Dont'a Hightower sacked Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan in a pivotal fourth-quarter play that made possible the Patriots’ historic comeback. Instead of calling a safe running play—the Falcons had been routinely gashing the Patriots defense—Quinn dialed up a pass play. Hightower’s heroics will go down as the most pivotal moment in the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history. “I think we needed a play like that somewhere along the line and then we got that play,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said on Monday. Protection breakdown and we just stayed after [Ryan],” Patriots defensive end Chris Long said after the game.

Source: Wall Street Journal February 06, 2017 16:22 UTC