By: Liam W. Cooney | Staff Writer
Another incredible NFL season and wildly entertaining NFL playoffs has reached its final stage as we preview Super Bowl LVI. The earlier Divisional round matchup between the Bills and Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium was an absolute treat, featuring incredible performances by QBs Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes. Seeing future hall of fame QB Tom Brady play what we now know will be his last NFL game was another game in this playoffs that will go down in history. Just like any good championship game, it’s the stories of these two teams that make the game so intriguing.
For the Los Angeles Rams, representing the National Football Conference, it’s their all-in, ready-to-win, star-studded roster, led by their QB Matthew Stafford. Stafford spent the first 12 years of his career buried in Detroit, selected first overall by the Lions (via University of Georgia) in the 2009 draft. Since being sent to Los Angeles in a blockbuster trade this past offseason and joining a cast of characters that have allowed him to compete, Stafford has come up big when it matters and cemented himself as a top QB. The Rams are coached by head coach Sean McVay, the youngest head coach in the NFL at 36 years old, already having proven himself by taking the Rams to Super Bowl LIII as well as compiling a 61-29 (.678) record as head coach.
Win now and win at all costs is the Rams’ strategy, as the team owns only 4 picks in next year’s draft., three of which are within rounds 5 or later. LA has stacked up their roster by adding players like Stafford, plus All-Pro CB Jalen Ramsey and former Super Bowl MVP EDGE Von Miller. Not to mention potentially the best defensive player in the game, DT Aaron Donald. This type of “mortgage the farm” strategy is not as customary in the NFL as it may be in the NBA or MLB, due to salary cap and draft position securities, however it’s worked thus far for the Rams, and they’ll soon have a chance to make it all worth it.
Now let’s take a peek at the Cincinnati Bengals, 2nd year QB Joe Burrow, and without question one of the greatest Cinderella teams in recent history. As the legend of Joe Burrow, “Joe Shiesty,” “Joe Cool,” “Joey Franchise,” and “Joe Brrrrr” continues to grow, so does the rebuilding process for the Cincinnati Bengals. Yes, Burrow has earned plenty of nicknames since his breakout and record-breaking senior season at Louisiana State in 2019. And yes, you heard that right, the Bengals are still very much in a rebuilding mode. HC Zac Taylor is in his 3rd season at helm for Cincinnati, in which he has compiled a 19-32-1 career head coaching record (.375) during that time. Interestingly and coincidentally enough, Taylor is the second youngest active head coach in the league at 38 years, second only to McVay. In Taylor’s first season, the Bengals compiled an impressive 2-14, including jumping off to a hot start, going 0-11 in the team’s first 11 contests.
After earning the first overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the team made the wise decision to select LSU Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff winning QB Joe Burrow with the first overall selection. This ended in a 4-11-1 record in Burrow’s rookie season, during which he suffered a devastating ACL injury in a Week 11 matchup against the Washington Football team. Team owner Mike Brown announced that Taylor would return for the 2021 campaign, yet one could imagine how warm his seat was getting at the time. All the more reason why the Bengals getting hot at the right time this season, winning the AFC North division, and cinching an American Football Conference championship is so incredibly surreal.
And yes, “still rebuilding” is not a joke: the Bengals have a well below average offensive line, a below average pass rush and have only this season improved their secondary. This is by no means a team that has reached its potential in terms of the steps they can take to improve their roster in the years to come. What the Bengals do have, however, and why they have gotten this far, is an extremely talented young core led by LSU teammates Joe Burrow and WR Ja’Marr Chase. Other young talent, such as WR Tee Higgins, RB Joe Mixon, LB Logan Wilson and CB Chidobe Awuzie, makes the Bengals an incredibly talented group of young players. Chase, Burrow’s LSU teammate, was selected 5th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, and is a front runner for Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
After a season and a playoffs that has given us some jaw dropping QB battles, it seems inevitable that we will get one more. That’s the type of anticipation fans are having looking at 2nd year QB Joe Burrow, and veteran 13th year QB Matthew Stafford. What these two share is the exciting and unpredictable roads that brought them here. Stafford, as previously mentioned, spent the first 12 years of his career with the Detroit Lions. He was always a talented QB, but he was never given the chance to showcase his true potential while playing for one of the worst franchises in professional sports. The fact that Stafford has found himself in the big game during his first year out of Detroit speaks to his true talent and standing as an elite QB, just as it speaks to the disarray and abysmal organization that is Detroit.
As for Burrow, the ACL injury he suffered in the back half of last season led to questions about what his ability would be coming into this season. Burrow has silenced these questions and then some, posting a 70.4% completion percentage with a 108.3 QBR (Quarterback rating) on the year, leading his squad to their first Super Bowl appearance since 1988 (3rd ever).
This type of matchup at the QB position is sure to get viewers intrigued, as it is often the storylines and big names in any professional sports league that drives ratings through the roof. Given that Cincinnati is the undisputed underdog, with odds against them to even make the playoffs at the start of the season, I get the feeling that the majority of America will be rooting for the Bengals, as everyone loves a good underdog story.
Now, unfortunately, I will be picking the Los Angeles Rams to win this matchup, and win their second ever Super Bowl title (2000 Super Bowl). My analysis here is that the Bengals’ biggest weakness, their offensive line, is set to head up against perhaps the Rams greatest strength, their relentless pass rush and interior presence. Players on LA’s defensive side of the ball like Aaron Donald, Von Miller, as well as LB Leonard Floyd, have the chance to really exploit this weakness, and disrupt Burrow as well as Joe Mixon and the running game. I would suspect DC Raheem Morris to take advantage of this glaring opportunity. Big games are often won (and lost) in the trenches, and I suspect that will be the case here as well. Both LA and Cincy have playmakers on the outside and at the skill positions, but I feel the ability of the Ram’s defensive line to overpower the Bengals offensive line is going to decide this one.
As for what Vegas is saying, Los Angeles is currently a 4.5 point favorite, with the O/U set at 48.5 points. If I was a betting man I would be putting my money on LA. Don’t hold me to it, though—if Cincy pulls it off, I wouldn’t be upset at all.
The Bengals will be sporting their black jerseys with white bottoms (probably my favorite combination of theirs). The Rams will be repping an alternate combo, only the 3rd team in the Super Bowl era to ever have an alternate uniform combo approved by the league. As opposed to their typical “bone grays,” LA will be wearing their “white modern throwback” tops with yellow pants. This is a good thing, if you ask me—I’m not so much a fan of the Rams’ “bone grays” as their typical away option.
Although listed as the “away” team in this matchup, the Rams will be trying to win it all in their home venue, SoFi Stadium. Hoping to become only the second team to ever win the Super Bowl in their home stadium, the other being the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who won Super Bowl LV at Raymond James stadium last February.
Next Sunday, February 13th, NBC network at 6:30PM ET.
Enjoy the game!
SoFi Stadium by prayitnophotography on Flickr is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
