Patriots’ Dont’a Hightower strip-sacks Matt Ryan to force turnover (Video)
Patriots linebacker Dont’a Hightower strip-sacked Matt Ryan to force a turnover midway through the fourth quarter.
The New England Patriots have looked to find ways of scoring on the Atlanta Falcons, who have mostly dominated Super Bowl 51. Matt Ryan and Devonta Freeman have been the key cogs in getting the lead to two or three scores throughout, but the Patriots did begin working their way back in the second half.
In the fourth quarter, New England would make their mark again. Linebacker Dont’a Hightower strip-sacked Ryan, leading to the defense recovering the ball. They quickly marched down the field to score and get a two-point conversion. This made the score 28-20, Falcons.
Matt Ryan is SACKED.
— NFL (@NFL) February 6, 2017
And FUMBLES!@Patriots ball! #SB51 #Patriots https://t.co/o1lgQktgrI
Just like that, we have a one score game with seven minutes left to go in Super Bowl 51. So this is nowhere close to being over. The Patriots are attempting to pull off the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history after being down 21-0. It would be the latest accolade, along with another Super Bowl win, to add to their organization’s legacy under Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.
First, the Falcons offense would need to be stopped. Outside of one second-half touchdown, they have been quite. So the Patriots may have the momentum here to continue keeping Ryan and Julio Jones quiet, and taking over to score a touchdown to match the lead.
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The final minutes of the Super Bowl are set to be interesting. The pressure is on for both teams as they look to win the Lombardi Trophy.