Edelman named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player
New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl LIII on Sunday after starring in his team’s sixth title win with a brilliant offensive display.
In the title match played at the Mercedes-Benz stadium in Atlanta in front of 77,000 spectators, the visiting Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 and Edelman ended with 10 catches for 141 yards, becoming the go-to guy on offense for star quarterback Tom Brady .
“I am just overwhelmed, I am so proud of our team. Tough times don’t last. Tough people do,” Edelman, 32, said after the match.
“I was just trying to go out and have a good week of practice and do my job. Sometimes the cookie crumbles that way,” he added.
Edelman is the seventh wide receiver to be named a Super Bowl MVP and the first since 2009, when Santonio Holmes of the Pittsburg Steelers received the honor in Super Bowl XLIII.
He joined an illustrious list of wide receivers to win the MVP, which includes Hall of Famers Lynn Swann, Fred Biletnikoff and Jerry Rice.
Edelman is the second Patriots wide receiver to achieve the honor, after Deion Branch was named the MVP in Super Bowl XXXIX
It was Edelman’s sixth career postseason game with at least 100 yards receiving and his second 100-yard game this postseason.
He finished the first half with seven receptions for 93 yards, including four of Brady’s six completions of at least 10 yards in the opening half.
Edelman had missed the 2017 season due to a torn knee ligament, and also missed the first four games of the 2018 regular season after being suspended for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
Edelman shared the victors’ podium with legends Brady - a four time MVP - and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who won their sixth Super Bowl title together, an unparalleled achievement in the history of the NFL .
“He deserves it. That was one of the best games he ever played,” Brady said on the podium about the wide receiver.
Edelman said he was proud to stand beside the two NFL legends and to belong to an organization such as the Patriots, with “exceptional” colleagues inside and outside the field.
