On March 3rd, the NFL released their official video recap of the Super Bowl Champions and, wouldn't you know, it was about the Patriots! It's a joint effort between Cinedigm and NFL Films, which means that there's a ton of behind the scenes footage compiled in a beautiful presentation.
"Super Bowl XLIX Champions New England Patriots" should be available in most stores near you, but I'm also hoping to finagle a couple for some contests around the website this off-season!
The movie itself is beautiful. There's plenty of good behind-the-scenes tidbits and camera angles that haven't been televised and it's actually impressive how it's all pulled together.
How awesome is this shot of Brady prior to a goal line touchdown. Calling his shot. https://t.co/IWC6u3Tlel
— Rich Hill (@PP_Rich_Hill) March 4, 2015
Grantland's Katie Baker followed the process of creating the movie and it turns out that most of it's done prior to the conference championship games.
That's what makes the video so special- there's so much unintentional Malcolm Butler and it's made before he grabbed the interception.
He's in the preseason shots. He's in the locker room shots. He's on the sideline. None of this is intentional; he's just lurking in the shadows off frame. Or maybe it's entirely on purpose and NFL Films dug into the archives to find as many Butler shots as possible.
It didn't matter. I was excited every time I saw him on screen.
But then there was the pre-Super Bowl defensive back huddle where Devin McCourty is leading the circle. He specifically calls out Malcolm Butler- and no one else- and says, "this is why you made it, Straps," using Butler's nickname. Immediate chills.
The film is filled with moments where everything comes full circle and offers a great transition from 2014 and on to 2015. I highly recommend it.