Super Bowl 49: New England Patriots arrive in the valley

Dan Connolly, Vince Wilfork, Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater joined team owner Robert Kraft and others on the podium for Monday's pep rally. The Patriots were catching a midday flight to beat the blizzard bearing down on New England.

The team arrived in the valley for Super Bowl 49 around 3:30 p.m. Monday on a Delta Airlines chartered airplane. They will take on the Seattle Seahawks at University of Phoenix stadium this Sunday.

Governor Doug Ducey and a few dozen fans arrived to welcome the team to the State of Arizona.

The team loaded up into buses and was taken to the team's hotel at the Wild Horse Pass Casino on the Gila River Indian Reservation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.