Football

Photos: Seahawks’ Kearse has big SB memory

By Adam Lewis2 Comments3 Mins Read
Seahawks WR Jermaine Kearse, a former star at the University of Washington and a Lakewood native, couldn’t bring this pass down, but later proved his worth with a memorable catch. / Drew McKenzie, Sportspress Norhtwest

Jermaine Kearse’s catch will probably be forgotten. At the least, it will be overshadowed because Russell Wilson threw an unthinkable interception two plays later on a play the hometown metro newspaper accurately dubbed the worst call in Super Bowl history. 

Regardless, Sportspress Northwest photographer Drew McKenzie captured the beginning of Kearse’s astounding 33-yard reception that preceded Wilson’s ill-fated slant pass intended for WR Ricardo Lockette.

Even if the 28-24 Patriots win in Super Bowl XLIX is unbearable to relive for 12’s, Kearse’s catch is worth another look.

First came the tip, with Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler, the eventual unlikely hero, in coverage.

Kearse finished with 45 receiving yards on three catches, none bigger than this. / Drew McKenzie

Then Kearse fell backward, while Butler went horizontal.

Doesn’t exactly have the makings of a guy about to make a game-altering catch, does it? / Drew McKenzie

As Kearse fell, he kept tracking the tumbling ball.

Kearse again showed Sunday his penchant for making unbelievable plays. / Drew McKenzie

Any guesses as to who that blurry figure with the white hair is in the background?

It’s Pete Carroll, dummy. / Drew McKenzie

Another look at it…

At this point, there was hope Kearse might have kept the ball in play. / Drew McKenzie

Finally, let’s use the power of GIF to show Kearse completing the catch.

Because Kearse wasn’t touched by a defensive player when he was on the ground, he wasn’t considered down. So he got up and ran.

Had Butler not forced him out at New England’s five-yard line, the conversation Monday morning might have been very different.

After the catch, Kearse leaped up but was pushed out by  Butler, the eventual hero. / Drew McKenzie

Apologies to Lynn Swann, David Tyree, and Mario Manningham, but Kearse’s grab, because of its timing and incredible difficulty, should go down as the best in Super Bowl history.

It probably won’t because of the game’s finish. 

For those who still can’t believe the Seahawks lost, or still can’t fathom why coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell decided throwing an inside slant to Lockette was a better option than giving the ball to Marshawn Lynch, perhaps the best running back in the league, or how Butler, an undrafted rookie cornerback, could make a game-clinching interception — cheer up.

Here’s WR Doug Baldwin, following his 3-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter, pretending to poop out a football.

He was penalized 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct, and afterward declined to identify the target of his tasteless, costly stunt: “That’s between me and the person it was intended for.”

A fairly public place for a private feud, eh Doug?

Baldwin just topped Randy Moss for the most lewd touchdown celebration in NFL history. / Drew McKenzie 
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2 Comments

  2. RadioGuy on

    Pundits across the country will call this catch whatever they call it, but anyone who saw it isn’t likely to ever forget it. A true testament to never giving up on a ball as long as it’s live.
    And I hope “pooping a football” was worth 15 yards to Doug Baldwin to do that because it held zero value to anyone else. Is that something they teach at Stanford?