Special Event: Super Bowl LV + commercials
February 6, 2021 3:42 PM - Subscribe

Kansas City Chiefs (Mahomes!) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Brady!). The Buccaneers will be the first team to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium, and it's Brady's 10th Super Bowl. Only 25,000 people in a stadium which seats 65,000 people. Also there are commercials!
posted by jessamyn (82 comments total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
The Ringer has an article about when these two teams played in week 12, and Tampa Bay learned very very quickly that cover 1 (man to man with 1 deep safety) was a terrible strategy. Tyreek Hill had 203 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns...in the first quarter.

Better to learn in week 12 rather than in the Super Bowl! The game wound up being competitive.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 4:09 PM on February 6, 2021 [2 favorites]


And skip Snoop and Martha hosting the Puppy Bowl? Surely you jest.
posted by Thorzdad at 4:11 PM on February 6, 2021 [3 favorites]


Let's go KC. Especially after they beat my Browns (they must be the best, then, right?).

Also, related, by Dave Zirin: The Unbearable Emptiness of Tom Brady
posted by Ahmad Khani at 4:25 PM on February 6, 2021 [4 favorites]


What's everyone eating?
posted by Ahmad Khani at 4:32 PM on February 6, 2021


And skip Snoop and Martha hosting the Puppy Bowl? Surely you jest.

You can talk about that here too! Or start another thread, also good. I am working that day (and generally not socializing) so I wanted to have a place to blab about Game Day stuff with internet people.
posted by jessamyn at 4:51 PM on February 6, 2021 [2 favorites]


I'm so torn.

On one hand, having Tom Brady as the (Super Bowl!) Hometeam QB after so many decades of your team sucking, I can relate to—I am from New England, so I can feel the waaaant from the Bucs fans. If NE (or anyone) ever played a Super Bowl at Foxboro, I would start to pray to a deity. For a blizzard.

On the other hand, Tom Brady is a trumper, and Mahomes has such a cute baby face, seems like a righteous guy, and moves like it's his game and his future. It's exciting to watch him.

It used to be exciting to watch Tom Brady; now it's sometimes moderately exciting, but also kinda wincey.

I'm rooting for the team that stays in the locker room the longest while the anthem plays.
posted by not_on_display at 5:02 PM on February 6, 2021 [1 favorite]


What's everyone eating?

Humble pie.
posted by not_on_display at 5:04 PM on February 6, 2021 [2 favorites]


As a Steelers fan I was just happy to see the Cowboys, 49ers and Patriots did not get in. Other than that, I'll probably watch a bit then flip to the puppies.
posted by 922257033c4a0f3cecdbd819a46d626999d1af4a at 5:09 PM on February 6, 2021 [2 favorites]


Just putting in a plug for Kitten Bowl VIII, which airs just before Puppy Bowl, so you don't have to miss a moment of either one.
posted by briank at 5:48 PM on February 6, 2021 [6 favorites]


Came here to say DON’T FORGET THE PUPPY BOWL!!, thanks briank.
posted by Melismata at 6:05 PM on February 6, 2021 [1 favorite]


As a fellow Browns fan, there is something to be said about getting knocked out by the eventual champs -- especially since we would have beaten them if the refs had called the egregious helmet-to-helmet call (let me have this one, KC fans).

On the flip side: Kansas City's name, and the traditions and costumes associated with it, are problematic, at best. As someone whose favorite baseball team is slowly being dragged into the late twentieth century kicking and screaming, I can understand how KC fans are able to look past that, but, as an outside observer, I think I need to go for the Bucs. Especially since Brady is only one of 53 guys suiting up on Sunday.
posted by miguelcervantes at 6:30 PM on February 6, 2021 [2 favorites]


Yeah, am still not sure how they missed that obvious targeting penalty. Frustrating, but… Browns luck I suppose. Still, what a year.

Also, agree on the name; is horrifying, as are their traditions. Yet still feel a need to pull for Mahomes (I do wonder if he's even 100% after the concussion). Plus anyone but Brady.

Good betting line at -3 as I can't help but think KC is a bigger favorite.
posted by Ahmad Khani at 6:37 PM on February 6, 2021


Y’all don’t like the Chefs?
posted by Huffy Puffy at 6:59 PM on February 6, 2021 [7 favorites]


What's everyone eating?

My brother is making wings and is generous enough to share with the boyfriend and I. In return, I'm making deviled eggs and soft pretzels. I also bought potato salad and guacamole, and the boyfriend is picking up more chicken and probably a side from Bonchon.

I am a Patriots fan, so, I'm just watching the game to see a good game. I am happy that Tom is finding success with his new team, and Gronk is the most adorable meathead, so I wish for good things for him as well. But, I do like Mahomes a lot too.
posted by Sparky Buttons at 9:40 PM on February 6, 2021 [3 favorites]


I can’t believe it’s already Super Bowl LV. It seems like only yesterday it was L.
posted by chrchr at 12:51 AM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


Has it really been V years since L?
posted by chrchr at 1:51 AM on February 7, 2021 [7 favorites]


Y’all don’t like the Chefs?

Without even clicking the link, I can proudly reply

GREAT GOOGLY MOOGLY
posted by Ghidorah at 4:59 AM on February 7, 2021 [5 favorites]


I thought this was a good read for folks who are perhaps dismissive of football as a game containing strategic thinking as well as brute force: Nine Things Nerds Can Appreciate about Football’s Game Design.
posted by jenkinsEar at 6:12 AM on February 7, 2021 [4 favorites]


Upside: This is the first time (in decades...think of that for a minute) I haven’t had to set my alarm to be up at 6:30 AM to watch it in a bar full of drunken expats who don’t follow American football but who are nonetheless convinced that Tom Brady is the Great Satan. Downside: I can’t watch it with normal Pats fans either. Thanks Corona.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 6:44 AM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


I don't care about football. I don't watch the Super Bowl. That said, this in my inbox today. All I can think is "why?"

On the plus side, there's no Johnny Depp. But is Edward Scissorhands really a character that is going to resonate with GM's target demographic for this particular vehicle? (Especially if it involves younger actors representing a second generation of these characters?) I would have loved to have been in the marketing meeting when this proposal was discussed.
posted by sardonyx at 9:25 AM on February 7, 2021 [4 favorites]


A show immediately before the game will feature Miley Cyrus, Amanda Gordon, and H.E.R. The first pregame show started about an hour ago.

All the (already-released) 2021 Super Bowl Commercials, featuring among others Dolly Parton, Lil Nas X, Cardi B, Lil Baby, Dan Levy, and at least two brands of alcoholic seltzer.

First-time SB advertisers include Vroom, Fiverr, Mercari, Klarna, Dexcom, and, the one you've heard of, Robinhood.

The halftime show will feature The Weeknd. A commemorative football is available. The Weeknd's favorite SB halftime show? Diana Ross.

Do you want more? The New York Times has an interactive FAQ, and Saturday Night Live had a cold open last night.
posted by box at 9:41 AM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


There's also a commercials thread on MeFi for people who are very much not watching the game or wanting to be in a thread about it.
posted by jessamyn at 10:12 AM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


What's everyone eating?

Wings from a local place (ordered 24 hours in advance) - 100% required by husband.
Celery and carrots with hummus
Mozzarella sticks at some point
Maybe chicken samosas (Trader Joe's) if we're peckish later on.

Teens are thrilled - this is our Junk Food dinner. ;)
posted by heathrowga at 12:21 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


This is a tricky one for me. I want good outcomes for:
- Patrick Mahomes who is an amazing player and also helped push the NFL to issue a strong BLM stance after they came out with their usual mealy mouthed platitude.
- The 7000 local Tampa area medical workers in attendance, who have spent a year dealing not just with covid, but Florida governance covid.
- The players, who are doing something dangerous.
- The Weeknd, a good Canadian; I know if I became a rich celebrity, I'd fund a university program too, so we have at least that much in common.

I want bad outcomes for:
- Tom Brady, MAGA head.
- Tampa Bay ownership, who used unpaid homeless labour in their concessions.
- Kansas City fans and management, who keep their team's racist chants alive and who booed the moment for racial equality at the start of the season.

So I think I'm cheering for KC on the balance, but it's not clear-cut. Food is wings, and a sevenish layer dip.
posted by Superilla at 12:43 PM on February 7, 2021 [8 favorites]


CBS Sports @CBSSports
"The experience of being a Black quarterback is hard, it's fun, at times, it is unjust, but when it's at its best, it's exhilarating." @roywoodjr looks back on the history of Black quarterbacks, and their ascent over the years.

[video]

Click through for a poingant 3-min video by Roy Wood Jr on the history of Black QBs. Just aired on the CBS pre-game show.
posted by Ahmad Khani at 1:28 PM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


This New Englander wants Brady to get absolutely destroyed. Not because he left the Patriots, but because he's a MAGA and I'm just generally tired of hearing about him. Mad respect for his athletic achievements but beyond that he can go cram it.

I'm making nachos and Italian sausage for dinner.

That is all.
posted by bondcliff at 2:02 PM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


(I also don't like Tom Brady because he pushed dubious immune system supplements during a pandemic.)

(Meanwhile, Patrick Mahomes' most problematic endorsement is probably either EA or Bose.)
posted by box at 2:23 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


Mahomes was on the cover of EA Madden last season, got injured (TEH CURSE!!1!!)... and won the Super Bowl. If that doesn’t say “special”, I don’t know what does.

(Oh, a half-billion-dollar contract? OK, that too.)
posted by Huffy Puffy at 2:55 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


I don't give a damn about football but I do hate Tom Brady so I'll be rooting for Kansas City.
posted by octothorpe at 3:07 PM on February 7, 2021


Not a huge football fan most of the time, but as a KC native there's no question which team I'm rooting for.

Just my wife and myself so leftover pizza and pretzel bites here.
posted by photo guy at 3:23 PM on February 7, 2021


Well so far, not so different from Nuri’s, the Melting Pot Saloon, or the UN Irish Pub then.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 3:25 PM on February 7, 2021


First time in a looooong time that I'm not familiar with the anthem artists.
posted by donnagirl at 3:26 PM on February 7, 2021


Are they using Portrait Mode for the close-ups of the players on the sideline?
posted by Huffy Puffy at 3:28 PM on February 7, 2021


Can I just say fuck Doordash for corrupting Sesame Street while playing up how they "support" local businesses, ignoring how many are losing money thanks to them?
posted by NoxAeternum at 4:00 PM on February 7, 2021 [4 favorites]


So far, for a 3-0 game at 5:10 left in Q1, it's pretty exciting to see the defenses shut everyone down.
posted by not_on_display at 4:02 PM on February 7, 2021


I don't think I'll ever get used to seeing cardboard cutouts in a stadium. It reminds me of a bad 80's music video, where suddenly on the last verse, there's a fade transition and all the cardboard cutouts come alive and start dancing.
posted by not_on_display at 4:06 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


As for food, I have a pot of chili going in the slow cooker, as is family tradition.
posted by NoxAeternum at 4:07 PM on February 7, 2021


GRRROOONNNKKK
posted by TWinbrook8 at 4:13 PM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


stupid canadian tv and its stupid low budget ads
posted by sixswitch at 4:14 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


Last week I saw Gronk in a YouTube add for a ball shaver called the Lawnmower.
posted by bondcliff at 4:16 PM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


All my American commercials are terrible. Share some of that low budget Canada!
posted by lock robster at 4:16 PM on February 7, 2021


The banter between the announcers sounds like the monty python banter sketch. It is possible im not sport savvy to understand what the hell they are talking about
posted by Lord_Pall at 4:20 PM on February 7, 2021


Romo's one of the better analysts, mainly because of his knowledge of the game - one party trick he does is call what the team will do just from how they set up at the line of scrimmage, which he usually gets right.
posted by NoxAeternum at 4:26 PM on February 7, 2021 [4 favorites]


It is possible im not sport savvy to understand what the hell they are talking about

What jargon?
posted by not_on_display at 4:27 PM on February 7, 2021


Also yeah, if you're confused, focus on Romo's gravelly voice; he helps make sense of the game. Best color commentator working by far. He also gets JOY from the game and that gets passed to the viewer.
posted by not_on_display at 4:29 PM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


Commercials where I have to look up what the company does afterward—NOPE
posted by not_on_display at 4:32 PM on February 7, 2021


Those oat people needed someone to tell the CEO no
posted by zachlipton at 4:41 PM on February 7, 2021 [9 favorites]


o i am eating haddock sub, steak & cheese, pizza, curly fries. There will be plenty of leftovers. For my son.
posted by not_on_display at 4:41 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


how soon before "Dude with a Sign" gets his own series on Paramount
posted by not_on_display at 4:51 PM on February 7, 2021


Commercials where I have to look up what the company does afterward—NOPE

Eh, WeatherTech is the sort of company where if you're in the market for what they sell, you likely know who they are by reputation. I have a set of their mats for my car, and they work great.
posted by NoxAeternum at 5:05 PM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


3 fingernails down
posted by TWinbrook8 at 5:16 PM on February 7, 2021


Also, the Equalizer reboot looks interesting enough for a chance.
posted by NoxAeternum at 5:19 PM on February 7, 2021


Who's winning Bud Bowl?
posted by Fukiyama at 5:21 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


Who's winning Bud Bowl?

They actually had the Bud Light team in the Bud Light Legends ad!
posted by NoxAeternum at 5:25 PM on February 7, 2021


a game containing strategic thinking as well as brute force

There's also incredible athleticism, grace, and beauty.
posted by kirkaracha at 5:26 PM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


Judging from the first half, if TB wins, it won't be because they beat KC but because KC beat themselves.
posted by gtrwolf at 5:28 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


I want my own Borg choir!
posted by lock robster at 5:29 PM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


Now it'll bug you too.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 5:38 PM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


This is a music video, not a performance.
posted by lock robster at 5:38 PM on February 7, 2021


I want my own Borg choir!

We were expecting them all to be renewed.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 5:40 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


I want my own mirror maze now, and an army of tightly synced dancing mummies.
posted by not_on_display at 5:42 PM on February 7, 2021


Now it'll bug you too.

Thanks, I hate it.
posted by jessamyn at 5:44 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


I liked it a lot -- putting the stage at one end of the field opened up so much space, well-used for a distanced dance party
posted by Sparky Buttons at 5:46 PM on February 7, 2021


What is that building that looks like a giant deodorant stick?
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 5:55 PM on February 7, 2021


That M. Night Shyamalan movie Old is some kind of bit, right? Like that can't be real.
posted by guiseroom at 5:56 PM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


This is your reminder that Leonard Fournette was cut by the last-place Jacksonville Jaguars in the preseason.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 6:00 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


What's everyone eating?

Nachos, a black bean and macaroni soup, cheese puffs and little bitty lemon pound cakes.

It has been decreed in this apartment that it was actually an interesting game until Tom Brady came out and then it got boring.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:09 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


...not the Edward Scissorhands sequel I was expecting.
posted by NoxAeternum at 6:31 PM on February 7, 2021 [1 favorite]


Maybe it's because I am not invested in either team, and definitely because it is different watching it alone on a laptop instead of with friends or at a bar, but this year's game just isn't holding my attention the same way.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:39 PM on February 7, 2021


Well, they ran that Bruce Springsteen commercial that the Blue hated so much.

Eh, it was fine.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 6:43 PM on February 7, 2021 [2 favorites]


@BurtonJM: Let’s just pause and unpack, for one second, how that big Springsteen “we can unite” commercial was entirely framed in the context of coming together in an exclusively Christian space. I’m all for unity, and I’m all for @springsteen as a musician, but every time I see a call for unity that sits entirely within Christian imagery and spaces, I wonder if the idea of America is big enough for Jews, Muslims, people of other and of no faith.

I know the conceit of the ad is the geographic center of the country (excluding Alaska and Hawaii, some real unity there), but why does Real America always have to be a rural church? People live in 40-story buildings in Kansas City. The median of the nation is more than the same tired stereotype over and over again.
posted by zachlipton at 6:55 PM on February 7, 2021 [16 favorites]


The Amazon commercial with Michael B. Jordan was better.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 7:08 PM on February 7, 2021


Suck it Goodell
posted by TWinbrook8 at 7:25 PM on February 7, 2021


Fuck you, Tom Brady. You're the lucky prideful dick who's talented enough that he can actually believe his own hype. (Just saying.)
posted by lock robster at 7:36 PM on February 7, 2021


I watched until the interception that bounced off everyone's helmets (TB recovers) and I knew that was the end. Then I watched yesterday's Saturday Night Live. Happy for Gronk most of all. That loveable meatloaf-brained mismatched grinning doofus who catches all the balls and doesn't afraid of anything—that's the way to come out of retirement.

That's something Tom Brady won't do: come back from retirement. Because he's not going to retire. Is he.
posted by not_on_display at 8:45 PM on February 7, 2021 [4 favorites]


There's a scene in The Big Short where Ryan Gosling's slick character pitches Steve Carell's character's fund, and afterwards one of SC's associates says "Isn't this guy everything you taught us to hate?" and SC says that he's so nakedly transparent in his self interest that he sort of respects him.

I think Gronk is that way; he's just such a perfect meathead doing everything in his meathead way that I have to respect him.

I can't stand the Brady deification though; yes, he had a decent game but his play was at best the fourth most important key to victory behind KC's continually getting penalized, KC's offensive line collapsing and (the #1 thing) Tampa playing an amazing defensive game.
posted by Superilla at 9:36 PM on February 7, 2021 [3 favorites]


Brady had a pretty mediocre game, completing 21 out of 29 pass attempts (around 74%) for 195 total passing yards and 3 touchdowns.

Tampa Bay's defense won the game, between their defensive line dominating Kansas City's shorthanded offensive line and their defensive backs shutting down the Chiefs' top receivers.

There were a couple of questionable calls (and pretty chippy for a Super Bowl) but they made too many legitimate mistakes. Bad calls on defense don't keep your team from scoring touchdowns on offense.
posted by kirkaracha at 9:55 PM on February 7, 2021


I'm really not football-conversant - the most exposure I have to the game is the "Bad Lip Reading" videos. We were watching mainly for the ads here.

But the same faces show up again and again in the Bad Lip Reading videos - and so I was finally able to attach Tom Brady's name to the face that kept on making say whiny petulant things in all the videos, and I'm weirdly amused.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 4:09 AM on February 8, 2021 [1 favorite]


The Amazon commercial with Michael B. Jordan was better.

You mean the one where Amazon sells a Michael B. Jordan slave?
posted by srboisvert at 4:43 AM on February 8, 2021


Never ever change, MetaFilter.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 5:21 AM on February 8, 2021 [12 favorites]


Tampa Bay's victory was too close to its win over Green Bay; like Mahomes, 2021 Rodgers is an inherently better QB than 2021 Brady that an injury-beset offensive line could not protect or give enough time in the pocket to do his thing. In fact, Rodgers did better than Mahomes and the Packers could have won had they capitalized on just a few missed opportunities. KC-GB would have been a better game. Yes, I still grieve.
posted by carmicha at 10:02 AM on February 9, 2021


That's always been the problem with Brady, it's so easy to imagine a universe where he loses, but we rarely end up there.

Also, come on, 21-29, 3 TDs and no turnovers, most of that damage done in the first half, it's not amazing but it's certainly not mediocre.
posted by skewed at 11:50 AM on February 9, 2021


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