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Congratulations are in store for the Super Bowl XLVIII champions, the Seattle Seahawks. They completely shut down the Denver Broncos in a dominant victory, 43-8. It's the Seahawks' first championship in franchise history.
The game got off to an odd start. On the very first play after the opening kickoff, there was a miscommunication between Peyton Manning and center Louis Vasquez. The result was a prematurely snapped ball that rolled into the end zone and was downed by the Seahawks for a safety. It was the fastest score in Super Bowl history, having been registered only 12 seconds into the game. (Kudos to whoever hit big on that prop bet.)
The Seahawks never looked back from their fast start. Going into the half, Seattle held a 22-0 lead. The Broncos offense was rendered utterly ineffective thanks to a historically good Seattle defense. League MVP QB Peyton Manning's first half stat line: 17/23 for 104 yards (4.5 avg), 0 TD, 2 INTs, and a 46.3 QB rating. And now's a fun time to remind you that Eagles quarterback Nick Foles only threw 2 interceptions the whole 2013 season.
The second half didn't start off any better for the Broncos. Seattle returner Percy Harvin fielded a short kickoff and took it to the house for a touchdown just 12 seconds in. The rout continued for the rest of the game. Denver scored their only points of the contest on the last play of the third quarter, but any attempt of a comeback was short-lived. The Seattle Seahawks simply dominated the game in every phase. The Broncos may as well not have even showed up.
Unless you are a Seahawks fan, it was hard to call that experience a very entertaining affair. The game was a lopsided match where the Seahawks came up big in every way that the Broncos came up small. Peyton Manning finished 33/48 for 266 yards (5.5 average), 1 TD, 2 INT, and a mere 72 QB Rating. The Seattle defense showed up big having forced a total of four turnovers. Second year Seahawks QB Russell Wilson put together a nice performance with a line of 18/25, 206 yards (8.2 average) for 2 TD, 0 INT, and a 123.1 QB Rating.
The Super Bowl MVP was the entire Seattle defense Seahawks linebacker Malcolm Smith. Smith recorded 9 tackles (4 assisted), 1 pass defensed, 1 fumble recovery, and 1 interception that he returned for a touchdown.
It's funny to think the weather wasn't a factor at all despite this being touted as a "cold weather" game since it was announced years ago. The lack of weather issues surrounding this event could bode well for other cold cities who desire to host a Super Bowl. That could be good news for Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, who expressed interest in a future Philadephia-hosted Super Bowl earlier this week.
Now that the Super Bowl is over, the off-season officially starts for all teams. Everyone is undefeated again! Next up is free agency, then the draft, then OTAs and training camp until finally it all starts again this fall.
Congratulations to Field Gulls and Seahawks fans everywhere on their big win.
