Bengals and Rams Set for Super Bowl LVI After Conference Title Wins
Cincinnati rallied from 18 points down to beat Kansas City in overtime, and the Rams edged San Francisco to earn a Super Bowl in their own stadium.
By Ishani Kapalli · · Originally reported by Boston.com
Two years after finishing as the NFL's worst team, the Cincinnati Bengals are headed to the Super Bowl, where they will face the Los Angeles Rams in the Rams' home stadium.
The Bengals clinched their berth on Sunday with a 27-24 overtime win over Kansas City in the AFC championship game. They erased an 18-point deficit, equaling the largest comeback in the history of that game, and reached the championship round for the first time since the 1988 season. Rookie kicker Evan McPherson booted the winning 31-yard field goal. He made four field goals in all.
Cincinnati won just two games in 2019, a record that gave the club the top overall draft pick, which it used on quarterback Joe Burrow. After a sluggish first quarter, the Bengals largely controlled the Chiefs. Safety Vonn Bell intercepted Patrick Mahomes on the opening possession of overtime, giving Cincinnati the ball for the winning drive.
"We're made for this moment. We never quit," Bell said. "Never quit fighting. We're a resilient group." Burrow, who missed six games as a rookie with a knee injury, said the team has been strong after halftime all season. "You don't really want to be that way, but that's kind of how it's worked out," he said. Coach Zac Taylor added: "We're not done yet."
The only other 18-point comeback in an AFC title game came in the 2006 season, when Indianapolis beat New England 36-34 with Peyton Manning and Tom Brady at quarterback.
The Bengals, 13-7 this season and AFC North winners, will make their third Super Bowl appearance after losses to the 49ers in 1982 and 1989. They had not won a playoff game since 1991 before beating Las Vegas this postseason, then secured the first road playoff win in franchise history by eliminating top-seeded Tennessee. Kansas City, 14-6, was hosting its fourth consecutive AFC championship game and is now 2-2 in them. The Chiefs won the league title two years ago.
In the NFC, the Rams came back from a 10-point second-half deficit to beat San Francisco 20-17. Matt Gay's 30-yard field goal with 1:46 left decided it. Los Angeles, 15-5, had lost six straight to the 49ers (12-8). San Francisco safety Jaquiski Tartt dropped a would-be interception in the fourth quarter that helped the Rams tie the game.
All-Pro receiver Cooper Kupp had 11 catches for 142 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 31 of 45 passes for 337 yards in a physical game, sending him to his first Super Bowl after 12 seasons in Detroit. San Francisco's Deebo Samuel caught four passes for 72 yards, including a 44-yard touchdown, and ran for 26 more. "We got one more at the home stadium, let's get it done," Stafford said.
The Rams are 1-3 in four earlier Super Bowls. Their lone win came in the 1999 season, when they played in St. Louis, and they lost to New England after the 2018 season. FanDuel Sportsbook lists Los Angeles as an early 3 1/2-point favorite.
