New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) congratulates tight end Martellus Bennett (88) after the two connected for a 19-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at Gillette Stadium on December 12 in Foxborough, Mass. File photo by Matthew Healey/ UPI |
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May 19 (UPI) -- Despite an unmatched Super Bowl résumé, Bill Belichick had no need for a dramatic halftime speech in the New England Patriots' win against the Atlanta Falcons.
Former Patriots tight end Martellus Bennett recently revealed exactly what happened during the Feb. 5 game at NRG Stadium. The Patriots trailed 21-3 at the break during the title game, but roared back to win 34-28 in overtime. The Falcons upped the margin to 28-3 in the third quarter before the Patriots completed the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history.
"Super bowl we are down, we are getting our [expletive] kicked," Bennett said in a video for Inc.com. "But the most interesting thing about that Super Bowl is that it took that collective group of guys to be together to come back."
"When we came into the locker room at halftime, there was no bickering, there was no bitching, there was no complaining, there was no moaning, there was no throwing chairs. There was none of this epic 'we're going to come back,' Rudy, Remember the Titans-type speech. There was none of that TV [expletive]."
"When you looked around the locker room, you didn't see anyone that was discouraged. You didn't see doubt in anyone's eyes. And that's like all 53 guys. You looked around and you could see that everybody was determined to figure out what they could do to help us win."
"We went back out there at halftime...We got up...Coach gave all the coaching points, all the changes. Everyone was like, 'Alright, Coach...This is the plan you have, Coach. We trust you. This is what you think is going to win. That's exactly what we're going to do.' And I'm going to do my part—my small equation of the 11 that is on the field at the time. We put our hands up and said, 'Hey, this is going to be written in the history books. Patriots on three. One, two, three, Patriots. Break.' And the rest is history."
"There were plays that I had to do certain things, but I wouldn't even know who caught the ball because I was so focused on getting my job done. At the celebration party, I was still kind of in that zone. It took me two hours to get out of that focus zone."
Bennett had five catches for 62 yards in the win. Tom Brady passed for a Super Bowl record 466 yards. Running back James White had 141 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns, including the game-winner.
The free agent tight end joined the Green Bay Packers in March. New England has since restocked its depth chart at the position, adding Dwayne Allen and James O'Shaughnessy, while re-signing Matt Lengel.
After the big game, Belichick also explained his approach, saying his team "competed down 28-3 and they never looked back."
"We just kept trying to find a little crack in the armor and keep plugging away," Belichick said. "Our team showed great mental toughness throughout the game, never really flinched even though the score was - I guess for so long that we just kept plugging along, just kept fighting, just kept trying to make plays and, fortunately, we were able to make enough at the end there to get it back to a two-score game at 16 points and then the touchdowns and the two-point conversions."
"In the end, I can't say enough about our players and how hard they competed and what a good job our coaching staff did battling all the way. Have to give Atlanta credit. That is a really good football team. [Falcons coach] Dan [Quinn] has done a great job with that team. He certainly had them ready to play. They have a lot of great players. Playing in overtime for the championship, doesn't get any closer than that."
Belichick, 65, now owns the NFL record for a head coach with five Super Bowl victories.
