MYSTIC — Super Bowl champion Trey Flowers teamed up with Mystic Aquarium‘s Animal Rescue Program Tuesday morning to help release the first rehabilit...

MYSTIC — Super Bowl champion Trey Flowers teamed up with Mystic Aquarium‘s Animal Rescue Program Tuesday morning to help release the first rehabilitated seal of the year. Named after the Patriot‘s defensive lineman, Trey Flowers, the female harbor seal, charged the crashing waves at Blue Shutters Beach while Flowers, the Super Bowl champion, cheered her on from the other side of the field.

“I haven’t been this close to a seal” said Flowers. “I can’t even say that I’ve seen a seal before so it’s pretty cool.”

Each year, Mystic Aquarium’s Animal Rescue Team votes on a theme for naming seals rehabilitated and released that year; the winning theme for 2017 was flowers – like the garden variety.

Following the Patriot’s Super Bowl LI win, Mystic Aquarium called an audible when deciding on a name for the first seal to be released this year. Instead of naming the seal after a traditional flower, Aquarium staff got creative and opted to honor the player who led his defense with six tackles and 2 ½ sacks, thus fueling an epic comeback that resulted in the Patriot’s overtime victory.

“I don’t know any teammates of mine that have an animal named after them so I’ve got the upper hand on that” said Flowers.