NEW ORLEANS — Midway through the third quarter of Sunday night’s Super Bowl XLVII, a Superdome spokesman issued a statement to explain what happened during the surreal 34-minute delay when the lights went out.
When electricity returned to the building, suspense suddenly filled the air again in a game that came down to the final tick.
All the while, Joe Flacco shrugged his way to becoming the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player in a 34-31 victory over the 49ers.
No fourth-quarter drama was going to faze Flacco, the coolest Joe since Montana, who showed his most emotion of Super Bowl week celebrating as confetti fell around him.
Go ahead and believe that linebacker Ray Lewis willed a 10-6 Ravens team to a world title if you wish. But the Ravens winning four consecutive postseason games had more to do with Flacco emerging as a $20 million quarterback than Lewis retiring as a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
Interest in Lewis overshadowed the importance of Flacco.
With 7:14 left in the game with the Ravens leading 31-29, Flacco reminded America. On third-and-1 at the Ravens’ 45, Flacco checked the play at the line when he noticed 49ers cornerback Carlos Rogers lined up in man coverage against wide receiver Anquan Boldin. The back-shoulder throw Flacco made to Boldin for a 15-yard gain displayed the smarts and accuracy for which he has become known. The completion led to a field goal that made the 49ers need a touchdown instead of a field goal to win on their final, frantic drive.
In the first time-capsule moment of Super Bowl XLVII in the second quarter, Flacco looked deep and unleashed a pass for wide receiver Jacoby Jones two steps behind the 49ers defense. When the under thrown ball finally got to Jones, he caught it, fell and raced laterally toward the end zone, outrunning the defenders who had caught up.
The play was perfectly imperfect, just like the man who authored it - the man who now stands to cash in as an unrestricted free agent after another clutch performance.
Flacco, who completed 22 of 33 passes for 287 yards 3 touchdowns for a passer rating of 124.2, keeps building a postseason legacy comparable only to quarterbacks enshrined in Canton. He has a 9-4 postseason record and threw 11 touchdowns in these playoffs without an interception.
He isn’t fleet-footed or quick-witted and nobody on Madison Avenue has lined up at Flacco’s door - yet. Flacco’s dad even was quoted last week calling his son dull, not that Flacco disagreed.
“It’s just who I am,” he said.
Boring not only was better for Flacco but contributed to making him the best on a night he shined for four quarters, no matter how dark things looked.
Super Bowl MVPs
2013 Joe Flacco, QB, Baltimore
2012 Eli Manning, QB, N.Y. Giants
2011 Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay
2010 Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans
2009 Santonio Holmes, WR, Pittsburgh
2008 Eli Manning, QB, N.Y. Giants
2007 Peyton Manning, QB, Indianapolis
2006 Hines Ward, WR, Pittsburgh
2005 Deion Branch, WR, New England
2004 Tom Brady, QB, New England
2003 Dexter Jackson, FS, Tampa Bay
2002 Tom Brady, QB, New England
2001 Ray Lewis, LB, Baltimore
2000 Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis
1999 John Elway, QB, Denver
1998 Terrell Davis, RB, Denver
1997 Desmond Howard, KR, Green Bay
1996 Larry Brown, CB, Dallas
1995 Steve Young, QB, San Francisco
1994 Emmitt Smith, RB, Dallas
1993 Troy Aikman, QB, Dallas
1992 Mark Rypien, QB, Washington
1991 Ottis Anderson, RB, N.Y. Giants
1990 Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco
1989 Jerry Rice, WR, San Francisco
1988 Doug Williams, QB, Washington
1987 Phil Simms, QB, N.Y. Giants
1986 Richard Dent, DE, Chicago
1985 Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco
1984 Marcus Allen, RB, L.A. Raiders
1983 John Riggins, RB, Washington
1982 Joe Montana, QB, San Francisco
1981 Jim Plunkett, QB, Oakland
1980 Terry Bradshaw, QB, Pittsburgh
1979 Terry Bradshaw, QB, Pittsburgh
1978 Randy White, DT and Harvey Martin, DE, Dallas
1977 Fred Biletnikoff, WR, Oakland
1976 Lynn Swann, WR, Pittsburgh
1975 Franco Harris, RB, Pittsburgh
1974 Larry Csonka, RB, Miami
1973 Jake Scott, S, Miami
1972 Roger Staubach, QB, Dallas
1971 Chuck Howley, LB, Dallas
1970 Len Dawson, QB, Kansas City
1969 Joe Namath, QB, N.Y. Jets
1968 Bart Starr, QB, Green Bay
1967 Bart Starr, QB, Green Bay
Sports, Pages 16 on 02/04/2013