Patriots win the Super Bowl. In one of the greatest title games ever played, quarterback Tom Brady led the Patriots back from a 25-point deficit to defeat the Falcons in the first Super Bowl overtime by final score of 34-28. Brady was named MVP after passing for a Super Bowl-record 466 yards, while running back James White added 14 receptions and three total touchdowns. Brady and New England head coach Bill Belichick now boast five Super Bowl rings, and the Patriots have now won two of the past three NFL championships.
Changes in Atlanta. Having been dealt a crushing loss in the Super Bowl, the Falcons quickly began making changes to their coaching staff. Former Alabama assistant Steve Sarkisian was hired to replace Kyle Shanahan as offensive coordinator, while ex-Atlanta secondary coach Marquand Manuel was promoted to take the place of the fired Richard Smith. The Falcons will also tackle personnel moves this offseason, possibly by making Matt Ryan the league’s highest-paid player and inking cornerback Desmond Trufant to an extension.
Shanahan goes west. The 49ers made official the NFL’s worst-kept secret, hiring former Falcons OC Kyle Shanahan as their new head coach, signing him to a six-year deal. Along with first-time general manager John Lynch, Shanahan will control San Francisco’s fate for the next half-dozen years (Lynch handles the 90-man roster while Shanahan has final say over the 53). In addition to personnel control, Shanahan is handling other duties, as the 49ers won’t hire an offensive coordinator and are bringing in several inexperienced offensive coaches.
Getting the band back together. Quarterback Carson Palmer became the second Cardinals veteran to fend off retirement, announcing this week that he’d follow wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald‘s lead and return for the 2017 season. 2016 was certainly a down year for Palmer, as his Total Quarterback Rating dropped by nearly 25 points, but Arizona is still in win-now mode and doesn’t have a ready-made successor on the roster. Palmer, 37, is signed through 2018 with cap charges north of $20MM in each year.
A reward in Oakland. After leading the Raiders back to the postseason for the first time in 12 years, head coach Jack Del Rio was handed a new contract on Friday night. Oakland essentially ripped up Del Rio’s old deal, which had him locked up through 2018, and signed him to a new pact that runs through the 2020 campaign. Del Rio, 53, won 12 games for the second time in his career in 2016, and has posted an overall record of 87-84 as an NFL head coach.