Super Bowl 55 might go down as one of the most important in NFL history. At least, it has been billed that way over the last two weeks, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play the first true “home” Super Bowl against the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs, putting a bow on the 2020 season the league navigated under the circumstances and challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
Tom Brady wins Super Bowl MVP
“How ’bout that!” Brady said as he lifted the Lombardi Trophy for the seventh time. He won his fifth Super Bowl MVP, and he’s not retiring, he said.
"I'm coming back." – @TomBrady#SBLV | @Buccaneers pic.twitter.com/P7gl5xMf76
— NFL (@NFL) February 8, 2021
Chiefs 1st half penalties sink chances
Quick look: Refs were bad, but that’s normal
The Chiefs were called flagged for 11 penalties and 120 yards. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers committed four for 39 yards.
Pressure dooms Chiefs, Mahomes
Quick look: Don’t blame Mahomes for Chiefs loss
Mahomes ran for his life all night. According to ESPN Stats & Info, Mahomes being pressured on 29 of 56 dropbacks is the most in Super Bowl history.
final tally, via @ESPNStatsInfo:
Mahomes was pressured on 29/56 dropbacks–the most of any QB in Super Bowl history.
Brady was pressured on 4/30–the lowest of his SB career.
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) February 8, 2021
Brady was pressured four times on 30 attempts – the least amount of pressure he faced in any Super Bowl of his career.
The Chiefs missing both starting tackles certainly did not help.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers win Super Bowl 55
Final: Buccaneers 31, Chiefs 9.
The confetti is falling, the clock is showing zeros, and the GOAT is a champion in his first season away from the Patriots.
Buccaneers intercept Mahomes again
Hounded all night, Mahomes threw his second interception of the game in the end zone (picked off by Laonte David).
Bruce Arians will become the oldest coach to win the Super Bowl.
Two-minute warning update: Buccaneers 31, Chiefs 9
The fourth quarter has been scoreless, but the Chiefs are inside the red zone once again. It’s far too late, however, and the Buccaneers will win their second Super Bowl title — Brady’s seventh ring — while spoiling the Chiefs’ chances of becoming the NFL’s first repeat champions since… Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in 2003-04.
Fan interrupts Super Bowl in 4th quarter
With 5:03 remaining in the game, a fan ran on the field, and officials stopped play.
“One of the great runs of the night, I will say that,” CBS play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz said before the network cut to a commercial break.
Chiefs blow chance of making it a game
That’s the second would-be touchdown pass that has gone through a Chiefs player’s hands and hit them in the helmet. It happened to Tyreek Hill earlier and Darrel Williams on that fourth-down play. Mahomes’ effort to heave the ball into the end zone while being tripped and falling to the ground is an example of how, even not fully healthy, he is a freak of nature.
