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How one play changed Super Bowl history and fate of Seahawks, Patriots
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- How one play changed Super Bowl history and fate of Seahawks, Patriots
One play on the biggest stage in Super Bowl XLIX defined Malcolm Butler 's NFL career.
And as the New England Patriots meet the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday in Super Bowl LX, in a rematch of their classic Big Game from 11 years ago, you will see countless replays of Butler's goal line interception that stands as one of the most memorable in the history of the sport.
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Forty seconds earlier, in the biggest game of his life, Butler found himself on the opposite end of the emotional spectrum. For the Patriots and their fans, the immediate reaction was, as Devin McCourty told NorthJersey.com and The Record this week: "It was, oh no, not again!"
A 33-yard circus catch by Jermaine Kearse brought back memories of New England 's Super Bowl losses to the Giants . Would Kearse become the new David Tyree or Mario Manningham , and if so, what would that do to Butler and how the rookie cornerback would be remembered?
Tyree's helmet catch in Super Bowl XLII.
Manningham's sideline tight-rope act along the sideline in Super Bowl XLVI.
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Kearse and Butler both jumped up for a Russell Wilson deep pass, and the ball glanced off the hands of Kearse, who bobbled it up into the air, fell onto his back, deflected the ball into the air again and then finally secured it, flat on his back. The remarkable reception put the Seahawks on the Patriots 5-yard line.
Five yards from victory, one that would have made Seattle a back-to-back world champion, Butler wound up getting a chance at redemption and the rest went down in NFL history. His interception of Wilson at the goal line denied the Seahawks, instead giving the Patriots their first of three Super Bowls in a five-year span.
"Sometimes you've got to know what's at stake," Butler said after the game that night.
New England Patriots strong safety Malcolm Butler (21) intercepts a pass intended for Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Ricardo Lockette (83) in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl 49 in Glendale, Arizona on Feb. 1, 2015.
Just like that, the memories of past Super Bowl devastation for New England, both at the hands of the Giants, were returned to the history books, not re-lived again until the Philly Special three years later.
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The Patriots went to three of the next four Super Bowls. The Seahawks have not been back until this one.
It's no surprise that, as part of the NBC Sports' pre-game show on Sunday, they'll have a sit down with McCourty and Butler, as the two ex-teammates reminisce about the impact and ramifications of that sequence of events, with the former asking the questions.
"Shout out to [special advisor] Ernie Adams, because in practice on that Friday, the coaching staff didn't draw up the play cards," McCourty said. "The coaches didn't know what was coming. It was all Ernie, and Ernie watching every game from that team that season, the freaking offensive coordinator and what he called five years ago, in a do or die game, we had that exact play schemed up. I don't think we knew then that Malcolm would make the play that would be the one that changed all of our lives, Seattle and New England."
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McCourty, a captain for the Patriots and the leader of their secondary, played all but one snap in Super Bowl XLIX. That one play he watched from the sideline? The Butler interception.
Because the Patriots loaded up against the run with big personnel and just three defensive backs on the field, all three the only ones defending the pass against three receivers stacked on the right side ( Darrelle Revis , Brandon Browner and Butler).
Browner jammed Kearse, and Ricardo Lockette broke inside. And Butler was able to do what he failed to do two days prior in practice, drawing the ire of Bill Belichick. Wilson's pass was high. Butler closed fast and beat Lockette to the ball, which he caught and pinned tightly to his chest.
"The key to that play is that he went for the interception. That's the most ridiculous thing about it," McCourty said. "Most guys would've been like, 'Man, this is close. I've got to just break this pass up and live to see another down.'"
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After securing the interception, Butler collided with Lockette, landing just outside the end zone.
"I thought we had a touchdown when I threw it," Wilson said. "When I let it go, I thought - in my opinion - it was going to be, 'Game over.'"
And it was, only not the way the Seahawks - nor the Patriots - expected.
"I just had a vision that I was going to make a big play," Butler said. "And it came true."
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Super Bowl 2026: How one play changed fate of Patriots, Seahawks in Super Bowl 49
