Matthew Slater doesn't know his all-time record in coin tosses before NFL games, but the New England Patriots special teams star has won the two that have mattered most in his career.
Slater picked heads before overtime of Super Bowl LI against the Atlanta Falcons, and the Patriots won that toss. Pats quarterback Tom Brady proceeded to drive his team down the field for a touchdown that sealed a dramatic come-from-behind victory.
Slater picked heads again before the extra period in Sunday's AFC Championship Game versus the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. Once again, New England won the toss and Brady led the team to victory on the first drive of overtime.
Why does Slater always pick heads? It's not just personal preference. The reason actually comes from his father, Jackie Slater, the Hall of Fame offensive tackle for the Los Angeles Rams.
"I remember as a child watching my father play in L.A., and him going out and doing the coin toss for the Rams," Slater said. "He always called heads. I asked him one time, ‘Why do you do that? What's the story behind that?' Anyone who knows my family knows faith is important to us. For him, he was always like, 'God is the head of my life, so I call heads.' That was something he came up with. I've kind of just embraced it and I'm glad it's worked for us the last couple of times we needed it."
Many Patriots fans expected Brady to march down the field and win the game when Slater won the toss Sunday night. The Patriots certainly had that confidence, too.
"You always have a lot of confidence when (Tom Brady) is on your team," Slater said. "You always have a chance to win any game, no matter what the situation is. We feel pretty good about giving our offense the ball. They certainly did the job once they got it."
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The Patriots are the visiting team in Super Bowl LIII against the Los Angeles Rams, so all coin tosses will be called by Slater. If he has another call to make before an overtime, you can bet he's going with heads. And who could blame him?
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