By Conley Publishing Group
The No. 4 seed Los Angeles Rams (12-5) take on the No. 4 seed Cincinnati Bengals (10-7) in the 56th edition of the Super Bowl.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford pulled off late-game wins in each of the Rams’ last two playoff games to reach the big game, giving him an astounding 34 career fourth-quarter comebacks.
(That’s No. 5 in NFL history.) He brings a pair of talented receivers in Cooper Kupp and Odell Beckham Jr. to the game against Cincinnati. But Rams coach Sean McVay will have to be a better game manager than he was in his previous NFL championship appearance, as Los Angeles fell to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LIII.
Meanwhile, the Bengals had the worst record in football in 2019, earning a first-round draft pick that they spent on rising star Joe Burrow. No other top NFL pick has led his team to a Super Bowl so quickly. He also showed he could find receivers beyond favorite target Ja’Marr Chase in the AFC championship game, connecting with Tee Higgins six times for 103 yards.
Cincinnati was nimble on defense in that win over the Kansas City Chiefs, making key adjustments at half-time, which paved the way.
The Rams win Super Bowl LVI if a defensive front four, led by Aaron Donald and Von Miller, takes advantage of mismatches with Cincinnati’s spotty offensive line. Still, Burrow showed he could withstand a furious rush in the Bengals’ earlier playoff win against the Tennessee Titans, and they ultimately emerged victorious. He then completed 7-of-12 passes while under pressure against the Chiefs in the conference title win to advance to the Super Bowl, and converted a trio of third downs by scrambling.
The question of who wins might just come down to momentum: The league’s best teams don’t always win the Super Bowl. Some don’t even advance for a chance to claim the Lombardi Trophy. More often, teams with the most confidence end up as the last ones standing. In this instance, the inexperienced but extraordinarily upbeat Bengals have a distinct edge over the Rams, who are still trying to overcome the sense that they can’t win the big one.