Super Bowl 2015 Highlights: Examining Pivotal Moments from Patriots vs. Seahawks

All that stood between the Seattle Seahawks and a second consecutive Lombardi Trophy was a single yard. Monday morning quarterbacks across the country were ready for the ball to go to superstar running back Marshawn Lynch and the Seahawks to celebrate again.

So much for that.

Instead, the Seahawks elected to throw the ball toward the goal line, and the result was a shocking and game-ending interception from Malcolm Butler. More importantly, the result was a championship for the New England Patriots after the 28-24 victory.

The box score said that the Patriots were led by Tom Brady's 328 passing yards and four touchdowns, while Lynch spearheaded the Seattle attack with 102 rushing yards and a score. However, the contest was filled with game-altering plays and highlights that told the story. Here is a look at some of those pivotal moments.

Matt Rourke/Associated Press

The first highlight of the Super Bowl came when the Patriots drove all the way down the field in an effort to go up 7-0. Instead of punching it in, Brady threw a critical interception to Jeremy Lane. 

Bleacher Report had the highlight, while David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune noted what many were thinking:

Pro Football Reference pointed out that it was not business as usual for Brady on this big of a stage:

However, Lane went down with a gruesome arm injury on the play, which forced Tharold Simon into the game. The Patriots recognized that and attacked the new defender for a touchdown, as Robert Mays of Grantland pointed out:

The Seahawks responded, though, with a touchdown drive of their own behind two critical plays. One was a timely catch from previously unheard of wide receiver Chris Matthews, while Lynch put the exclamation point on the drive. SportsCenter recognized Matthews' play, while Sports Illustrated had the touchdown highlight:

All the Patriots did in response to that was take it right back down the field for another touchdown. Sports Illustrated had the touchdown play, which tied Brady with Joe Montana for the most touchdowns in a Super Bowl, while Doug Farrar of Sports Illustrated noted that the Seahawks probably needed a different strategy to stop Rob Gronkowski on the outside:

New England appeared to be on its way to taking a 14-7 lead into halftime, but the Seahawks marched down the field to tie it up in the final seconds. The man of the evening, Mr. Matthews, made what was arguably the most important play of the game considering how Seattle came out of the locker room with plenty of momentum, via the Seattle Seahawks:

There were far fewer game-changing highlights early in the second half, but Matthews hauled in a deep pass to set up the go-ahead field goal for the Seahawks. SportsCenter pointed out that it had been quite some time since Matthews performed like he did Sunday evening:

Matthews wasn't going to have all the fun, though, considering the Seahawks are known for their defense. Linebacker Bobby Wagner got in on the second-half highlights with a critical interception (via Bleacher Report below), which set up a touchdown for receiver Doug Baldwin. Sports Illustrated had the highlight of the touchdown that put Seattle up 10:

Right when it looked like the Seahawks were on their way to a second consecutive title, the Patriots responded with a critical drive. Julian Edelman picked up a huge chunk of yardage over the middle, and Danny Amendola finished it off with a touchdown catch.

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller gave some credit to Edelman, while BuzzFeed Sports had the touchdown highlight:

With the score 24-21 and less than 10 minutes remaining, New England picked up a critical stop. There wasn't necessarily a highlight play, but the entire sequence deserved some recognition, via Bleacher Report's Mike Freeman:

The Patriots offense did not disappoint after the defense picked up the critical stop. Brady dinked and dunked his way down the field against the Seattle secondary, and the final result was a touchdown pass to Edelman.

Bleacher Report had the highlight, while ESPN Stats & Info noted that Brady couldn't have played much better on the go-ahead drive:

The Patriots left plenty of time on the clock, though, and the Seahawks immediately got to within scoring distance with one of the most amazing plays fans will ever see. The Cauldron passed along the borderline-ridiculous catch:

"

Here's That Jevon Kearse Catch, Unreal https://t.co/GPlFN7F1kh

— The Cauldron (@TheCauldron) February 2, 2015"

After that incredible play, Lynch ran the ball to the one-yard line with less than a minute remaining and set the Seahawks up for what could have been the game-winning plunge from Beast Mode. Instead, the Seahawks elected to try to catch the Patriots off guard with a surprise pass, and the result was absolutely disastrous.

Wilson threw a slant route toward the end zone, but Butler cut the route off underneath and recorded the interception of a lifetime. The NFL shared the interception, while Adam Rittenberg of ESPN was as befuddled as most people watching:

Now that the Patriots have won, the discussion can turn to Brady's place in NFL history with a fourth title. 

Sunday's game was his sixth-ever Super Bowl appearance—which is the most in NFL history for a quarterback—and he has four rings. It is hard to argue with his status among the game's elite, regardless of whether you are a Patriots fan or not.

Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin commented on Brady's place, via Frank Schwab of Yahoo:

"

If he wins a fourth one, and he’s been here six times – nobody else has been here six times – those numbers speak for themselves. But when we start talking distance traveled, there’s not a man in sports, let alone a man in football, who has traveled a further distance than Tom Brady. He’s the greatest ever.

"

That discussion can wait for another day, though, after such an incredible finish. Don Bell of Fox Sports 1 passed along Richard Sherman's reaction, which summarized the feelings of every Seahawks fan in the stadium and in the Pacific Northwest:

Seahawks fans will have nightmares of the final play (that didn't involve Lynch) for the rest of their lives.

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