NFL fans have been left disappointed following the sluggish start to Super Bowl LX’s highly-anticipated clash between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots.
After a number of pulsating musical performances in the hour leading up to kick-off, the atmosphere quickly fell flat as both teams got off to a struggling start.
It was the Seahawks who scored the first points on the night after kicker Jason Myers converted a field goal following an opening drive that proved to be the only efficient play of the quarter.
After Myers’ early points, both quarterbacks Drake Maye and Sam Darnold struggled to find any sort of rhythm, leaving the score at just 3-0 heading into the break.
The second quarter offered little more in the way of entertainment, though Seattle running back Kenneth Walker III attempted to inject some life into the proceedings with a handful of promising runs.
Walker’s efforts paid dividends as the Seahawks eventually doubled their lead after Myers was summoned to the turf once more, coolly slotting home a 39-yard field goal to make it 6-0 as the game continued to struggle for momentum.
Thousands of fans have descended on Santa Clara, California for Sunday’s Super Bowl LX
The New England Patriots battle with the Seattle Seahawks during the opening stages
Jason Myers gave the Seahawks a six-point lead early after two successful field goal attempts
As Seattle slowly found their feet, New England’s Drake Maye endured a nightmare half, being sacked three times as the Patriots’ offensive line crumbled under pressure.
The lack of cohesion prompted a furious reaction from Mike Vrabel, who was seen telling his team to ‘calm down’ as the underwhelming spectacle ground on.
The Patriots head coach’s words fell on deaf ears, however, as New England struggled to make their mark on the game. Shortly afterwards, Myers stepped up once more to extend Seattle’s lead to 9-0 on the stroke of half-time.
As the break rolled around, social media was inundated with brutal fan remarks, with one claiming: ‘This might be the most boring Super Bowl of all-time’.
Meanwhile, before the opening whistle, punk rock icons Green Day set the tone inside the stadium with a high-octane performance featuring a number of their classics.
The California natives looked right at home on the Levi’s Stadium turf, providing a high-energy contrast to the more traditional ceremonies that followed.
In fact, the performance from Green Day was so good that fans rushed to social media to claim that they should have had the half-time show over Bad Bunny.
After opening with an instrumental of ‘Good Riddance’ and then switching over to ‘Holiday’, they slowed it down with ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ and saved the best until last with legendary song ‘American Idiot’.
The evening then swiftly moved on to a ‘special arrangement’ of the national anthem by singer Charlie Puth that immediately sparked a firestorm on social media.
Puth, a New Jersey native, performed a version of the Star-Spangled Banner featuring unique vocal runs that left viewers divided – while others questioned if the star was even singing live.
‘I know Charlie Puth is like a pitch perfect guy but it sounded lip synced,’ one viewer wrote on X, while another said: ‘Did Charlie Puth just lip sync the national anthem?’.
Despite his promise of a ‘really special arrangement in D major’ in the build-up to the big game, fans on X were quick to criticize the rendition.
Iconic rock band Green Day kick-started the afternoon with a brief set at the opening ceremony
Singer Charlie Puth then performed the Star-Spangled Banner in a moment which divided fans
Coco Jones sings Lift Every Voice and Sing – the black national anthem – at the Super Bowl
One viewer claimed it was the ‘worst national anthem of all-time,’ while others questioned the choice of the Attention singer for such a massive stage.
The pre-game festivities also included Brandi Carlile, who performed a rendition of ‘America the Beautiful.’
Rising star Coco Jones followed with a powerful performance of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’ which was met with an overwhelmingly positive reaction.
Super Bowl fans were left speechless by Jones’ incredible rendition of the ‘black national anthem’ ahead of kickoff in San Francisco and quickly heaped praise online.
On social media, one viewer wrote: ‘Coco Jones is so beautiful and her voice is so RICH!!’, while another added: ‘Coco Jones eating!!!’
A third said: ‘Coco Jones did what needed to be done.’
The 28-year-old South Carolina native wore a stunning all-white outfit, pairing a flowing skirt with a white jacket and headband for her performance.
She stood on a stage, with deaf performer Fred Beam alongside her as interpreter, and three violin players behind her to complement the performance.
The stands at Levi’s Stadium were awash with Hollywood royalty and music icons, including power couple Jay-Z and Beyonce.
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce was also spotted taking in the action from a luxury suite, appearing solo after his own team failed to reach the big game this year.
Inside the stadium, NFL cameras caught the moment that Kendall Jenner waltzed into Levi’s Stadium alongside rapper 21 Savage just moments before kick-off.
As the sun set over Levi’s Stadium, the focus quickly shifted from the music back to the football as the players from both teams made their way out of the tunnel.
More to follow…