In the NFL, the quarterback is always looking at the match-ups. He scans the backfield for a mismatch. Tom Brady, who drove the Patriots to another Super Bowl win this year, is renowned for it. The New England win back in early February was greatly influenced by two mismatches on coverage on Rob Gronkowski.

The aftermath of last weekend’s Super Bowl has been dominated by quarterback Tom Brady’s sixth title and the defensive masterclass planned by New England Patriots coach, Bill Belichick.

Bill Belichick is universally recognised as one of the best coaches — if not the best coach — in NFL history, and he owns the Super Bowl titles to prove it. That doesn’t mean he — or his entire New England Patriots staff — is infallible.

The Green Bay Packers had the ball in field goal range, on the cusp of breaking a fourth-quarter tie, when Patriots lineman Lawrence Guy knocked the ball out of Aaron Jones’ grasp.

Young quarterbacks have always had a tough time winning in Gillette Stadium during the Bill Belichick and Tom Brady era.

Stuart Lancaster has labeled Jonathan Sexton as the “complete” player and suggested the out-half could even emulate Tom Brady by excelling at the elite level beyond his 40th birthday.

The Super Bowl interaction between coach and player was something to behold. For Foles to feel so empowered in that moment, and for a coach to be willing to relinquish control of such a hugely significant play call was remarkable, writes Mike Quirke.

There is no other team sport that is more reliant on one position consistently throughout a contest as a gridiron team is on its quarterback writes Kieran Shannon.

Cast aside once in Philadelphia, Nick Foles delivered the city its first Super Bowl title.

Liam Blackburn looks at some of the lines that could dominate the Super Bowl.

Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are going back to the Super Bowl in search of a sixth title and will face a Philadelphia Eagles team looking for their first Lombardi Trophy.

Sensational!

American Football

Tom Brady piloted Super Bowl champions New England to the winning touchdown with 56 seconds left on Sunday as the Patriots clinched the AFC East with a gut-wrenching 27-24 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Tom Brady tossed four touchdown passes — including two to Rob Gronkowski — as the New England Patriots pushed through injuries and a mistake-filled game for a 35-17 victory over the sliding Miami Dolphins.

The Georgia Dome, the stadium in Atlanta that hosted 1996 Olympic events and which was the venue for two Super Bowls, has been reduced to rubble in an implosion.

The New England Patriots didn’t need a comeback in their Super Bowl rematch with the Atlanta Falcons.

Tom Brady conjured a last-gasp Houdini act to save the New England Patriots in a thrilling win over the Houston Texans on Sunday as the Atlanta Falcons preserved their unbeaten record.

US president Donald Trump's criticism of American football players who kneel during the national anthem has sparked a mass increase in such protests around the NFL, as about 200 players sat, knelt or raised their fists in defiance.

Rookie kicker Younghoe Koo missed a last-gasp field goal for the second successive game as the Los Angeles Chargers lost their home opener 19-17 to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

Aaron Hernandez, Wayward NFL star whose life ended in a Massachusetts prison cell, remembered by Colm Greaves.

The jersey worn by New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in last month's Super Bowl has been recovered after apparently being stolen, the NFL has said in a statement.

Tom Brady and coach Bill Belichick have a special understanding, writes Kieran Shannon.

Matt Ryan claimed an early victory over Tom Brady on Super Bowl weekend by being named the NFL's MVP last night in Houston.

The Atlanta Falcons are going to the Super Bowl for the second time in franchise history after they thrashed the Green Bay Packers 44-21 in the NFC Championship game.

Aaron Rodgers has two NFL MVP awards and one Super Bowl ring, and he’s in his ninth season as the starter for Green Bay. Sam Bradford was never on a winning team over his first six years in the league. He had 15 days to learn Minnesota’s offence, then lost his Hall of Fame calibre running back to injury in the third quarter.

Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo did not miss a beat as he stepped in for the suspended Tom Brady in his first NFL start and led the New England Patriots to a 23-21 win over the Arizona Cardinals.

An emotional Peyton Manning signed off from his 18-year NFL career with the words “God bless football” — and one final “Omaha”.

Some of the strangers stories doing the rounds around the world

The New England Patriots stretched their NFL season-opening win streak to nine games as Stephen Gostkowski’s field goal with one second left lifted them to a 27-26 win over the New York Giants.

Tom Brady threw for two fourth-quarter touchdowns and notched a career rushing first, leading New England to a 30-23 win over the New York Jets that kept the Patriots unbeaten this NFL season.