Return of the Mac: Super Bowl 50's unsung hero

Von Miller won Super Bowl MVP, and deservedly so. He had two strip-sacks which led to two touchdowns, both directly and indirectly. He was a big reason Denver pulled off the upset.

And let's be honest, Denver's offense did a little next to nothing for the game. The team could barely move the ball, evidenced by it being 1/14 on third downs. The only reason it scored the sole offensive touchdown it did was one of Miller's aforementioned strip-sacks setting the Broncos up right next to the endzone.

There is one player that no one is talking about who needs to be recognized, however. That player is Denver's placekicker, Brandon McManus.

Now when you read that, it probably made you question a couple of things. First, you probably wondered why I chose "Return of the Mac" as the title of this post, when his name is spelled MCManus and not MACManus. Also, he's not really "returning" from anywhere. However, I love that song by Mark Morrison and I thought it was a fun title, so deal with it.

Second, you probably wonder why anyone would ever give props to a placekicker. A lot of people even argue that kicking should be removed from the game (This would give more ammo to the people who try to refer to football as handegg).

But hate it or love it, the underdog's on top. Err, sorry. What I mean to say was, hate it or love it, kicking is a huge part of the game and isn't going anywhere.

So let's give credit where credit is due. The Denver offense scored 17 points. Three field goals and an extra point came from the leg of McManus. That means he accounted for over half of Denver's offensive output- maybe not in yards, but on the scoreboard, where it really matters- with 10.

Now you might say something like "But Brad, the Broncos won by 14 points. If you took away McManus' kicks, they still would have won by four."

But it's not that simple. You see, football is all about momentum.

In most football games, momentum swings back and forth. It will usually be sparked by a big play such as: a big offensive play, a turnover, or yes even a missed or blocked kick, which can snowball for one team and really get one side going and bury the other.

In the biggest game of his life, McManus was a machine: a perfect 3/3 on field goal attempts and 1/1 on extra point attempts- in the first Super Bowl affected by the increased extra point distance.

McManus was a big part of the win because he kept all of the momentum going for Denver. It would have been easy for him to miss at least one kick given the big stage, but he didn't.

Yes, his longest field goal was 34 yards. But no kick is a "gimme" anymore, especially not in the postseason. Just ask any Minnesota Vikings fan:




Tom Brady might not have as many rings if not for Adam Vinatieri. The Bills would have a Lombardi Trophy if not for Scott Norwood's "wide right."

And the poor Vikings... if only Gary Anderson would have made that kick in the '98 NFC Championship, who knows. They might have a Super Bowl win too.

Kicking is important, y'all. Like it or not.

(Disclaimer- I am not a former kicker nor related to Brandon McManus, though he was on my fantasy team)