New England Patriots scored 31 unanswered points to beat Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in the first ever Super Bowl to go to overtime.
The Patriots scored two touchdowns from Danny Amendola and James White in the final-quarter, with both scores being converted for two points to send the game to overtime for the first time in Super Bowl history.
Despite the attacking strengths of both teams, the first-quarter remained scoreless. Both Tom Brady and Matt Ryan were both taken to the ground on two occasions by the opposition's defence. The first 15 minutes belonged to the defences, despite the best efforts of both quarterbacks.
The Falcons took charge of Super Bowl LI in the second-quarter. After stealing the ball from LeGarrette Blount in a promising field position, the Falcons made their way down the field for Devonta Freeman to score the first touchdown of the game. That lead was doubled when Ryan threw his first touchdown pass of the game, to Austin Hooper as the Falcons ran into a 14-0 lead.
Atlanta's lead was increased to 21 points when Robert Alford intercepted a Brady pass in the first half's key moment. The cornerback ran 82-yards for the longest touchdown of the night. With one of the last kicks of the half, Stephen Gostkowski scored the Patriots' only score of the half, as the Falcons took at 21-3 lead into the break.
Hello world, meet Robert Alford.@rockorocky with the 82-yard INT return for a TD.
NE 0 | ATL 21 https://t.co/km5nrI2zG1
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) February 6, 2017
After the pageantry of Lady Gaga's Half-Time Show, the two teams traded touchdowns in the third-quarter. Atlanta stretched their lead through Tevin Coleman, before the Patriots scored their first touchdown. James White caught a five-yard pass from Brady, but Gostkowski missed the extra point.
New England's fourth-quarter performance will go down in NFL history. No team had overcome more than a ten-point deficit in the previous 50 Super Bowls. The Patriots were 25 points down at one point.
Tom Brady goes into the record books off the back of the win. Super Bowl LI is Brady's fifth title. He is the first quarterback to win five Super Bowl rings and he is only the second player in NFL history to reach that feat, following in the footsteps of Charles Haley.
James White's overtime touchdown was the winning moment, as the Patriots cemented their place as the greatest franchise of the 21st century.
IT'S OVER! IT'S OVER!
JAMES WHITE WINS IT FOR THE @PATRIOTS!
WHAT A GAME! #SB51 #PATRIOTS https://t.co/nZzQJGWRmC
— NFL (@NFL) February 6, 2017
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