by Brandon Richard
It had been a mostly uneventful season for undrafted rookie Malcolm Butler. In 11 games with the New England Patriots, the safety recorded just 15 tackles and 0 interceptions. His quiet campaign continued through the first two games of the playoffs, where he had 1 tackle. That all changed Sunday night, when the unknown rookie became the hero of Super Bowl 49.
In one of the greatest matchups of all-time, it was the Patriots who emerged the victors for the fourth time in franchise history. Tom Brady, who picked apart Seattle's 'Legion of Boom' defense to erase a 10-point 4th quarter deficit, won his third Super Bowl MVP Award. However, with a minute to play, the Seahawks found themselves on the Patriots' 1-yard line after a miraculous catch by Jermaine Kearse. Victory seemed imminent for the defending champs — then Butler made the biggest play of his life.
Instead of pounding Marshawn Lynch on the goal line, the Seahawks ran a quick slant intended for Ricardo Lockette, which was improbably picked off by Butler. The interception sealed the deal on the Patriots' 28-24 victory.
While many continue to debate the Seahawks' last play call, there were several awesome cleat and sneaker moments to talk about as well. Lynch tried to get away with his custom gold cleats again, Pete Carroll laced up a PE colorway of the Nike's hot-selling 'dad' shoes, Earl Thomas broke out two Air Jordan PEs, Darrelle Revis wore soccer cleats and Brady nabbed MVP honors in an Under Armour model unavailable to the public.
Read on for the best footwear moments from Super Bowl 49.
Player: Marshawn Lynch
Shoe: Nike Vapor Speed Mid 'Gold' by SolesbySir
Player: Marshawn Lynch
Shoe: Nike Vapor Speed Mid
Player: Earl Thomas
Shoe: Air Jordan 7 PE
Player: Earl Thomas
Shoe: Jordan Super.Fly 3 PE
Player: Julian Edelman
Shoe: Nike Lunar Super Bad Pro
Player: Tom Brady
Shoe: Under Armour Prototype
Player: Jeremy Lane
Shoe: Nike Alpha Pro Low Custom by SolesbySir
Player: Russell Wilson
Shoe: Nike Lunar Super Bad Pro
Coach: Pete Carroll
Shoe: Nike Air Monarch PE
Player: Brandon LaFell
Shoe: Nike Alpha Pro Mid
Player: Chris Matthews
Shoe: Nike Alpha Pro 2 Low
Player: Shane Vereen
Shoe: Nike Alpha Pro 2 Low
Player: Rob Gronkowski
Shoe: Nike Zoom Code Elite
Player: Kam Chancellor
Shoe: Nike Vapor Speed Mid
Player: Danny Amendola
Shoe: Nike Vapor Speed Low
Player: Richard Sherman
Shoe: Nike Vapor Carbon 2014 Elite
Player: Darrelle Revis
Shoe: Nike Tiempo
Player: Malcolm Butler
Shoe: Nike Vapor Speed Low
Patriots Owner: Robert Kraft
Shoe: Nike Lunar Force 1 'Patriots'
images via Robert Deutsch, Matthew Emmons, Mark J. Rebllas, Kyle Terada, Andrew Weber for USA Today Sports
