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Hoge: Why Super Bowl XLVIII Wasn't Boring

By Adam Hoge-

(CBS) — If you were bored by the Seattle Seahawks' 43-8 literal thumping of the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII Sunday night, I'm sorry, because you missed some outstanding football.

If you were bored Sunday night, you must have missed that safety just 12 seconds into the game — the quickest score in Super Bowl history (yes, two seconds quicker than Devin Hester's kickoff return touchdown in Super Bowl XLI).

If you were bored Sunday night, you must have missed Percy Harvin gaining 30 yards on just his 40th snap of the season.

You must have missed Russell Wilson converting four of Seattle's first five third-downs by going a perfect 4-for-4 for 64 yards, with the only failed conversion being a questionable spot on a five-yard scramble.

You must have missed Kam Chancellor laying the wood on Demaryius Thomas on Peyton Manning's first pass of the game, leaving receivers thinking twice about going over the middle and Manning afraid to throw it there for the rest of the game.

You must have missed undrafted wide receiver Doug Baldwin run by future Hall-of-Fame cornerback Champ Bailey for an easy 37-yard gain.

You must have missed Harvin open the second half with a touchdown return on what was actually a fantastic kickoff by Matt Prater.

And you must have missed that it was the second time in the game a half opened with a score in just 12 seconds.

If you were bored watching the Super Bowl Sunday night, you must have missed Byron Maxwell execute a textbook "Peanut Punch" on Demaryius Thomas that had to make Charles Tillman — in attendance as the NFL's Man Of The Year — proud.

If you were bored, you must have missed Jermaine Kearse spin out of at least three tackles to score six plays later for a 23-yard touchdown.

You must have missed K.J. Wright hammer Wes Welker with a bone-crushing, but completely legal hit.

You must have missed Wilson throw an absolutely beautiful pass to Kearse in the fourth quarter and then complete the touchdown drive to Baldwin one play later.

And you must have missed that Baldwin eluded three tacklers on that touchdown too.

If you were bored watching the Super Bowl Sunday night, you may be choosing to believe the Broncos "weren't ready" or "didn't show up." You may be blaming Peyton Manning or questioning his legacy. You may be accusing Thomas of not securing the football or the Broncos' defense for not tackling better.

Yes, a blowout typically means one team played poorly, but it doesn't have to mean the game was boring.

But if you were bored by Super Bowl XLVIII, you must have missed the best defense in the NFL make the league's best defensive manipulator looked dazed and confused.

You must have missed a young, exciting and too-often overlooked quarterback outplay the smartest quarterback to ever play the game.

And you missed a unique, hard-hitting defense absolutely punk the best offense in the NFL.

Yes, if you were bored by Super Bowl XLVIII, you missed one hell of a football performance.

Now, the commercials? That's a different story.

Adam Hoge covers the Bears for CBSChicago.com and is a frequent contributor to 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter at @AdamHoge.

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