Did Lady Gaga play a role in the Atlanta Falcons‘ epic meltdown in the second half of the Super Bowl? According to one Falcons wide receiver, absolutely.
Mohamed Sanu appeared on the NFL Network on Friday and was asked about the role that the extended halftime break had on Super Bowl Sunday. Sanu believes that being off the field for such a long period of time during Gaga’s performance “definitely” had an impact on the team.
“Usually halftime’s only like 15 minutes,” Sanu said. “And when you’re not on the field for, like, an hour, it’s just like going to work out, like a great work out, and you go and sit on a couch for an hour. And then try to start working out again.
“It was my first time experiencing something like that and it was different,” Sanu continued.
Sanu also said this is something that’s hard to simulate in practice because it’s such a unique situation. As CBS Sports noted, Bill Belichick tried doing this in the past – prior to Super Bowl XLVI, Belichick gave the Patriots a 30-minute break in the middle of practice, saying “It’s not like taking a break and coming out in the second half. It’s like starting the game all over again. It’s like playing a game, stopping, and then playing a second game.” Of course, this didn’t lead to a win for New England, as the Patriots fell to the New York Giants, 21-17.
While some people may write off Sanu’s comments as excuse making, he’s 100 percent correct. It’s totally possible that the Falcons were caught off guard by not playing football for nearly an hour, whereas the Patriots – who had made the Super Bowl two years prior – were aware of how their bodies would react. The good news for the Falcons is that if they make it back next year, they should know what it’s like to have to sit for such a long period of time before taking the field for the second half. They’ll just have to overcome the totally real and not made up at all Super Bowl curse.
(Via CBS Sports)
