On Monday morning, following the Seattle Seahawks’ 28-24 defeat to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX, there has been a bevy of conjecture. Most of it has centered around Seattle offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, and his decision to throw from New England’s 1-yard line with 26 seconds remaining instead of giving his bruising running back, Marshawn Lynch, a chance.
There will be debate raging for days whether Bevell’s play call was the worst in NFL history. There shouldn’t be.
Bevell made the most boneheaded call we have ever seen, choosing to throw despite employing an offense built entirely on power. Only three feet from becoming an immortal team, the Seahawks should have been lined up in a two-tight end set with 293-pound fullback Will Tukuafu in the backfield to pave Lynch’s path. Lynch had already rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown against a tired New England defense. The man known as Beast Mode is built for a situation like that.
Instead, Bevell called a pick play, hoping to spring Ricardo Lockette free across the middle for the go-ahead score. Lockette, the 28-year-old receiver who amassed 11 catches all season, was in charge of winning the game instead of the team’s best weapon. It all unfolded as Bevell expected until Russell Wilson’s pass led Lockette a few inches to far, allowing Patriots rookie safety Malcolm Butler to intercept on a brilliant effort.
Bevell’s call will go down as the most infamous we have witnessed since Red Right 88, a disaster spawned by the Cleveland Browns in a playoff loss to the Oakland Raiders in 1980. While that was bad, Bevell’s was historically awful considering time and place. Bevell got cute and tried to outsmart New England. Ultimately, he outsmarted himself.
The Seahawks play with an arrogance unmatched in professional sports and now have to sit quietly all offseason. Bevell should have also laid low after his call and avoided making a litany of excuses, but he has already begun that tour.
“We were conscious of how much time was on the clock, and we wanted to use it all,” Bevell said, per ESPN. “It didn’t turn out the way I hoped it would.
“Of course I can say now I wish we had done something different. There are 20 different things going through my mind that we can do. If you run it, that doesn’t mean you would score on that play.”
If Seattle really wanted to run the clock down, why not run the ball? If Lynch doesn’t get in, call the final timeout with 12 seconds left, giving you enough time to throw twice. The only way that logic doesn’t jive is if Bevell thought Lynch would score on the rushing attempt. In that case, Bevell purposely avoided scoring so Tom Brady wouldn’t get 20 seconds against the best defense and secondary in football. If that’s true, Bevell should have been fired before the confetti fell.
Bevell then had the gall to blame Lockette, throwing his effort under the bus, per Gregg Bell. It is a disgraceful showing from a man who should be owning his colossal mistake. Instead, he is looking to point fingers faster than an auctioneer.
Super Bowl XLIX will be remembered for plenty. Nothing will be thought of more than Bevell’s blunder.