Super Bowl 53: What happened?

Elliot Tritto

Central Bureau Chief


Super Bowl 53 was a bit of a disappointment. People have regarded this as the “worst Super Bowl” due to the Patriots taking home the championship for the sixth time, a lame half-time performance and a surprising report of low ratings. 

Although the game itself looked to be unremarkable, it did raise a few eyebrows on the highlights and milestones that occurred. 

Not to mention, the half-time show was met with hype to include SpongeBob SquarePants iconic song “Sweet Victory,” which was played during “Band Geeks” at the Bubble Bowl half time show. \

Correspondingly, according to Tony Maglio of The Wrap, “CBS did not get a great Super Bowl on Sunday night with the lowest-scoring championship in history. On Monday morning, network executives woke up to a 10-year low in early TV ratings.” 

Could this have been the worst Super Bowl? Let’s get right into the mix. 

The Game

As it seems that it was a boring game, it really wasn’t. A lot of milestones and records broke on Sunday’s matchup. As E. Jay Zarett writes in Sporting News, “It was the lowest-scoring game in Super Bowl history. 

Rob Gronkowski became the all-time leader in receptions by a tight end in Super Bowl history when he hauled in a 19-yard pass from Brady in the first quarter.

Johnny Hekker tallied a 65-yard punt with 8:36 remaining in the third quarter. It was the longest punt in Super Bowl history. 

The Rams became just the second team ever to not score a touchdown in the Super Bowl. The 1971 Miami Dolphins were the first. 

There was also a 53 yd field goal made by the Rams kicker which was the 2nd longest in Super Bowl History. Not to mention, this is New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and Head Coach Bill Belichick’s sixth super bowl together. 

So, it tells you that, it’s time for the Patriots to pass the torch to someone else. Let’s be honest, it’s annoying seeing the same team and players go every year and win. Where’s the fun in that? Despite that, both defensive teams played extremely well yet the Rams fell through at the end. 

When Gronk, New England, caught the ball, three Rams on the defensive end were on him and should’ve blocked or intercepted it. Also, the Ram’s offense didn’t click especially the end. Ram’s also had an opportunity to score but the Patriots intercepted the ball with only 3 minutes left in the game and were up by 7. Game over. 

The Halftime Show

Maroon 5 played with Travis Scott and Big Boi. I personally never cared for the half time show since the acts were overrated and ever wowed me (except for Lady Gaga two years ago). 

The only aspect of the halftime show that I was possibly looking forward to was the Sweet Victory song being featured. It was there but felt out of place. 

We had a very boring intro of Maroon 5 playing a song that isn’t important to remember, we are then greeted to Squidward. From Adam Levine to Squidward in 2 seconds is a very awkward transition. We then see the band play the Sweet Victory intro and thus brought to Travis Scott. Uhm, no. You don’t give the fans a tease and keep it cool like nothing happened. The reason a lot of people generally didn’t enjoy the show was it wasn’t unique. 

Personally, I want to see Metallica, Bruce Springsteen, Daft Punk or Gorillaz take the stage. With their talent, iconic songs and top-notch stage presence, they would bring the house down. 

Don’t bring in some generic band that brings in sales and are somewhat attractive. One last thing, Adam Levine. In the words of Bugs Bunny, keep your shirt on. You have way too many tattoos to count and no one cares about them. 

Overall, Super Bowl 53 was a disappointment. With all the aspects I’ve displayed above, hopefully the NFL will get their act together. We deserve more and better content. 

Ratings and attitudes towards the NFL are dropping and they don’t have much options left except maybe listening to the public. With the concussion debate, kneeling during the National Anthems and the Super Bowl that just past, the NFL needs to embrace this quickly so it doesn’t happen again. 

trite1@mail.broward.edu

Photo: Tom Brady celebrating the Patriots win with his daughter at the Super Bowl/Photo courtesy of Time.com                                          

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