Who deserves the blame for Super bowl XLVI?

Super Bowl XLVI- Flickr- stephen_d_luke

With the New England Patriots in the lead with 4:06 remaining left in the game, Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker dropped a 23-yard pass that could have secured the win for the them. As a result of this, the blame of the Patriots loss was placed on his back; however, the pass was overthrown by Tom Brady.

Welker is only 5’9” and had to jump and turn around while sprinting to the pass. Pulling off a move like this is not easy and even though Welker got his hands on the ball, this drop was only a small portion of why the Patriots lost on Sunday.

The Patriots defense failed to do their job and let Eli Manning get the ball down the field to score, but this is no surprise. During the regular season, the Patriots defense was ranked 31st in the league against passing. Even if Welker was not able to make the catch for a first down, Manning was still able to get past the defense to score the game winning touchdown.

This play should be looked at nothing more than a bad pass. Brady’s pass was thrown over the wrong shoulder. A pass like that was not fit for Welker’s size and ability, which is why he does not deserve the blame. The Patriots loss should not be blamed on Welker and the New York Giants were able to make something of their last drive.