by Terri Bey
Super Bowl Sunday is finally upon us. On Sunday, February 13, 2022, the AFC Champion Cincinnati Bengals face the NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams at the Rams’ home stadium, SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA which was constructed over the spot where the legendary Hollywood Park once stood. The site of the Super Bowl is right over the spot of the former track where legends such as Beholder, Zenyatta, and Citation once raced. As a racing fan, it just about killed me to see that legendary track with all that history wiped out. I digress. Kickoff time for the game is 6:30pm, EST and NBC will carry the game live. The Halftime Show will be Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Kendrick Lamar, along with Dre’s protege Eminem and legendary singer Mary J. Blige. This blog will be a very quick one.
HOW THE TWO TEAMS GOT HERE:
The Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals made it to Los Angeles for Super Bowl LVI by defeating the visiting Oakland Raiders in the Wild Card Round. Even though the Raiders made it interesting with a hard-charging comeback at the end, the Bengals held on for the win. In the Divisional Round, the young Bengals beat the #1 seeded Tennesee Titans in a defensive struggle. I watched that game and I was shocked at Titans’ QB Ryan Tannehill’s poor play and I am also shocked the team is sticking with him. The Bengals moved on to the AFC Championship Game and stunned the NFL world by defeating the defending AFC Champions, the Kansas City Chiefs with a furious comeback, combined with some strange playcalling by the Chiefs at the end of the first half and Chiefs Patrick Mahomes and the offense only scoring 3 points in the second half. Additionally, Mahomes played in that game, especially in the second half and in the overtime session, without a lot of his usual precision, like he did in the early part of the season. Hopefully, he will be able to get that straightened out if he wants to keep his position as one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL. I don’t mean to pile on, but Mahomes is going to have to have to do something with his brother Jackson and his fiancee Brittany. Their sideshow antics are just a huge distraction to him and they are making him look like a fool.
The Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams became the second team since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to play at the host city which also happens to be their home stadium by defeating the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card Round. The win was a massacre. The Rams defeated the then defending Buccaneers by a field goal in a very exciting game that the Rams nearly gave away, thanks to fumbles by several players. Buccaneers QB Tom Brady nearly did bring the team back from 27-3. We have heard that before? He wound up tying the game, but because of an ill-advised call to blitz Rams QB Matthew Stafford, leading the defender to lose sight of Rams WR Cooper Kupp, who caught the ball, the Rams were able to kick the winning field goal. The Rams finally defeated their nemesis, the San Fransisco 49ers.
ANALYSIS:
There are a couple of storylines going into this game. Should Cincinnati win. Super Bowl LVI will be the first Super Bowl win for the franchise. The last time the team was in the Super Bowl was in the 1988 season when the Bengals’ defense could not make one stop against that famous drive orchestrated by 49ers QB Joe Montana. As I live in Lexington, KY, a city that is about 70-80 miles south of Cincinnati, I know that people around here would go crazy if the Bengals won, but my job here is to analyze the game. QB Joe Burrow does have a knack for winning in the post-season, going back to his time in LSU, so we have that story.
On the other hand, we have Rams QB Matthew Stafford, who was traded from the Detroit Lions for Jared Goff last off-season. Stafford played for about 12 years for the hapless Detroit Lions. Goff did make Super Bowl LIII but lost to the Patriots, but obviously, the team didn’t think he was the answer, so they made this trade. How will a Super Bowl win be for Stafford? What will it say about his career in Detroit? Well, I have always thought that Stafford was an excellent quarterback. I just thought he was in a losing situation. I had always wondered what it would be like if he were on a better team. Well, he certainly has answered that question.
When the Bengals are on offense, they need to keep QB Joe Burrow upright and have him make quick passes to his receivers. The team’s offensive line is their weakest unit and that Rams’ defensive unit of Aaron Donald, Von Miller, etc. are going to have a field day if the offensive unit doesn’t find a way to protect Burrow. The Bengals need to run the ball. For some reason, many teams have found success running the ball against the Rams’ defense.
When the Bengals are on defense, they need to get Rams QB Matthew Stafford to make those interceptions that he is known for and they need to make sure that WR Cooper Kupp is accounted for. The defense has to try to shut down the Rams’ run game and account for the Rams’ other weapons and force turnovers.
When the Rams are on offense, Matthew Stafford must take care of the ball. Ball security is very important. This goes for the rest of the offense, as Cam Akers and Cooper Kupp fumbled during the Bucs game as well. Cooper Kupp must have a big game for this team to win, as the Bengals have excellent weapons in WR JaMarr Chase and RB Joe Mixon, etc.
When the Rams are on defense, their explosive defensive front should disrupt the passing game as much as possible. The pass rush should be relentless and get sacks and fumbles. As I said, the Bengals’ offensive line is not very good and that defensive front should get after it. The secondary should be on the lookout for interceptions.
PREDICTION AND WINNER:
Even though both teams have high-caliber offensive and defensive weapons, I think this is an example of the RMS Titanic vs the huge Iceberg, and the Los Angeles Rams are the iceberg. Joe Burrow is a nice story and all, but the Rams have way too many playmakers on both sides of the ball and on special teams. I am not saying that Burrow’s weapons are not good enough to win this game, but I think the Rams have too much for the young, upstart Bengals to pull the upset.
SUPER BOWL LVI CHAMPION: Los Angeles Rams: 35-24
edgerocks 