New England Patriots defensive back
Nate Ebner talks to reporters during a media availability for for the NFL Super
Bowl 51 football game Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017, in Houston. The Patriots will
face the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl Sunday. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
By Bill Rabinowitz
The Columbus Dispatch
The Columbus Dispatch
Posted
Feb 5, 2019 at 9:21 PM
Nate Ebner
rode in a Super Bowl victory parade through the streets of Boston on Tuesday.
“There were more than a million
people there,” the Hilliard Davidson and Ohio State graduate said. “It was
insane.”
It
was Ebner’s third such celebration in his seven years with the New England
Patriots. In some ways, it might have been the most meaningful.
Ebner, a special-teams player, tore
a ligament in his right knee late in the 2017 season. He returned to action
only eight months after his surgery. He wasn’t at 100 percent throughout the
season, but he persevered.
“It was a tough year, but I made it
out alive,” he quipped.
For Ebner, it was just another
chapter in his unlikely career. Growing up, he played rugby not football (and
he represented the United States in the 2016 Olympics). He decided to walk on
to Ohio State’s football team and earned a scholarship his senior season.
New England made him a sixth-round
draft pick, and he has
been an important cog on the Patriots’ three championship teams in the last
five years.
“My first one was awesome because it
was my first one,” Ebner said. “The second one was special, too, because
special teams played a pretty big role in that Atlanta game and it was amazing
to be part of that comeback (from a 28-3 deficit).
“This year, the way we have been
counted out more than ever, and the lack of belief from people who used to say
they were with us, that made this one special. With the way our season went,
along with me coming back from such a major injury last year, made this one
extremely special for me.”
His
teammates voted him this year’s recipient of the Ed Block Award, which honors
sportsmanship and courage.
The Super Bowl was considered an
aesthetic dud because of both teams’ offensive struggles in New England’s 13-3
victory over the Los Angeles Rams. In his role, Ebner found plenty of beauty in
it.
“I thought special teams played a
big role,” he said. “Ryan Allen did great job with his punting — three kicks
inside the 7. It’s hard to score touchdowns when you have to go 90-plus yards.”
Ebner got to share the latest Super
Bowl win with one of his former Buckeyes teammates. Defensive end John Simon
joined the Patriots this year after the Colts released him.
“John’s a great guy for this team,”
Ebner said. “John doesn’t say a whole lot, but does the job really well. He’s
had some ups and downs throughout his career as far as teams putting him in
weird spots and a couple of health things.
“I’m so happy for him that he got to
experience the top of the top after what he’s dealt with in his career.”
Simon’s wife, Brittany, gave birth
to their second son the week before the Super Bowl.
“They’ve had quite the two weeks,”
Ebner said.
It culminated for Simon and Ebner
with the Super Bowl victory and Tuesday parade.
“That stuff is always fun,” Ebner
said. “It’s been a good, fortunate seven years for me.”