It is about time that Super Bowl LVI is here. The Los Angeles Rams face the Cincinnati Bengals at the newest and best area in the world, Sofi Stadium. Sofi Stadium is the home to the Rams and the other Los Angeles team, the Chargers. The Los Angeles Rams are just the second team to be playing in the Super Bowl at their home stadium. The first time was last year's Super Bowl when Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Rams finished the season at the top of their division with a 12-5 record and being one of the top teams in the NFC. The Bengals on the other hand finished out at 10-7 this year and surprisingly won the AFC North. At the beginning of the season, the Bengals had a +12000 chance to win the Super Bowl. That is just about the same odds as the New York Jets! The Rams have a ton of power in their offense and defense. Starting out with the offense. They have newly acquired quarterback Matthew Stafford who came off of playing many seasons with the Detroit Lions. They also have many weapons at receiver including Odell Beckham Jr who came from the Cleveland Browns this past season. A final big name is Cooper Kupp who broke 2,000 yards this past season and was definitely the NFL’s most dominant wide receiver this season. On top of all of that, Cooper Kupp  also won Offensive Player of the Year at the NFL Honors on February 10th, 2022.  

So, obviously this year's Super Bowl is filled with many superstars on the field and should be a very interesting game to watch. A team who was not even supposed to come close to making the playoffs, makes it against a top NFL team in the Los Angeles Rams. During the game, fans should watch out for key matchups on both sides of the ball. It will be very interesting to see the top rookie this season in Jammar Chase go up against arguably the best cornerback in the NFL in Jalen Ramsey. Other key matchups include lineman Quinton Spain against the Rams’ star Von Miller. A star player to really look out for is Joe Mixon. Mixon was a top running back this past season and was top five in rushing yards this season. It will be great to watch Mixon and a struggling Bengals offensive line go up against Aaron Donald and the Rams stacked defensive line. It will also be a challenge for second year quarterback Joe Burrow in his first superbowl to see if he can put up points with his offense against an elite tier defense. 

On opposite sides of each team, it gets interesting. The Rams have lots of talent on their offense. Matthew Stafford and Odell Beckham Jr. will both be making their first superbowl appearances in the first season with their new squad. Beckham played five seasons with the New York Giants and did not make a playoff appearance with the team. He also played two seasons with Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns. He made one playoff appearance with the Browns. Stafford on the other hand has had a fairly tough ride through his career. He was selected by the Detroit Lions with the first overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. He has been with the Lions up until this season where he was sent to the Rams in a blockbuster trade in exchange for multiple picks and Rams QB Jared Goff. Now we have the Bengals defense. The defense has been strong for the Bengals this season. It is nothing compared to the Rams but it has been valuable. D.J. Reader, Jessie Bates III, and Von Bell are some names to look out for as Reader is excellent with stopping the run and putting pressure on the quarterback, and Bell and Bates have excellent coverage skills. One thing to watch for is cornerback Eli Apple. Apple has been struggling lately and could be a weakness of the Bengals defense as he will be likely matching up against his former Giants teammate Odell Beckham Jr. 

Overall, it will be a great game but as one can probably see, yes, the Rams definitely have the edge over the Bengals in this game. Many think the Bengals will be able to compete as they have beaten tough teams to get to this amazing moment. Note, the Bengals have not won a superbowl in franchise history so this will be an important, and mentally challenged game for the team as they know the history that lies in the palms of their hands that night.