As groups of people gathered together to watch the Los Angeles Rams and the New England Patriots face off in Super Bowl LIII, the question arises: Do people actually care about the game? For some, they get to witness their favorite team compete for the highest honor given in professional football. For others, they gather around the television to watch the year’s newest ads and judge the quality of the halftime show.

The amount of viewers decreased by 5%  according to CNN when comparing the numbers from Super Bowl LII. There seems to be many factors that contribute to this. One of the most popular being the controversial call that was made in the Rams v. Saints NFC Championship game. Both fans and football players expressed frustration after a pass-interference call wasn’t called by the referees. In turn, a number of fans protested the game. Another factor may be that many NFL fans have a mutual dislike towards Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.

Another common topic that stirs up controversy almost every year is the Super Bowl halftime show. There always seems to be much debate over the artists that are picked for the performance. This year, there were many artists that turned down the gig due to the Colin Kaepernick controversy and the NFL player’s right to protest. Many celebrities and critics alike urged Maroon 5 to pass up the performance opportunity. However, the band went on with the show even after the cancellation of the halftime show news a petition was signed by many on change.org that encouraged the band to drop out of the show.

There was much anticipation leading up to the match up between Los Angeles and New England. Nonetheless, the game proved to be much less exhilarating than anticipated. With a final score of 13-3, the Patriots sealed the win against the Rams. It didn’t take long for many to express their dissatisfaction and disappointment through social media during and after the game. The game took the title for the lowest scoring Super Bowl game to ever be played and gave New England their sixth Super Bowl win.

While the Jared Goff and the Rams came in as the underdogs between the two, the Patriots were able to shut down those who doubted their ability to defeat Los Angeles and secured yet another Super Bowl win for the Patriots organization. Though there was a small amount of hope for the Rams as they tied it up 3-3 in the third quarter, New England’s defense put an immense amount of pressure on Goff that would ultimately lead to the loss.

The slow-paced, four hour game further proved the power and relentless ability of the football dynasty built by Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. However, Sean McVay should not be criticized so quickly. In only his second season with the Rams, McVay was able to take them to a Super Bowl as the youngest coach in NFL history. Though this is a celebratory time for Patriots fans everywhere, it most likely frustrates the fans of every other NFL team. Though it was

expected, it would be nice to see someone other than the New England Patriots competing for the Lombardi trophy season after season. However, like every hopeful fan at the end of the season would say, there’s always next year.