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Rick Zamperin: The ABCs — and Fs — of Super Bowl LIII

The New England Patriots celebrate after winning Super Bowl 53 against the Los Angeles Rams, Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019, in Atlanta. The Patriots won 13-3. AP Photo/Morry Gash

Super Bowl LIII was supposed to be a heavyweight match between the NFL’s two No. 2 seeds. It turned out to be a heavyweight dud.

The New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in the lowest-scoring game in Super Bowl history.

I love a good defensive slugfest, but Sunday night’s championship showdown in Atlanta was downright putrid from an entertainment standpoint. There weren’t many, if any, compelling moments in the game.

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Congratulations to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady for winning his NFL record sixth Super Bowl title, but aside from that incredible achievement, the game itself got a big, fat ‘F’ as far as I’m concerned.

WATCH: Prudential Tower lights up in honour of the New England Patriots in Boston

Click to play video: 'Prudential Tower lights up in honor of the New England Patriots in Boston'
Prudential Tower lights up in honor of the New England Patriots in Boston

The only thing worse than the game’s uninspiring first half — in which New England led 3-0 — was the halftime show, starring Maroon 5. Adam Levine and company are talented artists, but the halftime show lacked energy, cohesion and excitement. I give it a ‘D.’

I commend CBS and the NFL Network for the armada of resources that they committed to providing hours upon hours of pregame programming leading up to kickoff, but I could only handle a couple of hours, tops, before I tapped out. I give the pregame festivities a’C.’ I guarantee the only people who watched all 12 hours of pregame hype were fans of the Rams and Patriots — at least the ones who were not attending the game in Atlanta. A two-hour pregame show is enough, at least for me.

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My annual Super Bowl prop bet pool with my family got a solid ‘B.’ It not only created a little more interest in the game — and boy, did this year’s edition ever need some of that — but it brought the family together. In an age where technology can silence a household, the prop pool created conversation and some healthy banter.

The only ‘A’ of Super Bowl Sunday goes to the commercials. There were thought-provoking spots, nostalgic ads and downright hilarious commercials. And at a little more than $5 million a pop, I hope the advertisers got their money’s worth because football fans didn’t.

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