NFL

The 10 Most Impactful Plays of Super Bowl LI

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10. Ryan Can't Hit Hooper Late in Fourth

Win Probability Swing: -7.26% | Win Probability After: 48.97%

With how quickly the Patriots ended things in overtime, it's easy to forget the Falcons had a chance to win it in regulation after the game-tying touchdown. Some questionable clock management and a missed connection on third down, though, curtailed those odds.

When the Falcons got the ball back, they had 57 seconds left and the ball on their own 11, putting their win odds at 53.88%. Matt Ryan hit Mohamed Sanu for 12 yards to boost those odds to 58.88%, but it was also a drain on the clock. Their second play from scrimmage came with 32 seconds left, and Ryan spiked the ball on second down with 19 seconds left. That gave them 3rd and 6 on their own 27-yard line and not much time to move. It just wasn't meant to be.

Ryan's third-down pass fell incomplete as he tried to find Austin Hooper, and it put win probability in the Patriots' favor for the first time since early in the second quarter. They punted to New England, the game went to overtime, and you know what happened from there.

It's hard not to wonder how different this sequence may have played out if the Falcons had any timeouts left to burn. As you'll recall, they lost their final one challenging Julian Edelman's gravity-defying reception, and then the clock quickly sapped from there. This failed drive may be more of a result of prior decisions than it was an indictment of anything Ryan was able to do individually.