New England Patriots vs Seattle Seahawks Match Player Stats On Feb 01, 2015

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Feb 1, 2015

Patriots 28, Seahawks 24: Tom Brady threw two of his four touchdown passes in the fourth quarter and rookie Malcolm Butler made a game-saving interception at the goal line as New England won its fourth Super Bowl title in 14 seasons.

Brady overcame two costly interceptions to join Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw as the only quarterbacks to win four Super Bowls, finishing 37-of-50 for 328 yards - including the go-ahead 3-yard scoring pass to Julian Edelman with 2:02 to play - en route to being named Most Valuable Player for a record-tying third time. Butler's interception with 20 seconds left sealed it as the Patriots (15-4) denied Seattle's bid to become the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles since New England in 2003-04.

Edelman made nine catches for 109 yards while tight end Rob Gronkowski (six catches, 68 yards), Danny Amendola and Brandon LaFell had touchdown receptions for the Patriots, who became the third team to rally from a 10-point deficit to win the Super Bowl. It capped a tumultuous two weeks for New England, which is under investigation by the NFL after balls reportedly were discovered to be underinflated in the AFC title game.

Russell Wilson threw for 247 yards with two touchdowns and the killer interception for the Seahawks (14-5), who appeared ready to take the lead after a miraculous 33-yard catch by Jermaine Kearse while on his back at the 5-yard line with 62 seconds left. Marshawn Lynch rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown while rookie Chris Matthews, who didn't make a catch entering the contest, had four receptions for 109 yards and a score for Seattle.

The Seahawks went three-and-out on their first three possessions and Wilson did not complete a pass until there were 5 1/2 minutes left in the half, but they regrouped to score on their next four drives, taking their first lead on Steven Hauschka's 27-yard field goal early in the third quarter before going ahead 24-14 on Wilson's 3-yard scoring pass to Doug Baldwin following Bobby Wagner's interception of Brady.

Just as the Patriots appeared to be unraveling, Brady led a nine-play, 68-yard march that culminated with a 4-yard scoring pass to Amendola to cut the deficit to 24-21 with 7:55 to play. New England forced a three-and-out on the ensuing possession and forged ahead as Brady hit Edelman in the left corner of the end zone with 2:02 remaining to cap a 10-play, 64-yard drive.

The Patriots had taken a 14-7 lead on Brady's 22-yard strike to Gronkowski with 31 seconds left in the first half, but Wilson only needed five plays to move his team 80 yards, connecting with a leaping Matthews on an 11-yard TD pass in the left corner of the end zone with two seconds on the clock. Brady opened the scoring with an 11-yard toss to LaFell on a slant with 9:47 left in the second quarter before Lynch bulled in from 3 yards out with 2:16 to play in the half - a TD set up by Matthews' 44-yard catch.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Brady, who tied Montana for the most Super Bowl MVP wins and surpassed him for the most scoring passes in the history of the event with 13 while extending his postseason record to 53 TD tosses, set Super Bowl marks for completions in a half (20) and a game. ... Matthews, the Rookie of the Year in the Canadian Football League with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2012, became the fourth player in history to make his first career catch in the Super Bowl. ... Patriots RB Shane Vereen made 11 catches for 64 yards while Amendola had five receptions for 48 yards. ... Seahawks CB Jeremy Lane suffered an injury to his left arm when he landed awkwardly following his interception of Brady at the goal line in the first quarter and was carted off the field while wearing an air cast. Seattle DE Cliff Avril also exited due to a concussion.