Super Bowl LI - New England vs. Atlanta

[JuggernautJ]

I have a Chinese lady friend who knows nothing about football and could care even less.
Still, she was confused when she saw ads on TV and asked me why this was being called Super Bowl Lee (Li is a common Asian spelling of the surname we think of as "Lee.")?

[BD Sullivan]

why this was being called Super Bowl Lee (Li is a common Asian spelling of the surname we think of as "Lee.")?

Well, there's a new occupant in the White House...

[ChrisBabcock]

Also, my wife and I are avid Scrabble players. (used to be more so until we discovered The Settlers of Catan and Ticket To Ride) Anyway, the key to doing well in Scrabble is memorizing the combinations of 2 letters that form legal words so you can "hook" them on to other words. So when I see "LI" I can't help but think... oh, its a Chinese unit of measurement.

[Andrew McKillop]

The 1971 preseason game (9/5) between the Falcons and Patriots was almost played in a locked and empty stadium. The plumbing at the new Schaefer Stadium in Foxboro wasn't up to code and it was feared that the fans would be barred from entering. It would've been like that zero attendance game the Baltimore Orioles hosted two years ago. However, the Patriots fixed the problems and the game went on as normal.

[Rupert Patrick]

http://www.chron.com/sports/superbowl/a ... 900603.php

Former President George H.W. Bush and his wife Barbara will participate in the coin toss at Super Bowl LI, commissioner Roger Goodell said today.

Update: The title of the article stated President Bush would toss the coin, but I was thinking he already tossed the coin at an earlier Super Bowl. I was looking for a list of past Super Bowl coin tossers, but could not come up with one. Would somebody know of a list of who tossed the coin at each previous Super Bowl?

[Rupert Patrick]

The Patriots are going for their fifth ring in the Brady-Belichick era, which if they get it I think will spur a lot of "Best Ever" discussions for both of them. Belichick might very well wind up the most successful coach ever, and he's done it with a constantly changing cast of characters with Brady the one constant. This may be Brady's last shot at a ring.

I usually do an in-depth analysis before the Super Bowl, but this year I think it's really cut and dried. As much as I will be rooting for the Falcons, they'll give it a good shot but I don't see that they have much of a chance. Atlanta is first in points scored and 27th in points allowed. New England is third in points scored and first in points allowed. Atlanta scores about six points a game more than New England, which is a sizable amount, but that won't offset the differential in points allowed. Good defense beats good offense, that is the closest thing I have found to an absolute rule in pro football. I think if you cancel out Atlanta's offense and New England's defense, you are left with New England's offense against Atlanta's defense, which gives New England a big edge.

How then, does Atlanta win the game? They win if Ryan pitches a perfect game, and forces New England into playing their kind of high scoring shootout game. If the losing team scores 30 points or more, Atlanta will probably win, but if the losing team scores less than 30 points, New England will probably win.

The highest scoring Super Bowl of all time is 75 points in Super Bowl XXIX (San Francisco 49 - San Diego 26). There is a chance that record will fall today. These teams could start trading touchdowns back and forth, they have the high-powered offenses that could do so.

My heart is with Atlanta, but my brain is with New England. I have to go with the Pats 38-28.

[rhickok1109]

The Patriots are going for their fifth ring in the Brady-Belichick era, which if they get it I think will spur a lot of "Best Ever" discussions for both of them. Belichick might very well wind up the most successful coach ever, and he's done it with a constantly changing cast of characters with Brady the one constant. This may be Brady's last shot at a ring.

I usually do an in-depth analysis before the Super Bowl, but this year I think it's really cut and dried. As much as I will be rooting for the Falcons, they'll give it a good shot but I don't see that they have much of a chance. Atlanta is first in points scored and 27th in points allowed. New England is third in points scored and first in points allowed. Atlanta scores about six points a game more than New England, which is a sizable amount, but that won't offset the differential in points allowed. Good defense beats good offense, that is the closest thing I have found to an absolute rule in pro football. I think if you cancel out Atlanta's offense and New England's defense, you are left with New England's offense against Atlanta's defense, which gives New England a big edge.

How then, does Atlanta win the game? They win if Ryan pitches a perfect game, and forces New England into playing their kind of high scoring shootout game. If the losing team scores 30 points or more, Atlanta will probably win, but if the losing team scores less than 30 points, New England will probably win.

The highest scoring Super Bowl of all time is 75 points in Super Bowl XXIX (San Francisco 49 - San Diego 26). There is a chance that record will fall today. These teams could start trading touchdowns back and forth, they have the high-powered offenses that could do so.

My heart is with Atlanta, but my brain is with New England. I have to go with the Pats 38-28.

A good overall analysis, but I have the feeling that the game won't be nearly as high scoring as most people expect. IMHO, Atlanta's only real hope is to jump on the Patriots early. If they can score 14 or 17 points in the first 20 minutes, they've got a shot. But I don't think they can do that. I think the Patriots will take the early lead and hold on to it, then win on their defense and ball control.

New England, 28-17

[Steviek]

Unfortunately I also don't give Atlanta much of a chance here. All the salient points were already covered. I'll go with New England 37-16.

[rhickok1109]

The Patriots are going for their fifth ring in the Brady-Belichick era, which if they get it I think will spur a lot of "Best Ever" discussions for both of them. Belichick might very well wind up the most successful coach ever, and he's done it with a constantly changing cast of characters with Brady the one constant. This may be Brady's last shot at a ring.

I usually do an in-depth analysis before the Super Bowl, but this year I think it's really cut and dried. As much as I will be rooting for the Falcons, they'll give it a good shot but I don't see that they have much of a chance. Atlanta is first in points scored and 27th in points allowed. New England is third in points scored and first in points allowed. Atlanta scores about six points a game more than New England, which is a sizable amount, but that won't offset the differential in points allowed. Good defense beats good offense, that is the closest thing I have found to an absolute rule in pro football. I think if you cancel out Atlanta's offense and New England's defense, you are left with New England's offense against Atlanta's defense, which gives New England a big edge.

How then, does Atlanta win the game? They win if Ryan pitches a perfect game, and forces New England into playing their kind of high scoring shootout game. If the losing team scores 30 points or more, Atlanta will probably win, but if the losing team scores less than 30 points, New England will probably win.

The highest scoring Super Bowl of all time is 75 points in Super Bowl XXIX (San Francisco 49 - San Diego 26). There is a chance that record will fall today. These teams could start trading touchdowns back and forth, they have the high-powered offenses that could do so.

My heart is with Atlanta, but my brain is with New England. I have to go with the Pats 38-28.

A good overall analysis, but I have the feeling that the game won't be nearly as high scoring as most people expect. IMHO, Atlanta's only real hope is to jump on the Patriots early. If they can score 14 or 17 points in the first 20 minutes, they've got a shot. But I don't think they can do that. I think the Patriots will take the early lead and hold on to it, then win on their defense and ball control.

New England, 28-17

I sure had it figured out

[74_75_78_79_]

Will Atl get over this one? This is definitely worse for Falcon Nation than 'Duel in Dixie' was in 1980. Easy to think there'll be a hangover next year but with their talent and coaching they could easily, resiliently bounce right on back. I didn't bother predicting yesterday's game but I'm not surprised at all that Falcons' D was able to get to Brady. Who's Atl's MVP had they won?