Good morning! Here are the plays everybody will be talking about Monday.
The NFL's new extra-point rule helped decide the AFC Champions. The NFL moved the extra point back to the 15-yard line to add a little drama. Fans expected it to spice games up a little bit, but probably nobody expected this. Stephen Gostkowski missed his first extra point all season in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos. Sure enough, when the New England Patriots scored a touchdown with less than a minute to go, they needed a 2-point conversion to tie instead of another 1-pointer. Tom Brady threw an interception and the Pats' season was suddenly over, losing 20-18.
Cam Newton may indeed be Superman. The Carolina Panthers routed the Arizona Cardinals 49-15 in the NFC Championship game with their MVP-to-be quarterback playing like an MVP. Newton threw for 335 yards and two touchdowns. He also added a pair of touchdowns on the ground, including this one, ironically, through the air.
Ted Ginn Jr. ran all over the field for his touchdown. This touchdown goes as a 22-yard run in the box score, but in reality it was probably closer to 70 or 80 yards. Ginn took the handoff, went to one side of the field before coming all the back across to the other and scoring. But the best part comes at the end as Cam Newton follows Ginn into the end zone with a gigantic smile on his face.