He had a vision!

Patriot defensive back Malcolm Butler, a free agent from West Alabama College, told the sideline reporter after the game, "I had a vision. I thought I might make a big play." He did! The play of the year!

I agree with Chris Collinsworth that the Seahawks made a stupid decision in deciding to throw the ball from the one yard line, when they have running back Marshawn Lynch, who was showing all night that he was unstoppable in short yardage. Lynch scored more touchdowns than anyone else in the NFL this year. And, they had two cracks at it!

Another victory for Belichick and Brady. Brady's comment about every Patriot involved: "We never doubted each other." It showed.

Now he's an authority on the subject

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick Thursday said he knows nothing about deflated balls, and told reporters to talk to his quarterback, Tom Brady, who also denied any impropriety. Today, however, Belichick

described in detail how his team prepares its footballs on game day and defended his players from chatter that they made it to the Super Bowl by cheating.

Jimmy Golen describes Belichick:

A football lifer who only seems happy on the sidelines, if at all, Belichick is known for an absolute attention to detail that prepares his team for every imaginable situation.

Read more here.

A Machiavellian reembrace

New Yorker writer Brendan Koerner believes the significant Patriot story is the "the wisdom of Belichick’s Machiavellian reëmbrace of Josh McDaniels." Belichick rehired McDaniels as his offensive coordinator after McDaniels was let go by both Denver and St. Louis. McDaniels knows how to make an offense work. Remember what he did with Tim Tebow in Denver?

However, when the Broncos beat the Patriots with McDaniel at the helm, Josh let his emotions get the best of him after the game, and Belichick noticed.