Marshawn Lynch: Last Play Call ‘Cost Us the Super Bowl’
Marshawn Lynch expected to get the ball on second and goal from the 1-yard line, and he says the decision not to put the game in his hands cost the Seahawks the Super Bowl.
“I don’t know what went into that call. I mean, maybe it was a good thing that I didn’t get the ball. I mean, you know, it cost us the Super Bowl. I mean, I have full … I have full confidence in my teammates to execute that plan because we’ve done it so many more times. But would I love to had the ball in? Yes, I would have,’’ Lynch said in an interview in Turkey, where he is one of several NFL players participating in an American Football Without Barriers camp.
In his first public comments since Super Bowl XLIX, Lynch said he had no problem with the decision to throw the ball on second down. The running back known as “Beast Mode’’ didn’t exactly oppose the conspiracy theory that the Seahawks threw the ball to try and make Russell Wilson – not Lynch – the Super Bowl MVP.
“I had no problem with the decision of the play calling. I mean, you know, I think it was more of a … how do I say this? When you look at me, and you let me run that ball in, I am the face of the nation. You know, MVP of the Super Bowl, that’s pretty much the face of the nation at that point of time,’’ Lynch said. “To be honest with you, I would be lying if I didn’t tell you that I was expecting the ball. Yes, I was expecting the ball. But in life, these things happen. Like I told a reporter after the game, it’s a team sport.’’
Lynch appeared to laugh at the Seahawks sideline – presumably at head coach Pete Carroll and/or offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell – after Wilson’s interception sealed the victory for the Patriots.
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It seems everyone expected Lynch to get the ball on that play, which does nothing to decide the debate about whether the play call was stealthy or just plain stupid. The only player who wasn’t fooled was an undrafted rookie cornerback named Malcolm Butler, and he made the play that decided the game.
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