Super Bowl LVI is set as the Cincinnati Bengals will take on the Los Angeles Rams at Sofi stadium in Los Angeles on Feb. 13.
The playoffs have been a roller coaster of emotions this season, from heavily favored teams losing to true underdogs such as the Bengals reaching the championship. It’s a season in which anything can truly happen, but the Cincinnati Bengals will most likely be Super Bowl champions.
The Bengals started the season with no expectations after a disappointing 2021 season that ended with their rookie quarterback Joe Burrow suffering a season-ending knee injury.
Burrow was drafted to the Bengals in 2020 as the number one overall pick, according to a Cincinnati Bengals 2020 webpage statement.
He was the player to turn the team from a laughingstock to a championship contender.
The hype that surrounded Burrow during the 2020 NFL draft was deserved as the quarterback won a National Collegiate Athletic Association championship and the Heisman trophy in only two years as a starter at Louisiana State University.
Burrow played well in his rookie season and showed great potential for his future with Cincinnati but he couldn’t achieve all his success alone. The team acquired star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase during the 2021 NFL draft.
Chase also played with Burrow at LSU during their 2019 championship season.
Burrow will now be the second Louisiana State University quarterback to start in a Super Bowl, following David Woodley who led the Miami Dolphins to a 27-17 defeat in 1983 against the Washington Redskins.
Chase had a breakout year as a rookie wide receiver as he caught 81 passes for 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns, according to Pro Football statistics.
Chase was highly criticized during training camp because he struggled with drops, even leading into the preseason.
That all changed quickly as Chase went from being criticized to being praised for his rise to stardom.
Burrow was quick to defend his receiver saying, “I thought he was dropping everything,” as he sat down for his post-game media session with reporters after a Sept 12, 27-24 week one overtime win over the Minnesota Vikings, according to an Saturday Down South article.
The challenge for the Bengals was not only making it to the playoffs, but also winning a playoff game, a feat the team hadn’t reached since their Jan. 6, 1991 triumph over the Houston Oilers 41-14.
The two new Bengal superstars helped the team win the American Football Conference north division title and knocked off the previous division champions and heavily favored Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC title game.
The Bengals’ halftime score was the same 21-10 score as the last time the Bengals faced the Chiefs in week 17 on Jan. 2 which resulted in a thrilling 34-31 Bengals win.
After Bengal kicker Evan McPherson squeezed out a 3 point win 34-31, the team punched its ticket into the playoffs.
Cincinnati had two quarters during the AFC title game to pull off a comeback against an opponent that seemed unstoppable, but with head coach Zac Taylor and Burrow’s leadership, the team pulled off an upset and won against the Chiefs on Sunday, 27-24.
The Bengals will face off against the Rams, who will be the second team in NFL history to play in a Super Bowl as the home team.
The previous team to host and win the Super Bowl were the 2021 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Rams, who acquired Matthew Stafford in a trade with the Detroit Lions, went all in, giving up two first round picks from their 2022 season and 2023 season.
The Rams pulled the trigger to acquire Stafford because of his style of play and how he elevates the Rams offense compared to the previous season under former quarterback Jared Goff.
The 2021 season was a do or die year for the Rams, because if they didn’t make it to the Super Bowl, many would say the team was a bust.
Led by head coach Sean McVay, the Rams had an up-and-down season but still found a way to piece it together throughout the playoffs with amazing performances by star receiver Cooper Kupp, catching 145 passes for 16 touchdowns and a record 1,965 yards from scrimmage breaking the NFL's all-time record.
The toughest challenge the Rams endured was finding a way to beat the San Francisco 49ers, who they’d lost to twice in the regular season.
Although the Rams hosted the championship game in Los Angeles and made team trades to acquire star players, many fans hoped for a 49ers triumph.
49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo had a 6-0 record against the Rams heading into the NFC Championship.
The Rams held their own, storming back in the second half down 17-7 on Sunday.
Off-season trades by the Rams sealed the game with an interception late in the fourth quarter, bringing the team up 20-17 which gave the Rams their second Super Bowl appearance in the past four years.
Garoppolo faced plenty of scrutiny throughout the season with his playing style labeled as a “game manager.”
This led to the 49ers drafting quarterback Trey Lance from South Dakota State in the first round with the number 3 overall in the 2021 NFL draft.
Garoppolo may have played his final down as a 49er saying in a Tuesday press conference, “Emotions are high after a game win or loss, and it’s one of those things you’ve got to be glad it happened, smile from it, and think about the good things. We’ll see what happens in these next couple days.”
This is a season in which anything can happen. The Bengals are once again underdogs riding into the Super Bowl with only the Rams in their way to complete a historic run.
My prediction is that the Cincinnati Bengals will pull off the upset 31-27 over the Los Angeles Rams to be Super Bowl LVI Champions.
The Rams may have better talent and the advantage of a home crowd, but the Cincinnati Bengals pose a threat with their style and persistence.
