Super Bowl 49: 5 takeaways
By Ryan Ratty
4. Patriots’ Dink-and-Dump Offense
Al Michaels said in the first quarter of this game that Tom Brady was 1 for 22 in his Super Bowl career at throwing passes 20 yards or more. This game was going to be hard to change that stat considering how good Seattle has been against the pass this season. Knowing their ability to create turnovers down the field, the Patriots used a dink-and-dump offense. What that means is that Brady threw the ball to his fourth routes and he let his guys underneath create space by breaking tackles.
Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola are two of the shortest, yet toughest receivers in the league and they really did their part in this game. The two combined for 14 receptions for 157 yards and two touchdowns. Shane Vereen also contributed with 11 receptions for 64 yards. In a game where the Patriots couldn’t move the ball vertically down the field, New England’s slot guys came up huge, even though they may be small in stature.
Next: 3. Malcolm Butler Saves the Day