Patriots benching Malcolm Butler among worst coaching mistakes in Super Bowl history

Bill Belichick gave almost no answers. Malcolm Butler had no answer, either, but lots of emotion, wild guesses and dejection. To be fair, the questions were complicated.

Why did Butler get benched for Super Bowl 52, and did it cost the Patriots their sixth Lombardi Trophy?

There’s a question in there, though, that’s easier to answer: Is this one of the worst and costliest coaching blunders ever in the Super Bowl? That answer is yes. Is it the all-time worst and costliest? It’s hard to find another, even with 52 years of competition.

The closest, of course, involves Butler, too, which makes the irony of Belichick’s decision against the Eagles on Sunday night even more wrenchingly painful. Three years ago, Pete Carroll chose to pass from the 1-yard line instead of handing off to Marshawn Lynch. Butler made him and the Seahawks pay for that move, as his game-saving interception launched him from anonymity into stardom, the starting cornerback job and Super Bowl legend.

As it turned out, it didn't take another lifetime to see another coaching decision more boneheaded, more overthinking and outsmarting of one's self. Until further notice, or until a concrete, logical reason surfaces, Belichick topped Carroll and everybody else who has ever coached in this game in sabotaging his team — in a game which could have been won or lost on twists far smaller than this one.

Between both teams, there were two missed PAT attempts, two missed two-point conversions and a bobbled snap on a missed field goal. One of the only two turnovers happened on a pass batted into the air by the receiver trying to make an acrobatic catch. Two Eagles touchdowns survived replays. The Patriots played the last three quarters without Brandin Cooks, who was knocked out of the game with a concussion.

It goes without saying that the Patriots managed to lose while Tom Brady threw for a Super Bowl-record 505 yards. The Patriots only led once all night, though, and the Eagles rolled right back downfield to re-take the lead. Brady had to concoct magic in the last two possessions. For once, he couldn't.
But maybe with Butler on the field — the whole game, half the game, a third of the game, however long — Brady wouldn't have had to win the biggest shootout in Super Bowl history.

There isn't a large library of even questionable coaching moves in recent Super Bowl history, much less outright bizarre or indefensible ones. The aforementioned slant by the Seahawks. Last year’s decision by the Falcons to keep throwing with a chance to work the clock and put the win over the Patriots away. Andy Reid’s clock management the last time the Eagles and Patriots played in 2005. Bill Callahan running a Raiders offense against the Buccaneers that Jon Gruden knew like the back of his hand.

For now, they pale in comparison to Belichick leaving a vital defensive player on the bench while the other team ran up 538 yards and 41 points in a track meet of a game. The Eagles beat the Patriots on Sunday, but by benching Butler, Belichick gave them a ton of help