When the eerie Foxborough fog lifted, it became clear that New England’s reign atop the NFL was ending.

The New England Patriots’ season is over after they were beaten 20-13 in the wild card round by the Tennessee Titans.

Jonathan Sexton let it be known last year that he would not walk gently into the good night as a rugby player.

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.

Now that the championship has kicked off, or thrown in, in earnest you can almost hear people thinking about the All-Ireland final. Winners. Losers. And most of all, tickets.

The pundits take over the studio to review the league finals and the season so far.

I was on the road to Dublin yesterday morning at 6.15am. It wasn’t easy to roll out of the cot at that ungodly hour but I arranged Kilmacud Crokes training early so I could be organised and be able to get into Croke Park early.

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.

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.

James Tracy says Johnny Sexton and Leinster’s older stars are driving the team toward an historic double-double.

Soccer has embraced VAR and it has proved successful at the World Cup. Though it will take time for it to become a seamless part of the game, it must be seen as a positive development for the sport, writes Dr Ed Coughlan.

Manchester City win the league hitting the 100-point mark, 18 points more than Manchester United and 25 more than Liverpool and yet City haven’t been able to beat either in recent games. 

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 GAA needs to acknowledge that, along with its much-heralded community and amateur status, there is a pervasive cynicism that is ‘unique to our games’, writes Kieran Shannon

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

Driving home for Christmas can do strange things to strange and not-so-strange people. The mind, as Paradise Lost told us, is its own place — it can make a heaven of hell or a hell of heaven. The journey for some may be filled with unbridled joy and excitement, anticipating long overdue reunions. F

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.

Here we go. That time of the year again.

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.

If the media drives sport and most of the money generated comes from TV broadcasting rights then it’s hardly surprising that professional sport worldwide has always been a star-driven enterprise dominated by the world’s greatest athletes.

Jeramie McPeek is well placed to discuss the merits - and dangers - of social media in sports. He spoke to Michael Moynihan.

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.

Trump could do with some help from a major sports star these days, writes Kieran Shannon

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

Here's your lunchtime bulletin.

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.

Mason Crosby's last-gasp 51-yard field goal steered the in-form Green Bay Packers into the NFC Championship game courtesy of a dramatic 34-31 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.