Atlanta Falcons fans remember Super Bowl LI like it was yesterday. Jumping out to a 28-3 lead and thinking this team was 18 minutes away from a Super Bowl ring, but we had no idea what was coming, especially with Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and a hungry New England Patriots team on the other sideline.
We know how this story ended. Atlanta squandered a 25-point lead and lost to the Pats 34-28 in overtime, marking one of the biggest collapses in Super Bowl history and the root of some heartache for Falcons fans that'll never go away. And Brady just brought all of those memories right back up.
Regardless of the sport, the Falcons' 28-3 collapse is brought up whenever a big lead is blown. It happened when the Spurs lost to the Knicks despite leading by as much as 29 points during Game 4 of the NBA Finals, and because of Brady, it happened again when Argentina played Egypt during the World Cup.
""Yeah so that might top 28-3.""Tom Brady
Egypt's World Cup collapse brought 28-3 right back to the surface
If you missed it, Brady took to Twitter to weigh in on the finish between Egypt and Argentina. The World Cup has offered plenty of drama, and Argentina dealt with a scare from Cape Verde last round, but they were on the verge of elimination in this round before the aforementioned chaos hit this one.
Egypt had the defending World Cup champs on the ropes. They led 2-0 until Argentina scored for the first time in the 79th minute, before Lionel Messi tied the game up at two. And from there, Argentina (and Chelsea midfielder) Enzo Fernandez headed a stoppage-time winner that saw them prevail 3-2.
The big coincidence here is that this game was played in Atlanta, so Mercedes-Benz Stadium was the home venue for a matchup that once again saw 28-3 comparisons resurface. And unfortunately, the best QB in NFL history won't let us live this down even when it's not American football.
Unlike the Falcons, officiating played a role in deciding this outcome. Egypt had a goal called back in the 57th minute because the VAR (video assistant referee) called a whistle for a common foul. Yes, the Dirty Birds were called for 16 penalties, but Kyle Shanahan is at fault for abandoning the run game.
The similarities are uncanny. The city of Atlanta was once again involved, two of of the best players in their respective sports were involved in the comebacks, and both of the losing teams wore red and black. It'll just never not hurt to see Tom Brady bring up the darkest moment in Falcons' history.
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