I wish people would get over it. The call to “pass” was a mistake. Every team makes them, every player makes them.
I have watched that play over and over again. In my opinion, Lynch would not have scored had they given him the ball in that formation. The patriots got a HUGE push and had the 'Hawks O-line pushed back at least 3 yards or more with Wilfork plugging the center of that line. It would have been a serious miracle for him to score on that play. On 3rd down? Maybe. On 4th down? Definitely. But the Pats were in a run defense so the play call on 2nd down was not unreasonable. Butler made a real heads up play.
If he hadn't and the 'Hawks had scored, everyone would have been calling Pete Carroll a genius for crossing up the Pats defense. But...defense wins championships and there was a reason a rookie like Butler was on the field at that moment.