I didn’t have a favorite team in the Super Bowl this year, so I watched the game just hoping it would be close and exciting.

For a half it wasn’t close, but in the end it was both close, exciting and all a football fan could hope for in the way of an entertaining game.

I’m glad I’m not a Falcons fan, because that loss is going to weigh heavily for a long time. The Falcons were in field goal range for a kick that would have made it a two-possession game late in the fourth quarter, leading by eight. Then they got a sack and a holding penalty that took them out of field goal range, allowing the Pats the final drive that tied the game.

The question most everyone should ask is, why didn’t they just run the ball a couple times and kick the field goal. They have an excellent kicker and they could have taken some time off the clock as well. I’m sure there was a reason behind the two called pass plays, but in hindsight it was probably the decision that cost them the game.

As regular readers probably know, I’m a big fan of the Eagles. After the game I told my grandsons, who came over to the house to watch, that if the Eagles had lost a Super Bowl game like that I’d be in the bathroom right now heaving up the pizza and chicken I’d consumed in the previous four hours.

Love him or hate him, you have to give credit to Tom Brady. At halftime he looked like a guy that was ready to retire, but he ended up being the game MVP.

Is he the best ever? Well, it’s tough to compare players from different ages, because the rules change and the team situations are different. However, when the topic comes up there’s no doubt that he’s in the conversation.

And you have to admit, most guys would love to trade places with him. Who has a better life than a good-looking NFL star with five Super Bowl rings, a nice family and a Super Model wife? Not bad for a sixth round pick who had trouble getting on the field in college.

While the way the game unfolded was a big surprise, the outcome was not. All week the Las Vegas line had the Patriots as three point favorites and the “over-under” for total points scored as 59. If the Pats had kicked a field goal in overtime instead of scoring a touchdown, and then held the Falcons on the ensuing series, the game would have finished with New England winning by three and 59 total points scored. Amazing how close the bookies usually are.

And it was interesting to see some of the other things you could bet on. Of course you could bet on the coin flip, or how many yards Julio Jones would have and stuff like that. But there were other stranger things, like how long it would take Luke Bryan to sing the anthem, whether or not Lady Gaga would mention Donald Trump at halftime, or even if play-by-play announcer Joe Buck would be clean shaven for the game.

If I was Buck, I would have put a bundle on “clean shaven” and broken out the Burma Shave Sunday morning. That would have been too easy.

And speaking of shaving, how about those commercials? I can remember most of the commercials, but for the life of me I can’t remember what they were for.

When I was a kid, when Green Bay and Kansas City were in the Super Bowl, the commercials told you why you should buy their product. Their razors gave you a better shave, or you could wear their watch under water and it will “keep on tickin.” Now the commercials are more like a show in themselves, and if you pay close attention you’ll catch the product they’re selling at the end of the production. Not necessarily a bad thing.

All in all, it was a great four and a half hour show spliced around an enjoyable night of football. Unless, of course, you’re a Falcons fan. Then it was a nightmare you’ll be having for years to come.