GLENDALE, Ariz. – If the Seattle Seahawks just handed the ball off to Marshawn Lynch at the 1-yard line, Chris Matthews might have been the honoree at a Super Bowl MVP parade at Disney World on Monday.
With just 1 more yard Jermaine Kearse's catch, which still doesn't make any physical sense no matter how many times you see the replay, would go right along with David Tyree and Lynn Swann and all the other all-time great Super Bowl catches. Kearse's catch might have even topped that list.
And then Malcolm Butler intercepted Russell Wilson, and Kearse and Matthews had no reason to even smile after the game. The feelings about their great moments were bittersweet. Or maybe just bitter.
It took the crowd a moment to realize Kearse had even made his unbelievable catch. The ball hit his leg before landing in his hands as he was on the ground at the 5-yard line with 1:06 to go. It went for 33 yards, and for a few moments it looked like it would set up a Super Bowl-winning score. A reporter told Kearse after the game that he made an amazing catch.
"Appreciate it," Kearse said with no emotion, just being polite.
Who cared about it anymore? Not with the Patriots celebrating out on the University of Phoenix Stadium field with the Lombardi Trophy.
"The ultimate goal is to win the game," Kearse said. "Right now, that catch doesn't mean anything to me."
Kearse and Matthews will be remembered, but in the context of their roles in perhaps the greatest Super Bowl ever, not for being immortalized as the heroes of a second straight Super Bowl win.
Matthews probably would not have won the Super Bowl MVP even if the Seahawks scored at the end, because Lynch had a great game and Wilson led a fantastic drive at the end before the interception. But that Matthews would even have been in the discussion is absolutely amazing.
Matthews, who didn't have an NFL catch before Super Bowl XLIX, made three huge ones against the Patriots including a touchdown at the end of the first half.
That touchdown was the first Matthews had scored since 2013 when he was a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. That season in the Canadian Football League he scored only once and caught just 14 passes. He spent part of that year working a few odd jobs, including at Foot Locker and as a security guard. This came after a 2012 season in which Matthews had 81 catches for 1,192 yards and looked like a future star in the CFL.
He was dumped by the Cleveland Browns in 2011. The Seahawks called him up for a workout a year ago, he was cut in training camp, added to the practice squad (and waived twice and re-signed) and then called up to the 53-man roster in December. He played in three regular-season games and it looked like his most famous NFL moment would be recovering an onside kick that led to the Seahawks' NFC championship game win. Then came the Super Bowl.
Matthews had four catches for 109 yards, including 44- and 45-yard gains. There's no comparison for what he did, a receiver with three regular-season NFL games and no career catches dominating in a Super Bowl. He said he didn't have any indication during the week he would be such a big part of the Seahawks' offensive plan. It was an unbelievable story that just didn't have the perfect ending.
"I'm not a selfish player," Matthews said. "I didn't care if I didn't get one pass, one yard, one tackle. It wouldn't have mattered to me as long as we won the game. I would have been happy with a win and no stats."
Matthews left the postseason interview room carrying his backpack and a football, a souvenir from his Super Bowl touchdown. At some point it'll sink in what he accomplished with the entire sporting world watching. But he wasn't to that point yet. And the memory of the game will always include the heartbreaking finish.
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
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