By Hanson Han, Staff Writer

Here at Mills, many of us are invested in sports. Whether we are in fantasy leagues, or actually watching the games, there is little debate that the Super Bowl is one of the most important games, a highlight of the year. For example, our very own Dean Christian has been a huge Los Angeles Rams fan since he was young, being very excited seeing his team win the Super Bowl. However, many of the students at Mills were siding with the Cincinnati Bengals, since the Rams beat our home team, San Francisco 49ers, to get their way to the Super Bowl. With conflicting interests, this Super Bowl would be a historic game filled with intense drama and action. The game ended with the Rams beating the Bengals 23-20, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. But the road for both of these teams to get to the Super Bowl was really interesting. 

For the Rams, their star quarterback Matthew Stafford has had quite the journey to make it to the big game. Stafford spent 12 years with the Detroit Lions, with disappointing seasons every single time. He was a star quarterback stuck with a no name team. Thankfully, Stafford has finally been able to redeem himself, after going to the Rams in 2021. This redemption story for Stafford has really made the Super Bowl even more interesting to watch. 

For the Bengals, their franchise prior to this was in shambles. Their last win in the playoffs was in the 1990 season, 31 years ago. To quote MSNBC reporter Kathryn Tappen, “The last time [the Bengals] won in the postseason, Seinfeld was on your TV, cell phones looked like bricks, and text messaging didn’t even exist. In fact, only four active Bengals players were alive the last time this team won a playoff game 31 years ago.” This year, the Bengals have made history by not only winning their first playoff game in so long, but by making it to Super Bowl LVI. The Bengals, led by their two star players quarterback Joe Burrow and wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, have made history. Burrow and Chase have been playing together since their college days at LSU. To finally see these two players leading a broken team to the Super Bowl has made the game so much better. 

For the game itself, things were already not looking too good for the Bengals. In terms of betting, the Rams were predicted to win by 4 points. In terms of just players and statistics, the Bengals held themselves at a serious disadvantage. Burrow was sacked 70 times in the season, 7 of them in the Super Bowl. This means the Bengals now hold the record for third most sacks received in a season, and tied the record for most sacks in a Super Bowl. This problem was clear from day one, with everyone everywhere knowing that the Bengals offensive line needed dramatic improvement. To make matters worse, the Rams have Aaron Donald, a defensive tackle who was ranked as the #2 best NFL player overall. Many people prior to the game were predicting that Donald, along with the rest of the Rams defense, would completely shut down the Bengals offensive line. On top of that, the Rams also have Jalen Ramsey, who is currently considered as the best cornerback in the NFL, and ranked #13 overall. With all of this being considered, it is surprising that the game was so close, with the Bengals only trailing by 3. A closer look at the game might explain how the Bengals kept the game so close. 

Early in the first quarter, Stafford made a touchdown pass to wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. for a 17 yd touchdown. Later on, Bengals kicker Evan McPherson made a 29 yard field goal, putting the score at the end of the first quarter 7-3 favoring the Rams. 

In the second quarter, both teams simply traded touchdowns. Stafford passed to wide receiver Cooper Kupp for an 11 yd touchdown. However, they failed their 2 point attempt, giving them only 6 points. Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins later scored a touchdown, making the 1 point conversion, putting the score at 13-10 favoring the Rams. However, during the second quarter, the Rams suffered a crucial blow to their offense. Beckham tore his ACL in a non-contact play, which left him unable to play for the rest of the game. 

The start of the third quarter started with arguably the most explosive play in the game. In the first play, Burrow passed to Higgins for a 75 yd touchdown. They then traded field goals, with McPherson making a 38 yd field goal and Rams kicker Matt Gay making a 41 yd field goal, putting the score at 20-16 favoring the Bengals. 

The last quarter was fairly fruitless, with both team’s defense not letting the opposing team’s offense score anything. With the clock winding down, it seemed as if the Bengals would win without scoring in the fourth quarter. However, near the end of the game, Stafford passed to Kupp for a 1 yd touchdown, putting the final score at 23-20, with the Rams taking the win for Super Bowl LVI. The game ended in incredible fashion, with Donald raising up his hand and pointing at his finger, signifying that they had won, and that he was waiting for the Super Bowl ring. 

The halftime show was also extremely lively and entertaining, with SoFi Stadium bringing in big names such as Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J, Blige, Kendrick Lamar, and 50 Cent. All of these performances cost the NFL a total of $13 million dollars to put together this event. 

All in all, the game was more intense and close than many had predicted. Many experts, fans, and analysts, including myself, expected the Rams to completely close out the Bengals. However, the Bengals put up a fight worth watching, something for Burrow and his team to be proud of.