Super Bowl 2019 is here. The New England Patriots lead the Los Angeles Rams 3-0 at halftime of Super Bowl LIII. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is hoping to win the sixth championship ring of his career, while Rams’ quarterback Jared Goff is hoping to win his first.
The Rams’ Johnny Hekker sets punt record
8:54 – Rams kicker Johnny Hekker sets an NFL record for the longest punt in a Super Bowl, with a 65-yard punt in the third quarter. The six-year veteran has eight punts in the game so far, which is three shy of the Super Bowl record set in 2000 by the New York Giants.
Patrick Chung Injury
8:36 p.m. – Patriots’ Patrick Chung leaves the game after hurting his right arm with 13:58 left in the third quarter. The safety had an aircast put on but was able to walk off the field himself.
Patrick Chung (arm) has been ruled out for the remainder of the Super Bowl.
Halftime show goes on without controversy
8:47 p.m. – Maroon 5 headlined the Super Bowl 2019 Pepsi Halftime Show, playing hits like “Harder to Breathe”, “This Love”, and “Sugar.” The band was joined by rapper Travis Scott and Atlanta native Big Boi.
Amid controversy, frontman Adam Levine performed “Girl Like You,” a song that features rapper Cardi B. Instead, Levine sung the pop song supported by a diverse gospel group. Cardi B declined to perform the halftime show to highlight her support for Colin Kaepernick.
The 2019 halftime show was without a headliner until less than three weeks ago when Maroon 5 was officially announced. A Change.org petition garnered more than 100,000 signatures asking Maroon 5 to drop out of the show.
In a recent interview, frontman Adam Levine say he “expected” the controversy and spoke with “many people” before committing to perform in the NFL’s big halftime show.
NFL commercial brings together the league’s greats
8:29 p.m. – The NFL brought together the greatest players of all time in one commercial filled with football gems. Using the setting of the league’s 100th anniversary gala, Joe Montana refuses to pass to long-time rival Michael Irvin and Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady hands his five Super Bowl rings to Browns rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield in a ‘Get out there, old man’ moment. Teams around the league showed their support for their players as Twitter buzzed over the spot.
At the half, the second-lowest scoring Super Bowl ever
At the half, Patriots’ Julian Edelman has outperformed the Rams’ offense on all counts, leaving New England to lead 3-0. The wide receiver finishes with seven receptions for 93 yards and six first downs. Los Angeles has been held to five completions for 57 yards and two first downs.
Forced to punt on six straight series, the Rams are still scoreless in the second-lowest scoring Super Bowl half ever.
Gronkowski misses Brady’s pass
7:56 p.m. – Attempting to convert a 4th and 1, Tom Brady throws to tight end Rob Gronkowski in double coverage who misses the ball. The Rams take over on the 32 yard line with 1:13 left in the half.
Rams give possession back to the Patriots
7:41 p.m. – Rams’ Jared Goff avoids two Patriots defenders trying to keep the play alive but New England linebacker Kyle Van Noy brings the quarterback to his knees on 3 and 2nd. The Rams are forced to punt for the fifth time this half.
Penalty on New England
7:37 p.m. – Referees just called a holding penalty on Patriots’ inside linebacker Albert McClellan with a little over six minutes left in the second quarter. The Rams were awarded 10 yards.
Patriots FG – Take the lead 3-0 in the second quarter
7:24 p.m. – The Patriots’ Stephen Gostkowski hits a 42-yard field goal with 10:29 left in the second quarter to give New England the first score of the Super Bowl and a 3-0 lead.
Patriots’ wide receiver Julian Edelman moved into second all-time for most postseason receiving yards in NFL history during the second quarter, passing Michael Irvin. He now sits behind Jerry Rice who has 2,245 yards.
Bud Light – Game of Thrones commercial team-up
7:18 p.m. – Bud Light partnered with Game of Thrones for a commercial teasing the award-winning television series’ eighth season on HBO.
First quarter ends with no points scored
7:12 p.m. – The first quarter of the 2019 Super Bowl has ended with neither team able to score any points. The Patriots had 22 plays for 122 yards, while the Rams had 9 plays for 29 yards. Despite the Patriots having the ball for over 11 minutes, the score stands at 0-0.
Tom Brady sacked – First in 2019 postseason
7:08 p.m. – New England Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady suffered his first sack of the team’s postseason run with less than a minute left of the quarter to go. New England recovers the ball to continue their drive.
The Kings send their support to The Rams
7:04 p.m. Los Angeles’ hockey team, the Kings, sent a message of support to the Rams on Twitter Sunday.
Patriots miss their first field goal
6:58 p.m. Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski misses a 46-yard field goal, denying New England their first score of the game. His kick was the first to be missed all season in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and his third consecutive Super Bowl with a missed kick.
Patriots call the first time out of the game
6:51 p.m. – The New England Patriots call the first time out of the game while they sit on their 48th yard line. The team has already suffered their first interception of the game at the hands of Rams’ linebacker Cory Littleton.
New Orleans season highlights shown at Mercedes-Benz Stadium
At kickoff, the New Orleans Saints posted their 2018 season highlights with the promise of “more to come.” Despite protests from many Saints fans after a controversial no-call that ended their Super Bowl hopes in the NFC Championship, the NFL would not replay the game.
Rams pick off Tom Brady
6:36 p.m. – The Rams’ linebacker Cory Littleton picks a pass thrown by Patriot’s Tom Brady for the game’s first interception. Tom Brady’s first pass attempt in Super Bowl LIII results in an interception.
The turnover resulted in three downs and a punt.
Rams win the coin toss and defer
The Rams win the coin toss and elect to defer to the second half. The Patriots will start on offense.
Gladys Knight sings the Star Spangled Banner
Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Gladys Knight delivered the Star Spangled Banner to kick off the 2019 Super Bowl. Right as she finished, the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds flew over Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Her performance lasted just over two minutes, according to Sports Line.
The Patriots’ unlikely fan base: St. Louis
The New England Patriots will have an unlikely cohort of fans this Sunday: St. Louis residents.
Seventeen years after the Patriots beat the then-St. Louis Rams, allegiances have changed in the Gateway City. Three years ago, the Rams moved from St. Louis to Los Angeles, leaving unpaid debts and bruised feelings, according to The Associated Press.
At one sports bar chain around St. Louis, Patriots fans will enjoy discounted pitchers of beer for every New England touchdown and photos of Stan Kroenke, the Rams owner, will grace the bar’s dartboards and urinals, according to the AP.
“It’s just something kind of fun we can add to the mix and hopefully give St. Louisans some solace as they watch the game,” Justin Boyd, marketing director of the bar, told the AP.
After a multi-year losing streak kicked off by a Super Bowl loss to the Patriots, Kroenke began looking for a new home for the Rams in 2015, according to the AP. A $1 billion offer from St. Louis to build a new stadium in 2016 wasn’t enough; in 2016 the Rams announced they’d be leaving St. Louis for California.
St. Louis didn’t take the news well. The departure kicked off a series of lawsuits, one of which alleged that the move violated a 1984 league guideline that was established after the raiders moved to Los Angeles from Oakland, according to the AP. The case is still pending. After a class-action lawsuit, the Rams agreed to pay $24 million to personal seat license holders, according to the AP.
One radio host, Randy Karraker of ESPN’s The Fast Lane, estimated that 90 percent of St. Louis residents are against The Rams.
“It’s impossible to derive pleasure from that game,” Karraker told the AP. “I hate the Patriots for what they have done to football, and I hate the Rams. So it’s a no-win situation for me.”
National Anthem will be sung by Gladys Knight
Atlanta native Gladys Knight will sing the national anthem at the 2019 Super Bowl. The seven-time Grammy Award winner has two hits that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100: “Midnight Train to Georgia” and “That’s What Friends Are For.”
“I am proud to use my voice to unite and represent our country in my hometown of Atlanta,” Knight said in a statement. “The NFL recently announced their new social justice platform Inspire Change, and I am honored to be a part of its inaugural year.”
