NESN Super Bowl Staff Picks: Who We’ve Got In Rams-Bengals Clash
There's not much support for the Bengals in the NESN office
Everyone has an opinion when it comes to the Super Bowl.
No American sporting event brings the masses together like the Super Bowl, and by the time everyone convenes Sunday night, just about everyone who sits down with a lapful of snacks will be convinced they know what’s going to happen.
We here at NESN.com are no different, and we’re not afraid to let the world know. With that being said, here are the NESN.com staff picks for Sunday’s showdown between the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals.
Adam London — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Aaron Donald
Cincinnati definitely gives off a “team of destiny” feel, but I think its magical ride will end without a Lombardi Trophy. The Rams’ talented pass rush should be able to feast on the Bengals’ shaky offensive line, and Matthew Stafford shouldn’t have much trouble carving up a mediocre Cincy secondary. But Bengals’ loss won’t be of any fault to Joe Burrow, who I expect will once again rise to the occasion.
George Balekji — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Aaron Donald
Look this Bengals run is fun and exciting, but eventually that awful offensive line will catch up to them. Crazy, right? But Aaron Donald, Von Miller and Greg Gaines (who isn?t spoken about enough) are the best pass rush Joe Burrow will face. If he didn?t do an Eli Manning-escaping-Richard Seymour move on Chris Jones versus the Chiefs, then the Bengals may not even be here.
Yes, Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd are a great receiver combo, but the Rams secondary has an elite corner and balanced play, unlike the Bengals, who have a great safety in Jessie Bates but no corner help. The 49ers couldn?t cover Cooper Kupp or Odell Beckham Jr., and neither can the Bengals.
But please, Matt Stafford, don?t be a reckless. He can very well decide the Rams success. Cincy has been playing with house money but its luck has run out. Rams 38-30.
Ben Watanabe — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Aaron Donald
Cincinnati’s top-line talent is eye-popping ? Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, Trey Hendrickson, etc. ? but it’s still the team that lost to the Cleveland Browns twice and, in hindsight, might have exposed the Kansas City Chiefs for not being as good as we all thought. The Rams are far from perfect, but their defense should be all over Burrow, whom Cincy?s offensive line allowed to get sacked 51 times this season.
Sean McGuire — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Aaron Donald
First and foremost, it’s tough to envision how the Bengals’ offensive line will be able to control the Rams up front, and while it hasn’t been a fatal flaw for Cincinnati thus far, it feels like that will be the ultimate deciding factor for the AFC champions. Additionally, while neither Zac Taylor nor Sean McVay inspire a ton of confidence, McVay has been on the wrong end of a pantsing in the Super Bowl (Bill Belichick, anyone?) and the Rams head coach stressed this week what he learned from that Super Bowl LIII loss to the Patriots.
Pat McAvoy — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Aaron Donald
The Bengals have had a great run, but the Rams’ defense will be the difference-maker. Obviously, Los Angeles’ offense is high-powered with Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Odell Beckham Jr., but Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey will do their parts on the defensive side of the ball. Von Miller has had a resurgence so far this postseason, so it’s highly unlikely Cincinnati’s shaky offensive line will be able to protect Joe Burrow against both him and Donald.
Ricky Doyle — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Matthew Stafford
Los Angeles has a sizable advantage in the trenches — on both sides of the ball. Credit to Joe Burrow for overcoming Cincinnati’s protection problems to this point, but the Rams’ vaunted pass rush — coupled with Jalen Ramsey’s ability to slow Ja’Marr Chase — will make life difficult for the Bengals’ offense, a unit that’s overly reliant on splash plays that LA is well-equipped to eliminate.
Scott Edwards — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Matthew Stafford
As great as the underdog story has been for Cincinnati, it feels that story will be coming to an end at the hands of the Rams. Matthew Stafford deserves the ring and should carve up the Bengals defense on his way to a Super Bowl title and MVP.
Meredith Gorman — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Matthew Stafford
My heart says Bengals, but my brain says Rams. As much as I would love to see the Bengals win the Super Bowl, it’s hard for me to choose against the Rams who are stacked with such insane talent on both sides of the ball.
Mike Cole — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Cooper Kupp
It’s certainly possible Burrow and the Bengals flip the script yet again in what’s been a pretty improbable run to SoFi Stadium. But when you start digging into the matchups, it’s hard to find anywhere that Cincy has an advantage. As long as Stafford and McVay avoid completely giving it away, there’s just too much talent on the LA side for the Bengals to handle.
Lauren Campbell — Bengals over Rams
MVP: Ja’Marr Chase
The Bengals defense shut down a strong Chiefs offense in the AFC Championship Game in the second half and made stops when it mattered most. The offense, meanwhile, has averaged over 27 points per game this season and led the NFL with 8.7 yards per pass attempt.
Jenna Ciccotelli — Bengals over Rams
MVP: Joe Burrow
Between Burrow’s Comeback Player of the Year award, Ja’Marr Chase being named Offensive Rookie of the Year and the fact that just about everyone is counting them out, there’s enough bulletin board material here for the Bengals to win two Super Bowls. Not that they needed more of it, because how can you count out a Bengals team that managed to kick the Titans and the Chiefs? I’ll take a team of destiny any day.
Zack Cox — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Cooper Kupp
The “team of destiny” vibes definitely are there with the Bengals, but I just don’t see them overcoming the massive talent disparity up front that others have mentioned. Aaron Donald, Von Miller and Leonard Floyd against guys like Trey Hopkins, Quinton Spain, Hakeem Adeniji and Isaiah Prince is an enormous mismatch that has the potential to completely wreck Cincinnati’s highly talented offense. I think Cincy’s defense is playing well enough (outside of its miserable start in Kansas City) to keep this game close and relatively low-scoring, but I have Rams winning a tight one.
Dakota Randall — Rams over Bengals
MVP: Von Miller
We can?t underrate the potential for Sean McVay to melt down on a big stage, but this game should be coach-proof for the Rams. Cincinnati?s offensive line is awful, and Los Angeles? front seven is the best the Bengals have faced thus far in the playoffs. At the end of the day, consistent pressure on Joe Burrow will make it a long day for the Bengals offense, and Cincy?s mediocre defense won’t contain LA’s high-powered offense.
Steve Viesto — Bengals over Rams
MVP: Joe Burrow
Cincy’s riding high with all the momentum they’ve built with wins over the two top teams in the AFC (the better conference). Even though the Bengals lack experience, I think they have a dynamic offense, great team chemistry, and will use their underdog status as bulletin board material to rally together for the win.
Sam Panayotovich — UNDER 48.5 points
MVP: Cooper Kupp
This total probably ticks up a bit closer to kickoff, but I still like it Under 48.5. Super Bowl first quarters tend to be lower and slower as the offenses adjust to noise and pressure and I love these two defensive lines. High-octane quarterbacks and receivers naturally make all the headlines, but I expect these defenses to show out and limit the big, explosive plays. This feels like a 24-20 final either way.
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