams were arriving in numbers but there was no mistaking who the majority were supporting. It was impossible to walk five metres without seeing something blue and green. Seattle's fans were loud and proud. Chants of "Sea-Hawks" constantly flared up wherever we were in the city and at this stage they were outnumbering Patriots fans by at least 10 to one!
That changed a little by the weekend, New England's supporters battling through the awful winter weather gripping the north east to find their way to milder, if not always sunnier, Arizona. The rain of Friday and Saturday was not in the plan but it deterred no one. The fan park in Phoenix was heaving, while queues to get into the NFL Fan Experience in the convention centre snaked around the entire building.
Legendary quarterback Joe Montana did an autograph session and a three-hour-long queue took on a life of its own, winding through to radio row, doubling back on itself and circling the room again. By now the sense of excitement and anticipation was reaching a crescendo - everyone who was anyone was being asked for a prediction. Whether it was the Patriots or the Seahawks, the general consensus was it would be close, and so it proved.
Calm before the storm
As we arrived at 9am on game day, the stadium slowly appeared through the gloom. Mist shrouded most of it to give an eerily empty atmosphere - a sense of the calm before the storm. By midday the sun burst through. Suddenly there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The fan parks were ablaze with music, chatter and colour. The excitement of over 70,000 fans was palpable as all of them crammed into the stadium for Idina Menzel's rendition of the national anthem.
It was the prelude to a pulsating game; a game which ebbed and flowed and captivated its audience. Tom Brady, with three Super Bowl rings to his name already, had turned a 10-point deficit into a 28-24 lead by the time I made my way to the sideline near the Seahawks end zone, ready to rush onto the field and get some post-game interviews.
The game was still in the balance though, Seattle were driving. I couldn't have been better placed to see Russell Wilson's pass heading our way and Jermaine Kearse somehow, miraculously haul it in!
Seattle were in the red zone with the clock ticking down. Looking around the stadium, Seattle's fans were going berserk. In contrast, not for the first time this week, Patriots supporters were looking pensive, scarcely able to believe what they were witnessing. By now the Seahawks were at the one-yard line, timeouts to play with, the clock ticking below 40 seconds and Marshawn Lynch - the best power running back in the game - prowling, ready to punch in the go-ahead score.
I guarantee, no one inside that cauldron of a stadium expected Seattle to throw the ball in that situation - except, perhaps, Malcolm Butler. He was the player assigned to cover Ricardo Lockette. He was the player who drove on the ball. He was the player who beat Lockette to the spot. He was the player who stunned the world by intercepting Wilson's pass on his own goal line and ensuring the New England Patriots were crowned champions!
Ecstasy
It was remarkable to be so close to the action on the field and see the pure, unadulterated ecstasy on the faces of the New England Patriots players mixed with the despair of the Seattle Seahawks. It was a picture replicated in the stands above me, amplified by the overwhelming majority of Seahawks fans.
This was true drama and theatre on a night when history was made. Tom Brady may be the best quarterback ever to play the game. At the age of 37, certainly no quarterback has ever won more Super Bowls than the four he now has and when the day comes when he decides to hang up his cleats, Brady will be a first round ballot inductee into the Hall of Fame.
Contrast that with the Seattle Seahawks - a team who I genuinely believe thought they had won the game when they saw their offence camped on the one-yard line. Their players marched past me scarcely able to comprehend what had just happened. Some were questioning the play calling, some were in shock and some were realising they were champions no more.
For the first time all week the Patriots' players and fans were louder than the Seahawks. They were enjoying the moment when it mattered most and they were the ones, rightly calling themselves, champions.
It was a truly breathtaking end to a stunning and dramatic week. A week where it really was a privilege to have my job and witness, first hand, the greatest show on earth.
