data-mm-id=”_fixz3xck1″>After the Kansas City Chiefs were gifted a first down thanks to a questionable defensive holding call with less than two minutes to go in Super Bowl LVII, the game was essentially won. The Philadelphia Eagles had no timeouts and with 1:54 left the Chiefs could run the clock down at their leisure before kicking the game-winning field goal. However, they still had to run plays to get the clock moving so on first down they handed the ball off to Jerick McKinnon. The Eagles' defense, either deflated or trying to trick McKinnon into giving them a chance, let the running back waltz up to the goal line. Instead of scoring a touchdown to put the Chiefs up 42-35, McKinnon knelt down at the two-yard line. This sealed the Chiefs' victory. Brilliant football play by Jerick McKinnon. Just an absolutely brilliant football play. BRILLIANT. #Chiefs #SuperBowlLVII pic.twitter.com/C8Ovbp3RYG— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) February 13, 2023MCKINNON AVOIDS PULLING AN AHMAD BRADSHAW IN SUPER BOWL 46CHIEFS HAVE THE EAGLES ON THE ROPES pic.twitter.com/79keTsErSo— Jack Benjamin (@JackBenjaminPxP) February 13, 2023Why was that play so important? If McKinnon scores there, the Eagles get the ball back with more than 90 seconds to go and down by a touchdown. It is difficult but not impossible to march down the field and score a game-tying touchdown in that timespan. Instead, by kneeling down, McKinnon allowed the Chiefs to bleed the clock down to eight seconds before Harrison Butker hit the game-winner. It is tremendous situation awareness by McKinnon. How many other running backs would have taken their chance at scoring a Super Bowl touchdown? Most, I would guess. But he kept his head and gets a ring as a result. Patrick Mahomes won MVP but McKinnon had the play of the game. READ NEXT: 30 Best SportsCenter Anchors of All Time
Related Posts
Jurgen Klopp hailed Liverpool s reaction to the concession of an early goal after they came from behind to beat Manchester United 4-2 at Old Trafford.
The Reds looked set for another disappointing visit to the home of their bitter rivals when Bruno Fernandes opened the scoring after just 10 minutes on Thursday evening.
But goals from Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah either side of a Roberto Firmino brace rendered a further Marcus Rashford effort irrelevant and handed Liverpool their first Old Trafford win since 2014.
And it was the mental strength shown in the aftermath of the early setback that most pleased Klopp.
He told Sky Sports: We reacted really well on their goal, it was unlucky in that moment but it was a bit like we started the game to be honest. <…
Lionel Messi not winning the World Cup with Argentina would be unfair, according to goalkeeper Oscar Ustari.
Messi has won everything on offer during his time as a Barcelona player – the Champions League, LaLiga, UEFA Super Cup, Club World Cup, Copa del Rey and Supercopa de Espana.
However, the six-time Ballon d Or winner is yet to taste senior success in an Argentina jersey following a runners-up finish at the 2014 World Cup, having also reached back-to-back Copa America finals in 2015 and 2016.
A two-time Argentina international, Pachuca goalkeeper Ustari warned against doubting captain Messi – the country s all-time leading goalscorer.
…
Three games, three losses. Real Madrid s season was ended in a week.
As if a pair of Clasico defeats to Barcelona were not enough, the LaLiga giants crashed out of the Champions League to Ajax on Tuesday.
After a win over Levante on February 24, Madrid could not have imagined a week as bad as this.
The Santiago Bernabeu has seen four consecutive Madrid losses for just the third time ever and first since May 2004, and Santiago Solari s position as head coach is surely hanging by a thread.
It was a week that could not have gone any worse.
Wednesday, February 27 – Copa hopes dashed
After a 1-1 draw with Barcelona in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, Madrid had hope heading back home.
They looked on track aft…
Switzerland s remarkable run to the quarter-finals of Euro 2020 has captivated fans at the grounds and at home.
Still, there is only one member of Vladimir Petkovic s squad who consistently has his own song belted out in stands and living rooms.
Striker Breel Embolo epitomises the golden generation of Swiss players to have emerged in the last decade: talented, spirited, and with a story to tell. He is captivating as a player and person, so much so that his name is sung with gusto at every international match to the tune of The Lion Sleeps Tonight. Oh Embolo, oh Embolo
There s no denying his popularity, but where Embolo has so far fallen short is in matching early expectations. He made his Basel debut in March 2014 and scored minutes after coming on as a substit…
Benfica have parted company with head coach Jorge Jesus by mutual consent.
The decision follows a 3-0 defeat against rivals Porto in the Taca de Portugal round of 16, with a league clash against the same opponents coming up on Thursday.
Jesus rejoined Benfica in August 2020 but could only guide them to a third-place finish in his first season, with the club failing to secure any silverware for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign.
The team s performance in Europe was particularly disappointing, crashing out of the Champions League in qualifying and then going out of the Europa League in the round of 32.
Jesus leaves with Benfica third once more after 15 games of this season, having won 12, drawn one and lost two to sit four points behind leaders Por…
Antoine Griezmann looks set to be at the heart of 2019 s major transfer saga, having announced his intention to leave Atletico Madrid.
Griezmann has been Atletico s leading light since he joined from Real Sociedad five years ago, but he confirmed on Tuesday he will leave the Wanda Metropolitano at the end of the season, with Barcelona reportedly his preferred destination.
Atletico can reflect on a period of success for the club with Griezmann playing a key role, the France forward firing them to Europa League glory last year before winning the World Cup with his country.
Replacing Griezmann will prove a major challenge for Diego Simeone as the striker has scored 133 of their 463 goals in all competitions since 2014-15, 28.7 per cent of the club s total.
Xavi has once again expressed his desire to coach Barcelona as the former midfielder revealed returning to his former club is his goal and dream .
Barca great Xavi has managed Qatari side Al-Sadd since retiring in 2019 – leading them to five domestic cups and a league title – but has regularly admitted that he wants the top job with the Catalan giants.
The 41-year-old was linked to the role in August 2020 before Ronald Koeman s appointment and the Dutchman has seen his position come under scrutiny following a mixed start to the new term.
Barca currently sit seventh in LaLiga and suffered back-to-back Champions League group stage defeats for the first time since 2000-01, leading Xavi to once again be linked to Koeman s job.
While Koeman s position has …
Serbia head coach Dragan Stojkovic insisted there is no limit to what the country can achieve after they qualified for the 2022 World Cup in dramatic fashion.
Aleksandar Mitrovic scored in the 90th minute to break Portugal s hearts as Serbia reached next year s showpiece tournament in Qatar thanks to a last-gasp 2-1 victory in Group A on Sunday.
Portugal only required a draw to earn automatic qualification and Cristiano Ronaldo s men were on track after Renato Sanches and Dusan Tadic traded first-half goals in Lisbon.
However, Serbia dominated and were rewarded when substitute Mitrovic headed home late as Portugal were relegated to the play-offs.
ИСПИСАНА ЈЕ ИСТОРИЈА У ЛИСАБОНУ!
СРБИЈА ЈЕ НА СВЕТСК�…
Prominent opponents of the Glazer family s ownership of Manchester United have issued a list of reform demands after the club s part in the ill-fated European Super League.
The breakaway competition, which sought to establish a closed-shop competition featuring 12 of Europe s elite clubs, collapsed this week 48 hours after its launch, in the face of widespread opposition.
United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward announced he would step down from his post amid escalating and dramatic events on Tuesday and co-chairman Joel Glazer apologised to fans in an open letter – the family s first direct communication to supporters in 16 years.
Nevertheless, a fresh round of anger directed towards the American family has shown no sign of abating, with United great Gary Ne…
Gareth Southgate would love Kalvin Phillips to fight his way into England’s Euro 2024 squad but felt he had to drop the out-of-sorts midfielder this month as he was not confident about his performance levels.
The 28-year-old has established himself as a key figure in the national team set-up since winning the first of his 31 caps away to Denmark in September 2020.
Phillips was named England men’s player of the year for 2020-21 after shining in the run to the European Championship final, but pressure has mounted on his position since leaving Leeds for Manchester City in 2022.
The midfielder barely made an impact under Pep Guardiola and joined West Ham on loan in January, but a disastrous start there led to his omission from Southgate’s final squad before nam…