Stafford was able to kneel to run out the clock, and the Rams could finally exhale. On the next play, a touchdown grab by Kupp was nullified by a pair of offsetting penalties, and the following play featured yet another defensive flag-uncharacteristic for a matchup between the two teams that had the fewest penalty yards in the regular season.īut given another shot, Stafford found-who else?-Kupp for a score that put the Rams up, 23-20.īurrow connected with the dynamic Chase for a quick first down, ratcheting up the pressure, but on a fourth-and-1 at midfield, Burrow’s pass fell incomplete. With few other options to turn to and time dwindling, Stafford began to force the ball to Kupp, marching the Rams down the field and picking up a key first down deep in Bengals territory on a defensive holding call. Donald and Von Miller, the MVP of the 2016 Super Bowl and another midseason Rams acquisition, dialed up the pressure on Burrow, taking advantage of a Bengals line that had looked overmatched for most of the season. He was able to come back in for the next series, but the Rams’ offense continued to stall out.įrom there, the game turned into a grind. With the Rams trailing by 20-16 late in the third quarter, they suffered a big scare when Stafford was sacked on a third down and limped off the field, hopping up on a trainer’s table for an examination. Meanwhile, star Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey slipped as he jostled with Bengals rookie receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who waltzed into the end zone for a 75-yard touchdown and a 17-13 lead on the first offensive play of the second half. Stafford, who had thrown a league-worst 17 interceptions in the regular season, was picked off on a deep throw to the end zone late in the second quarter and then again on a pass tipped by his receiver Ben Skowronek early in the third. The momentum quickly shifted to Cincinnati.Ĭooper Kupp was overcome with emotion after the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. Los Angeles’ running backs couldn’t get anything going, either. That further depleted the Rams’ receiving corps-which had lost Robert Woods to an ACL tear in November and Tyler Higbee to a knee injury he sustained in the NFC championship game two weeks ago-and allowed the Bengals’ secondary to double-team Kupp. Then Beckham appeared to twist his knee on a pass from Stafford, and went on to miss the rest of the game. Cincinnati running back Joe Mixon also started to find his rhythm in the second quarter, even throwing a touchdown pass to wide receiver Tee Higgins on a trick play that narrowed the gap to 13-10. Johnny Hekker lost his grip on the hold for the point-after attempt following that score, costing the Rams a point, and Los Angeles’ defense, sticking with a four-man rush to avoid having to go into man coverage against Cincinnati’s talented receiving group, struggled to put pressure on second-year Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Early in the second quarter, he found Beckham for a 35-yard gain and then connected with a wide-open Kupp in the back right corner of the end zone for a 13-3 lead.īut there were warning signs. Stafford, savoring his first long playoff run, showed veteran poise, completing his first six passes despite pressure from Trey Hendrickson and the Bengals’ defensive line. The pass came from another first-year Ram, quarterback Matthew Stafford, who had been acquired in a seismic off-season trade with the Detroit Lions. After a punt on their first drive, a 20-yard reception by Kupp set up a leaping touchdown catch by midseason signing Odell Beckham Jr. NFL footage © NFL Productions LLC.Things certainly looked tipped the Rams’ way in the game’s early going. All other NFL-related trademarks are trademarks of the National Football League. NFL and the NFL shield design are registered trademarks of the National Football League.The team names, logos and uniform designs are registered trademarks of the teams indicated.
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