Super Bowl LV Recap

The 2021 edition of the biggest sporting event of the year has come and gone. The Super Bowl brings hype so much bigger than a game, receiving similar treatment to a holiday in the U.S., and this year was no different.

Super Bowl LV featured the Tampa Bay Buccaneers versus the Kansas City Chiefs, who looked to go back-to-back after winning last year’s big game. Tom Brady made his tenth Super Bowl appearance  in contrast with young Patrick Mahomes who has had one of the greatest starts to a career the sporting world will ever see. Mahomes won one Super Bowl, a Super Bowl MVP and a league MVP in just three years of being a starting quarterback in the NFL. It was an exciting standoff between standout NFL players: Brady, a veteran, versus Mahomes, possibly the next generation’s greatest, not to mention  invaluable offensive weapons Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce for the Chiefs and Mike Evans and Antonio Brown for the Buccaneers. This game was certain to be one for the ages. 

Despite the impressive lineup on both sides, the game was not close at all. The Buccaneers jumped out to an early lead after the first quarter and never looked back, leading at half time 21-6 and winning the game by a score of 31-9. Naturally the country seems fixated with Brady winning his seventh ring, an unimaginable feat. . However, Brady’s game was not the deciding factor in the Buccaneers’ victory. Somehow the Tampa Bay defense held the historically great Chiefs offense to just 9 points and zero touchdowns. Mahomes was under pressure all day and just could not get anything going. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay offense was humming all night cutting through the Kansas City defense like a hot knife through butter. 

Naturally the referees quickly became a hot topic seemingly calling everything on the Chiefs defense and not much the other way. Kansas City got dinged for 120 penalty yards, the third highest penalty in Super Bowl history, compared to the 39 penalty yards against the Brady-led Buccaneers. 

At the end of the day legendary quarterback Brady led his team to yet another Super Bowl victory, bringing his personal total of Super Bowl victories to seven, more than any organization in the NFL. Accomplishing this win with another team besides the Patriots is just another addition to Brady’s already lengthy resume. Brady’s win also added the first dent in Mahomes’ developing legacy.

The 2020-2021 NFL season was an odd one to say the least: cardboard cutouts in the stands, masks, testing and other obstacles surrounding COVID-19. Yet the season was played in its entirety and a champion was crowned. Now here is to a better 2021-2022 season and Super Bowl LVI with 80,000 plus fans in the stands.