Super Bowl Rams Ou Almost Got It Funny Pic
5 big takeaways as Rams outlast Bengals in Super Bowl LVI
Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp gave the Rams just what they needed at the right time down the stretch to seal Los Angeles' Super Bowl win.
Anyone expecting a rip-roaring Super Basin with a ton of points scored by the Bengals and Rams came away disappointed. In fact, the halftime show was by far the most interesting thing that happened at SoFi Stadium for most of Sunday dark.
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Only in the end, the game was worthy of the large stage as arguably the NFL's 2 all-time players on their corresponding sides of the ball, Cooper Kupp (eight catches, 92 yards, 2 touchdowns) and Aaron Donald (two sacks, iii quarterback hits), dominated downwards the stretch.
It still took virtually the full 60 minutes for the favored Rams to finally put away the pesky upstart Bengals, holding on for a 23-20 terminal score that wasn't assured until Joe Burrow's last pass fell harmlessly to the turf.
Just when the dust settled, Los Angeles' all-in approach to the season, from trading for Matthew Stafford earlier the season to acquiring Von Miller and Odell Beckham Jr. mid-flavor, paid off with the franchise's get-go Super Bowl championship in more than 20 years.
Matthew Stafford rips the monkey off his back.
No one's going to joke about Stafford now.
After being the butt of jokes for years with the Detroit Lions and reviving doubters with a couple of rough performances late in this season, he showed anybody he has what it takes to win a Super Bowl.
His second game-winning drive of the postseason was one of the gutsiest performances of his career. Hobbled by an ankle that got rolled up on in the third quarter and struggling with Odell Beckham Jr. out of the game, Stafford turned in a masterpiece for his terminal drive: a 15-play, 79-chiliad endeavor that concluded with a picture-perfect touchdown to Cooper Kupp.
In standard Stafford form, information technology wasn't all puppies and sunshine. The first of his two interceptions, in item, was the kind of very late, ill-brash throw that has plagued him his unabridged career.
This time, though, he didn't allow the mistakes kill him and his team. On the reverse, he pushed through it, just as he did in the divisional round confronting Tampa Bay, and came out a winner.
If this is what Stafford looks like on a real football team, information technology's a compassion we didn't get to run across it sooner. Though it might be a bit likewise early on to say he'south County-bound merely yet, one of the biggest hurdles to him getting a Hall-of-Fame jacket is now gone.
Cooper Kupp comes up clutch.
There take, without a doubt, been better wide receivers in the history of football than Cooper Kupp. But arguably no wide receiver ever put upwards a greater flavour than Kupp just did.
Offensive Player of the Year. Led NFL receivers in catches, receiving yards (setting a new single-season NFL tape, past the fashion), and touchdown catches. He as well had the most catches ever in a single postseason.
Now, add Super Basin MVP to the list.
You could argue Donald's defensive brilliance merited an MVP vote equally well, of course. But to sympathize why Kupp won it, you have to realize where the Rams would've been without him in this game.
Los Angeles couldn't run the football to relieve their lives. Odell Beckham's injury left Stafford relying on Ben Skowronek and tight ends no one had heard of. The Rams were facing a win-or-die last drive.
So Stafford honed in on Kupp — and just about but Kupp — to move the chains, targeting him seven times on the concluding bulldoze. He even ran the ball on fourth-and-one for a start downwardly.
Then, he and Stafford finally got what they wanted: Kupp confronting Eli Apple one-on-ane in the end zone. Like stealing.
Kupp will never win league MVP in an NFL that most exclusively gives the award to quarterbacks. But it couldn't accept been more obvious the Rams wouldn't have won this game if they didn't have Cooper Kupp.
Aaron Donald owns the stage.
The Bengals and Rams came into Sun's championship contest with reputations for explosive offenses. For the most part, though, this was a contest marked by the defensive prowess of both squads.
As usual, though, Donald, the greatest defensive actor of his generation, stood to a higher place the residuum.
Measuring his impact solely in numbers (ii sacks, three quarterback hits) simply doesn't exercise information technology justice. He was unblockable all game, and his consistent domination helped open the door for the Rams to take hold of seven sacks.
And so, there was Donald'south play in the clutch. One of his sacks halted a potential Bengals touchdown bulldoze, forcing Cincinnati to settle for a field goal that loomed large later.
Finally, when the chips were downwards — 3rd-and-i at midfield — Donald stuffed Samaje Perine for no gain and then stormed into the backfield to force Couch into the game-sealing incompletion.
From the moment he came onto that field for the concluding drive, at that place was no doubt he would dominate. And he did. That's what the not bad players do.
If this somehow ends up being Donald's last game, which is obviously a possibility based on some pregame reporting, what a way to leave.
Bengals offensive line folds at worst time.
For 22 games, the Bengals soldiered on despite having one of the worst offensive lines in football. Joe Burrow's wizardry in the pocket and ability to pull plays out of thin air covered up issues upfront, as did the team'due south ability to run the football.
Going upward against the Rams was a span too far, though.
Cincinnati was always going to struggle to block Aaron Donald, but they also let Von Miller (ii sacks), Leonard Floyd, and Ernest Jones through. The line allowed an ugly eleven hits on Couch. What's more: they couldn't option up crucial brusk-yardage situations belatedly in the game to give kicker Evan McPherson a adventure a game-tying kick.
Burrow (22-of-33, 263 yards, ane touchdown) was over again pretty good despite the chaos, but even he isn't at that level of superhuman even so where he can win every single game on his ain.
The Bengals shouldn't regret passing up the opportunity to upgrade their offensive line in the draft in favor of grabbing Ja'Marr Chase, who looks like a bonafide NFL superstar already. But the mandate going into this offseason is clear: revamp that offensive line and give Couch a fighting chance.
Odell Beckham Jr. deserved better.
You never want to meet players injured in a game, especially not the Super Bowl. Simply Beckham'due south knee injury suffered in the 2d quarter felt particularly roughshod.
By all indications, it looked similar the veteran star receiver suffered a serious human knee injury when he came upward hobbling without being hit while trying to make a catch. He walked gingerly off the field with some assist and was ruled out during the second half of the game.
Beckham took a lot of rut for the way his time with the Cleveland Browns concluded, but he proved he could still make a difference for a championship contender in his limited time with the Rams. All five of his regular-flavour touchdowns came with Los Angeles, and he scored the Super Bowl'due south first touchdown on a 17-yard strike from Stafford.
Losing their second-all-time receiver hurt the Rams badly on crime though they eventually overcame it enough to win. Merely the injury is even worse for Beckham: he was ready to exist a costless agent this yr and likely could've earned a solid contract. In fact, it would've been nice to come across the Patriots take a run at him subsequently he admitted he was close to signing with New England following his release past the Browns.
If the injury was as bad as it looked, he might non play at all in 2022. Though he'll be happy to get the Super Bowl ring, it's unfortunate it came at this price.
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Source: https://www.boston.com/sports/nfl/2022/02/14/takeaways-rams-bengals-super-bowl-56/
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