The Philadelphia Eagles won one of the arguably sloppiest Super Bowls in recent memory. They defeated the New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady in Super Bowl LII, 41-33.
Nick Foles was named the Super Bowl MVP after completing 28 of 43 passes for 373 yards and three touchdown passes as well as the first receiving touchdown by a quarterback in Super Bowl history.
While it was well deserved for a great performance from Foles, I want to talk about Brady.
The University of Michigan grad was 28-48 for 505 yards and three scores, yet his Patriots fell a touchdown and two-point conversion short of the Eagles.
Monday had the collective sports world asking two questions, “does Nick Foles deserve to be a starter?” and, “is Tom Brady actually the G.O.A.T (Greatest of All Time)?”
Both of the answers to those questions are yes. Short explanation for Foles is that while his stats are not that great, he can lead his team to wins in any game. The Eagles were underdogs in each playoff game and they won all of those games by more points than the books had their opponents favored by. He took over a team from Carson Wentz, who went down with a torn ACL in Week 14 against the Rams, and ran (and threw) all the way to a Super Bowl title. Foles will more than likely return to his No. 2 spot on the depth chart, unless he requests a trade, or possibly retires and becomes a pastor (which is a possibility).
Now for the question that I’m willing to argue with just about anyone over. Is Brady actually the G.O.A.T.?
LIke I said above – yes.
According to NFL.com’s Super Bowl page, Brady now holds the records for yards gained in a Super Bowl career (1,605) most career touchdowns (13), most attempts in a game without an interception (48), pass attempts (247) and completions (164). Brady is also 5-3 in the Big Game, with two of those losses to the New York Giants and the third to the Eagles, who are NFC East rivals.
Quite frankly, Brady is the only reason that the Patriots had a chance in the game. While three of his receivers (Chris Hogan, Danny Amendola and Rob Gronkowski) each had over 100 yards receiving, it was Brady who made most of the plays happen. He was facing pressure on almost every snap from the Eagles’ defensive front and he was sacked once, granted it was a fumble recovered by the Eagles. The offensive line should receive credit for holding off the Eagles, but Brady got rid of the ball with enough time to have a shot to make a play. Neither defense could make a stop while there was only one punt from the Eagles, the same number of sacks on Brady and each team only had one turnover. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski uncharacteristically missed an extra point and a field goal in the game.
The Patriots were 13-3 on the regular season and earned the No. 1 seed in the AFC and Brady turned in one of his better seasons since the 2007 season, arguably his best season, despite losing Super Bowl XLII to the Giants.
Nick Wright of Fox Sports compared Brady before he tore his ACL in the Week 1 of the 2008 season against the Kansas City Chiefs. Wright argued, and I happen to agree with him, that both stat lines are hall of fame worthy.
Statiscally, Brady is the best, and in terms of giving his team a chance to win the game, Brady is the G.O.A.T.
