The Green Bay Packers have taken early control of the 2011 Super Bowl courtesy of a Nick Collins interception return for a touchdown. Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger dropped back to pass and threw a fairly solid pump fake. The problem was that it gave the Packers defensive line additional time to get to Roethlisberger. While they didn’t tip the pass, they did get a piece of Roethlisberger’s arm, which turned the pass into a dying duck.
Nick Collins easily hauled in the interception and ran it back, diving into the end zone. He celebrated afterwards and was flagged for excessive celebration as the No Fun League struck again. The penalty set the Steelers up in excellent field position thanks to a deeper kicking position.
If the Packers can contain the Steelers offense on this ensuing possession, it will be interesting to see if Mike McCarthy goes for the throat early. They’ve got the weapons to go deep quickly, but the Packers head coach occasionally makes some rather bone-headed decisions. We’ll see how the next few minutes plays out.