MINNEAPOLIS — The duel was over and a younger, unlikely gun by the name of Nick Foles was at the podium in the M.V.P. room. Tom Brady knows that piece of real estate well. He had occupied it — no, owned it — after four superb performances in his five Super Bowl victories.
But now Brady was relegated to the other side of the room, 30 yards away and separated by a bolt of fabric hanging from the ceiling deep inside U.S. Bank Stadium. The news media horde that scuffled and pushed before him was cranky.
How, they asked in a dozen different ways, could the New England Patriots lose to a Philadelphia Eagles team and a backup quarterback?