the patriots run off the rams in super bowl liii and rack up a whole lot of records while they're at it. highlights from the lowest-scoring title game in history. bridging differences across the arabian peninsula. inside the pope's historic trip to abu dhabi. a fiery plane crash rocks a soutrn california neighborhood. details from the deadly accident ahead. on the defensive. over an offensive photo. virginia's governor responds to the controversy surrounding a racist photo from his college yearbook. celebrating the centennial. the nfl tackles its 100th anniversary with a video for the ages. "early today" starts right now. >> good monday morning. i'm marlie hall. >> i'm richard lui.

the new england patriots are once again the super bowl champions. the not a surprise for many.e n longest-lasting dynasty grinded out a win over the rams in a defensive duel for the ages. nbc's jay gray has all the highlight from atlanta. >> let's go! >> reporter: game day. in atlanta. >> one of your great sayings is, here we go! >> reporter: a back and forth open to the game marked by a patriots missed field goal. but kicker stephen gostkowski got a second chance in the second quarter. new england taking a 3-0 lead into halftime. >> it's good. >> reporter: the top two offenses in the nfl shut down. with halftime providing the only real firepower to that point. >> gostkowski sets the second half in motion. >> reporter: this time the rams getting the field goal. >> and zuerlein's kick is good!

>> reporter: the patriots answering with the game's only touchdown midway through the fourth quarter. >> touchdown! >> reporter: in the end that would prove to be enough for an historic sixth super bowl champion for the patriots dynasty. jay gray, nbc news, atlanta. all right. much more coming up, including all the action from the halftime show and the biggest commercials of the night. stick around. virginia's governor faces a growing chorus calling for his resignation. democrat ralph northam admits he wore blackface and his medical school yearbook page features a racist picture. the photo shows one person wearing blackface and the other dressed as a member of the ku klux klan. the governor now says it's not him in the picture and he won't quit. nbc's tracie potts joins us live from d.c. with the latest on the backlash. northam has so far rejected calls to resign? >> reporter: right. he says he's not stepping down.

he's explaining how that picture may have landed on his page. he said it could have been a mixup. we learned overnight he called a meeting of top staff, an urge end meeting as it was described and people of color who work in his administration. the lieutenant governor, who is african-american, we're told was not there. but northam is denouncing the photo but says he's also used blackface at least once. >> i am not and will not excuse the content of the photo. it was offensive, racist, and despicable. that same year, i did participate in a dance contest in san antonio in which i darkened my face as part of a michael jackson costume. i look back now and regret that i did not understand the harmful legacy of an action like that. >> reporter: so it's the

shifting explanations that have caused some to say he needs to resi resign, that he needs to step down. by some, i mean the republican party in democrats, not just in country. several presidential candidates, possible presidential hopefuls, the congressional black caucus saying he no longer has the authority to preside in virginia. marlie? >> tracie, thank you. president trump had no trouble going on the offense in his speech. he slammed democrats in his calls for a border wall. he also took another swipe at his top intelligence experts. nbc's kelly o'donnell has more from a speech that could hint at what to expect during tomorrow night's state of the union. >> reporter: donald trump's playbook. follow his own gut. >> you disagree with that assessment? >> i have intel people that doesn't mean i have to agree. >> reporter: after undercutting his own intelligence team as naive when they assessed iran's threat level on capitol hill, the president's approach sounds

more like, trust but defy. >> i am going to trust the intelligence that i'm putting there. but i will say this, my intelligence people, if they said, in fact, that iran is a wonderful kindergarten, i disagree with them 100%. >> reporter: the president also disputes advisers who argue north korea is not likely to give up its nuclear weapons heading into a second summit with kim jong-un. >> the meeting is set. he's looking forward to it, i'm looking forward to it. we have made tremendous progress. >> reporter: but deference toward his cabinet could play out differently with the special counsel investigation. no opinion on whether the mueller report should ultimately be made public. >> that's up to the attorney general. i don't know. it depends. i have no idea what it's going to say. >> reporter: with the interview airing this super bowl sunday, the president was asked if his youngest child, 12-year-old barron, should be allowed to play football. citing head injury dangers, the president said he loves the game

but prefer barron not play. >> i've heard nfl players say they wouldn't let their sons play football. so it's not totally unique. but i would have a hard time with it. >> reporter: new from the pentagon, more active-duty troops are headed to the u.s./mexico border. 3,750 service members will be deployed for about 90 days, working on surveillance and helping with wire fencing. they'll be there to assist federal officers from customs and border protection. of course immigration and the president's demand for a border wall are expected to be major parts of his big address tomorrow night. the state of the union. richard? >> kelly, thank you so much. breaking news out of southern california. five people are now dead after after a horrific small plane crashed into a residential area. it left parts of the neighborhood up in flames. the dead include the plane's pilot and four people on the ground. that cessna had just taken off from a nearby airport when it

slammed into a single-family home. >> upon the first arriving units, they found a well-involved residence, a two-story family dwelling with fire showing from all sides. >> witnesses report feeling the ground shake like a bomb went off. dozens of emergency workers were dispatched to the scene. >> bring your tools in front of the residence. all incoming units are going to need to stage out of this trap. >> it's still too early to pinpoint the cause of that crash. this morning the ntsb is investigation if weather played a role in this devastating crash. actor and singer jussie smollett was back on stage this weekend for the first time since he says he was attacked on a chicago street last tuesday, police calling it a possible hate crime. as nbc's morgan chesky reports, >> reporter: back on stage in front of a sold-out crowd in west hollywood, jussie smollett put on the show fans came for. but also opened up about tuesday's alleged assault in chicago.

>> i was bruised but my ribs were not cracked. they were not broken. >> reporter: this photo shows smollett hours after he says two men attacked him, shouting racist and homophobic slurs. >> both my doctors in l.a. and chicago cleared me to perform but said to take care, obviously. >> reporter: regarding the incident he said -- >> above all, i fought back. >> reporter: chicago police released this image showing two people of interest. police have asked smollett and his manager for phone records to help build a timeline, but so far, neither has turned them over. detectives say security cameras inside smollett's building showed a rope around his neck but he otherwise appeared normal and didn't tell security about an assault. authorities say they have yet to uncover any surveillance video of the alleged attack, but their investigation is ongoing. >> we have no reason to think he's not being genuine with us. >> reporter: at the concert smollett had this message for fans. >> regardless of what anyone else says, i will only stand for love. and i hope that you all stand with me.

>> reporter: a return to the spotlight as police continue to search for answers. >> thank you very much. >> reporter: morgan chesky, nbc news, los angeles. a string of technical issues forced one hawaiian airlines flight to return to the airport three separate times before getting canceled. the maui-bound airplane with more than 200 passengers on board took off twice, but turned back to l.a.x. both times. while preparing for a third departure, the flight was grounded yet again. officials say overseas flights require greater caution because of the distances. no word on what kind of technical issues were at play but passengers were given hotel rooms and put on new flights. roads in southern california have turned into rivers as a region deals with severe flooding following a string of weekend storms. these storms brought heavy rains, flash floods, debris flows, and mud in areas where wildfires recently burned through. up and down the coast officials have issued mandatory evacuations for several neighborhoods. they have shut down the highways. as we head into the start of the

week, guess what, there is more rain in the forecast. >> all right. well, bill karins is here. >> the storm of the weekend was big enough. this one came in last night. it is packing its punch. look at the yellows and the reds on this map. areas of moderate to heavy rainfall. unfortunately some of those are heading over burn scars. a little rain over los angeles. but nothing like we are seeing from sacramento to monterey, exiting the bay area, heading into the mountains where we have blizzard warnings in effect. af. rainfall totals will be somewhere maybe around two to three inches. we'll keep an eye on that as we go throughout in seattle, even

some of the lower elevations. we'll have to keep an eye on slippery spots there. take a look at the week ahead forecast and some of the snow forecasts too. >> look at that stuff. >> it's a busy map in the west. pope francis makes history on the arabian peninsula. and a close call for a young child ahead. but when you book at hilton.com, you get the price match guarantee. so if you find your room at a lower rate, hilton is like... we're gonna match that rate and give you an extra 25% off. what would travel sites do if you found a better price? that's not my problem, it's your problem. get outta here! whoa, i really felt that performance. it's just acting, i'm really good at it.

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4,300. the troop will last for 90 days and surveillance of a stretch of 150 miles of wire between ports of entry. they'll provide reinforcement to customs and border protection. pope francis made history again today. he became the first pontiff to visit the arabian peninsula when his plane touched town in abu dhabi. the pope is using the historic 48-hour trip as an opportunity to write a new page in history in relations between religions. claudio joins us from the uae capital of abu dhabi. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, richard. good morning, marlie. pope francis became the first pontiff to ever visit the arabian peninsula and the choice of the uae is far from coincidental. guaranteed by constitution, and home to almost 1 million where freedom of religion is christians, most of them if not lifetime opportunity to see pope francis when he presides over

the first open-air public mass in this country on tuesday. for today it's going to be all about interfaith dialogue. pope francis will visit the city's mosque, one of the biggest in the world. then he's going to attend the human fraternity meeting alongside the grand imam, seen as the highest religious authority in sunni islam. also this trip is going to have a political and diplomatic undertone. the uae coalition head by saudi arabia still gained in a war against rebels in yemen. before leaving the vatican on once again great concern for the humanitarian crisis caused by that war, and he invited all the parties involved to respect international agreement and make sure that the food supply is rich, especially for the starving children, see the sending a not so subtle message also to the rulers of this country. richard, marlie?

claudio, thank you. just ahead, the new trouble down the road for general motors. and streaming gets sacked. why netflix might have been the biggest loser at the super bowl. you're watching "early today." the marriage was builyou are so awesome. but the house was built too small... this is kind of awesome? how long are we here? for one year, sparks will fly. this is not awesome. i just want to make an omlete! oh, are you kidding me!? the drama will be real, but it won't save you any money on car insurance. geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more. why haven't you called geico? added one handed pumps choose gentle

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you're watching "early today." in today's quick hits, new video from january's massive dam collapse that happened in brazil showing the ground giving way right there. the death toll stands at 121, with hundreds more missing. no one has been found alive since the day after that

collapse. in china, security footage captured an 8-year-old sparking an explosion at a manhole after he dropped two lit fireworks into the sewer. police say they fixed the manhole and spoke to the boy's parents about his mischief. gino rodriguez, the only new release on hollywood's worst super bowl weekend in two decades. "glass" held on to number one with "the upside" coming in second. massive layoffs at gm today, and google plus goings the way of the dinosaurs. those stories and more, good morning, jeff. >> very good morning to you. 4,000 jobs expected too. this all part of that major announcement made back in november suggesting that in total, 14,000 jobs could be lost across five different plants as the company goes through a major restructuring program.

so look out for that. rather sad announcement today for auto workers. moving on, not a great day for netflix. but a great day for the super bowl. netflix reporting audiences down 32% on sunday. you didn't have to look far for the reasons. perhaps it was maroon 5 at the halftime show, i don't know. but clearly people were tuning into the super bowl rather than watching streaming films on netflix. no touchdown for google plus. as you pointed out, it's going l 2nd. google finally putting to bed its ill-fated move into social media. the company saying effectively, they just did not get the traffic to make google plus viable. back to you guys. >> all right, geoff, thanks so much. >> by the way of the dodo it goes. still to come, the best and worst ads from last night's super bowl. plus you get a shot, you get a shot. details on oprah's unforgettable

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new johnson's cottontouch™ a wholwash and lotionre for newborns is born made with real cotton and enhances your gentle touch a new soft a new touch a new gentle new johnson's cottontouch™ (baby cooing) choose gentle i am not for just treating my symptoms... (ah-choo) i am for shortening colds when i'm sick. with zicam. zicam is completely different. unlike most other cold medicines... ...zicam is clinically proven to shorten colds. i am a zifan for zicam. oral or nasal. saturday's storms across parts of southern california packed a big punch. look at this guy. this guy had some fun. in thousand oaks, one golf course was so water logged a man was able to surf down a hill. captures the water overflow in the green and he took full advantage.

the wetsuit? it was a little chilly. we'll give the guy a break. still blizzard from yosemite to man mouth lakes, tahoe. heavy, wet snow above 6,000 feet is where the worst of it is. look at the winter storm warnings. one to two feet in the sierra valley range. go pick your mountain range if you want. wasatch, jackson hole, northern rockies, cascades and northern portions just got a little bit this morning. cold, chilly, snowy. hee-haw. >> thanks, bill. when we come back, the highlights from last night's performances is he super bowl. you're watching early today. and he said ♪ ♪ girl, you take care of me ♪ ♪ you are my thera♪y love me, love mef of♪me ♪ , like you say ♪ ♪ darling tell me all the ways ♪

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the super bowl has come and gone, but one thing that sticks with us is the ads. ♪ day in the life of a bomber ♪ day in the life of a bomber >> adam scott and two chains teamed up for this spot by expensify, their first super bowl ad. what better way to celebrate 10 former and current players battling it out over the pigskin. meanwhile verizon made sure there wasn't a dry eye in the house. >> my name is skyler boscoe. i was the paramedic that evening with engineer dave mendoza. >> i've often thought about who showha >> chargers head coach anthony lin nearly died in an accident 14 years ago and he met the people who saved his life.

you can't help but get misty over that. >> that is some good stuff, love advertisements. and it wasn't all about the commercials last night, like this. ♪ >> okay, marlie. maroon 5, they headlined this year's super bowl halftime show. people say they were marooned. performing a condensed gar,"mov jagger." some of the early reviews describe the show as dull. they were joined by travis scott and big boi.itut of the park or stadium,kiof "the star-" >> adam levine's performance got better when he took off his shirt, apparently, that's what i heard. >> you're not saying that, but maybe you are saying that. >> we'll talk about this after the show.

oprah's birthday may have passed but it looks like the queen of daytime tv is still celebrating. ♪ this was on board her a all-girls getaway cruise. gayle king hosted a three-day cruise to the bahamas. on the agenda horseback riding, super soul conversations, and shots with oprah. >> t celebrate birthdays. olympic gold boxer oscar de la hoya 46. nicole wallace turned 47. football hall of famer lawrence alice cooper 71.

and there it is. the dynasty continues! >> yeah, sixth time the charm. tom brady and the patriots make hortoning the rams to win the

lowest-scoring super bowl ever. the highs and lows from the big game. controversy in the commonwealth. virginia's governor under fire over a racist photo from a college yearbook. his response to the growing calls for his resignation. the real-world threat of online crimes. how hackers put an entire pennsylvania town you get a shot, you get a shot. the queen of daytime tv gives fans a night they'll never