Shane Vereen sure is glad Pete Carroll decided to keep the ball out of Marshawn Lynch’s hands in the final seconds of Super Bowl XLIX.
Vereen, the New England Patriots running back, said Monday on NFL Network’s “NFL AM” that the previous weekend’s game likely would have ended differently had his Seattle Seahawks counterpart been given the ball at the 1-yard line.
“I think it’s a different game, I think it’s a different ending,” said Vereen, who became a free agent at season’s end. “When I was on the sideline, and I saw where they had the ball in the situation, we were trying to get some plays together for the offense to try and get at least a field goal to tie the thing up. So my focus was mainly more on that, ’cause I definitely thought they were going to hand it to him and he was gonna punch it in.”
Of course Lynch did not get the call. Carroll instead elected to pass on second-and-goal, Russell Wilson threw an interception to make Malcolm Butler an instant Boston hero and the Patriots claimed their fourth Lombardi Trophy.
Vereen certainly isn’t alone in believing the Seahawks should have given the ball to Beast Mode.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
