Super Bowl L111 Game Day Thread

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Ballistic Bob
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I didn't catch any commercials as I was at a bar. Any good ones? Thnx BB
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David
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Ballistic Bob wrote:
Sun Feb 03, 2019 10:03 pm
I didn't catch any commercials as I was at a bar. Any good ones? Thnx BB
The US commercials this year matched the game. They had their moments but on the whole, missed the mark.

The NFL 100 (not sure if this is technically an ad or a promo) but it was quite amusing (former NFL superstars playing pick-up ball in the middle of a banquet). The best spot was Hyundai's "The Elevator" with Jason Bateman as a bellhop. The Bud Light medieval ads were amusing as they usually are, and Bubly drink ad with Michael Buble was good for a chuckle.

Too many social messaging-slash-virtue signalling ads though for my liking. Call me shallow, but in a tension-filled game, I prefer comic relief than a contrived attempt at solving the world's problems.


DH :cool:
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WestCoastJoe
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For Xs and Os lovers, the game was a clinic on defence. (Yes, it made for a boring game.)

Amazing article here by Adam Kilgore on how Belichick defended against a very potent, record-setting, innovative offence.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2 ... 1c157501f1

Some excerpts ...
The Patriots confused Jared Goff, throttled the Rams’ offensive line, shut down their skill players and left McVay without answers. Belichick surprised the Rams by starting in zone defense after playing man-to-man all season. He produced havoc by changing the role of an unheralded defensive back. He unleashed a torrent of different pass rushes despite barely blitzing. He did nothing the Rams expected and everything to specially stifle a high-powered attack.
Patriots players knew to expect two weeks of intensive study. Belichick does not use a set system. He has a basic set of fundamental tenets, but he alters strategy weekly based on his opponent’s features and flaws.

“We switch every week,” Patriots safety Devin McCourty said in the locker room after the game. “We don’t just do something because that’s what we do.”
Oh yeah. Gotta love it. Rich Stubler mixes things up a lot also. We are lucky to have him.
Belichick unveiled his defensive game plan to his team early during the off week. Belichick and his staff had deduced that the Rams specialized in “man beaters,” Boyer said — tactics meant to defeat man coverage. Their litany of shifts, bunched formations, and frequent jet motion all thrive against man coverage, which is the style the Patriots typically prefer, and what they used extensively in Kansas City.
“Our philosophy is always, we’re going to give them something a little bit different,” Boyer said. “Try to get good pressure up the middle and force Goff into some throws deep and try to have it protected deep.”

The Patriots added a wrinkle within the wrinkle. Halfway through the first week of preparation, coaches switched Jonathan Jones’s primary role from cornerback to safety. Jones, an undrafted free agent the Patriots out of Auburn in 2016, has toggled between the positions all season, and his versatility is one reason the Patriots value him.
All year, Jones had frequently blitzed as either an outside corner or a nickelback. When he crept close to the line, Goff would assume he might blitz. Then he would drop back — not to a corner’s position, but to the center of the field, where he defended a deep quarter of the field. When Goff audibled, Boyer said, the Patriots could change their defensive call simply by moving around Jones.

“Early on,” Goff said, “they were able to keep us completely guessing.”
The Patriots also devised exotic pass rushes from an alignment meant to stifle the run and force Goff to beat them. The Patriots walked up two linebackers to the line of scrimmage, effectively employing a six-man defensive line. The alignment clogged running lanes on early downs. When the Rams passed, the Patriots would vary which defenders rushed and which dropped into coverage, frequently using pass-rush combinations they had never shown.

“Guys who had been rushers all year, different guys were rushing,” Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth said.
Along with the mixed personnel, the Patriots used a vast array of stunts, with pass rushers crossing and twisting along the line. “You name it, we threw the bus at them,” defensive end Adrian Clayborn said. “We just tried to mix it up and tried to confuse them.”
The Patriots entered the game prepared to switch back to man. Once they saw how Goff reacted, they realized their idea, and their players’ execution, and unfolded precisely as they hoped.
Belichick’s zone gambit was, in a way, a compliment to McVay. He believed McVay would be able to pinpoint deficiencies in any scheme given two weeks to prepare, so he needed something new. “McVay is like us,” McCourty said. “The Rams are like us.” But switching coverage put the Patriots’ defense a step ahead, and Belichick maintained the edge all night.

“We knew they would make some adjustments in the second half,” McCourty said. “But we were prepared for them.”
From a defensive point of view, from a game planning point of view, there was much to like in the Super Bowl. A spectator's feast? Nope.

And, BTW, Wade Phillips' defence was awesome also. They made life difficult for Tom Brady.

Here is one example of the Patriots digging deeply and creatively in personnel work. Jonathan Jones, undrafted, but invited to camp. Scored very well at the combine but was considered undersized. Very fast. 4.28 in the 40. Gifted athlete. Versatile, as seen in the Super Bowl.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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I agree the game was a "defensive masterpiece" (one of the options on Halford & Brough's poll), but casual football fans would be bored. Blame it on 2 top-notch defensive strategists, and Goff's youthful vulnerability making the difference.
Halftime entertainment was just a mess--no way Maroon 5 would have wanted to have their performance chopped up and blenderized with 2 rappers, but they aren't U2 and likely had no creative control. This sort of thing may have worked with Aerosmith-Run DMC, but not here.
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David wrote:
Sun Feb 03, 2019 11:28 pm
Ballistic Bob wrote:
Sun Feb 03, 2019 10:03 pm
I didn't catch any commercials as I was at a bar. Any good ones? Thnx BB
The US commercials this year matched the game. They had their moments but on the whole, missed the mark.

The NFL 100 (not sure if this is technically an ad or a promo) but it was quite amusing (former NFL superstars playing pick-up ball in the middle of a banquet). The best spot was Hyundai's "The Elevator" with Jason Bateman as a bellhop. The Bud Light medieval ads were amusing as they usually are, and Bubly drink ad with Michael Buble was good for a chuckle.

Too many social messaging-slash-virtue signalling ads though for my liking. Call me shallow, but in a tension-filled game, I prefer comic relief than a contrived attempt at solving the world's problems.


DH :cool:
The series of Bud Light ads about Coors Light-Miller Light using corn syrup in their beers was just ok--there were 3 versions, but the Bud Light-GoT tie-in was terrfic (if you were familiar with The Mountain That Rides- Oberyn Martell scene).
https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/3/18209 ... -bowl-2019
Ballistic Bob
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Just finished watching the CBS feed of the game. I'm keeping it just for the commercials. Certainly not for the game
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As a fitting reward for shutting down the Rams, Brian Flores is named Dolphins head coach.
https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nfl/ ... 87590.html
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