Bengals or Rams? Here is who national experts are predicting will win Super Bowl LVI
Even though the Bengals beat the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game, more fans in Kansas City will be cheering for Cincinnati than the Rams in Super Bowl LVI.
That’s according to a Star poll that showed 40% of fans are rooting for the Bengals to win/Rams to lose, compared with 36% pulling for LA/wanting Cincinnati to lose. TV ratings for the Super Bowl may not be huge in KC, as 12% said they won’t watch because the Chiefs lost.
Of course, those fans could have a change of heart or tune in for the commercials.
Who will win Sunday? Here is what 133 national experts are saying about the game, and they’re leaning toward a Rams victory, but it’s not a landslide.
Super Bowl LVI kicks off at 5:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on KSHB (Ch. 41).
The 28 pundits at NFL.com were split on who would prevail. Taking Cincinnati are Joe Thomas (24-21 final score), Judy Battista (24-21), Marc Ross (31-30), Ali Bhanpuri (27-24), Jeffri Chadiha (31-27), Nick Shook (28-24), Dan Hanzus (28-24), Adam Rank (29-28), Brooke Cersosimo (26-21), Marcas Grant (23-20), Marc Sessler (41-35, OT), Tom Blair (35-33), Kevin Patra (30-27) and Matt Smith (31-27). Grant wrote: “At this point, it feels like destiny for the Bengals. They have the hottest quarterback in the league and a defense that has been lights-out.”
Going with the LA are Kurt Warner (28-17), Maurice Jones-Drew (38-31), Dan Parr (27-18), Steve Mariucci (30-24), Gil Brandt (17-13), Cynthia Frelund (26-25), Jeremy Bergman (21-16), Chad Reuter (24-17), DeAngelo Hall (31-21), Gennaro Filice (29-17), Steve Smith, Sr. (50-42), Lance Zierlein (27-19), Chase Goodbread (31-23) and David Carr (31-17). Jones-Drew wrote: “Football games are won in the trenches, and the Rams take advantage of the mismatch between their defensive line and the Bengals’ O-line. Stopping one pass rusher may be doable, but accounting for Aaron Donald , Von Miller and Leonard Floyd is another story.”
The eight writers at CBS Sports also are split on who will win. Picking the Rams are Will Brinson, Jared Dubin, Dave Richard and Jamey Eisenberg. Going with the Bengals are Pete Prisco, Jason LaCanfora, Ryan Wilson and John Breech. Prisco sees the Bengals pull out a 31-30 victory. Here is an excerpt of what he wrote: “The key to the game will be how the Bengals handle the Rams defensive front. Can they block Aaron Donald and Von Miller and Leonard Floyd. The Bengals have a bad offensive line, especially the right side.That will make it a premium for Joe Burrow to speed up his clock and get the ball out. Look for a lot of quick throws, something Burrow did in the second half against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship game.”
A 27-24 Rams win is the prediction from Bill Bender of the Sporting News. Here is a snippet from his story: “Burrow has shown the same cool that made him a national champion at LSU. He will make big plays despite the Rams’ furious pass rush. Cincinnati will lead at halftime, but Los Angeles will rally behind (Matthew) Stafford, with (Cooper) Kupp and (Odell) Beckham catching second-half touchdowns. A late TD by the Bengals will cut the lead to three, but Los Angeles will hold on for its first Super Bowl victory in 22 seasons.”
A 30-24 Bengals victory is the prediction from Yardbarker’s Chris Mueller. Here is part of his story: “Before Burrow, the Bengals were a dysfunctional-if-talented team that couldn’t handle success and wilted at the first sign of adversity. Now they have the look of one of the league’s most resilient teams and can complete an astonishing run to glory with one more win. Burrow has a backfield hammer in (Joe) Mixon, and in (Tyler) Boyd and (Tee) Higgins, two receivers plenty capable of destroying an opposing defense that pays too much attention to chase. The Bengals are underdogs for the third-straight game, but at this point, you should doubt them at your own risk.”
A 31-27 Rams win is the call from Ben Rolfe of Pro Football Network.This is a snippet of his story: “The Rams are as explosive as it gets, recording a league-high 18 passing plays of 40 yards or more. Want to guess who was second? Yup, the Bengals at 16. However, can Burrow do it against Jalen Ramsey and LA’s secondary?”
The Rams will win, says ProFootballTalk’s Michael David Smith and Mike Florio. Smith called a 34-20 score and wrote in part: “I see this as a game that’s competitive in the first half, but the Rams will pull away in the second as their defense puts pressure on Burrow, while their offense finds receivers open downfield. In the end this one won’t be close.” Florio sees a final of 30-21. This is part of what he wrote: “The Rams are the better team. And if they don’t play like they did against the 49ers, they should easily. If they stumble around for most of the game, they’ll give the Bengals an opening — and quarterback Joe Burrow will be inclined to take it.”
Each of the seven writers at USA Today think the Rams will win: Jarrett Bell (33-27 final score), Nate Davis (30-27), Jori Epstein (34-31), Mike Freeman (27-19), Mike Jones (29-22), Mike Middlehurst-Schwartz (28-17) and Lorenzo Reyes (24-20).
Thirty of the 47 Athletic writers believe the Rams will win: Aaron Reiss, Nate Taylor, Stephen Holder, Jack Berman, Adam Jahns, Tim Graham, Joseph Rexrode, Ben Standig, Vic Tafur, Dan Duggan, Matt Barrows, Mike Sando, Greg Auman, Daniel Popper, Bob Kravitz, Joe Person, Lindsay Jones, Ted Nguyen, Nick Kosmider, Dan Kaplan, Joe Buscaglia, Bob Sturm, Michael-Shawn Dugar, Chris Burke, Zak Keefer, Dan Pompei, Tashan Reed, Jourdan Rodrigue, Josh Kendall and Chad Graff.
Taking Cincinnati: Jon Greenberg, Jac Jackson, Bo Wulf, Katherine Terrell, Sheil Kapadia, Jay Morrison, Ed Bouchette, Jon Machota, Matt Schneidman, Mark Kaboly, Kevin Fishbain, Matthew Fairburn, Steve Buckley, Paul Dehner Jr., Jeff Howe, Larry Holder and Jeff Zrebiec.
A Rams win is the prediction from 14 of 18 Athlon Sports writers: Mark Ross (30-24 final score), Steven Lassan (27-24), Bryan Fischer (27-23), Ben Weinrib (28-23), Rob Doster (31-20), Aaron Wilson (27-17). Matt Josephs (27-23), Juan Jose Rodriguez (34-20), Rob McVey (31-20), Jake Rose (38-20), J.P. Scott (34-24), Eric Sorenson (35-20), Mark Strausburg (33-17) and Aaron Tallent (24-20). Picking the Bengals: Tom Bowles (31-24), John Lafleur (30-27), Sarah Lewis (36-30) and Scott Whittum (27-24).
Three of five Audacy writers picked the Rams: Jordan Cohn (31-21 final score), Tim Kelly (24-20), John Healy (28-20). The Bengals will win, say Jesse Pantuosco (27-24) and Dan Mennella (27-23).
Five of seven writers at Sports Illustrated went with LA: Albert Breer (27-24), Gary Grammling (28-21), Michael Rosenberg (37-20), Greg Bishop (27-21) and Mitch Goldich (33-22). Those going with the Bengals: Andrew Brandt (27-24) and Conor Orr (33-30)
The eight pundits at ESPN are split on who will win. Taking the Bengals: Jeremy Fowler, Rob Ninkovich, Kevin Seifert and Dan Graziano. Going with the Rams: Emmanuel Acho, Matt Bowen, Seth Wickersham and Laura Rutledge.
