Super Bowl LVI will take place at SoFi Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Rams, but it’s the Cincinnati Bengals who will be the home team for the game itself. Confused? Don’t be.
RELATED: Who is performing the Super Bowl halftime show this year? What about the national anthem?
The Super Bowl’s “home team” designation alternates each year between the AFC and NFC conferences, meaning the Bengals will choose what uniforms they will wear on Sunday. No matter what uniforms the Bengals wear, hoisting the Lombardi Trophy is the utmost priority for the franchise that has won zero Super Bowls in the team’s history.
How can I watch and stream this year’s Super Bowl live?
Who are the Cincinnati Bengals?
Cincinnati is one of 12 NFL teams that currently don’t have any Super Bowl titles on its resume. To date, the Bengals have appeared in and lost two Super Bowls, with their most recent performance coming back in 1988.
A loss against the Rams on Sunday would give the Bengals the second-most appearances in Super Bowl history without a victory, trailing only the Minnesota Vikings and Buffalo Bills who both have four such appearances apiece.
READ MORE: How the Bengals got to Super Bowl LVI: Key draft picks, wins, 2022 NFL playoff results and more
History lesson aside, the Bengals have never had an opportunity quite like this given the youth and talent on their roster. More specifically, Cincinnati has an opportunity to win because of their second-year quarterback, Joe Burrow. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Burrow has set the NFL world ablaze since returning from a catastrophic knee injury suffered during his rookie campaign.
In his first full season as a starter, Burrow racked up 4,611 passing yards, 34 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. In three games this postseason, all on the road, Burrow has completed 68.8 percent of his attempts for 842 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions in wins over the Las Vegas Raiders, Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs.
Who are the Los Angeles Rams?
As for the Rams, the pressure is on for Los Angeles to win in front of the Southern California faithful. The Rams and Bengals are playing each other in the Super Bowl for the first time in league history, but it’s already the fifth post-merger Super Bowl appearance for the Rams.
The franchise has been to four Super Bowls previously, last appearing in a Super Bowl in 2019 in a loss to the New England Patriots. A win over the Bengals would mark the first Lombardi Trophy for the Rams since 2000, when Kurt Warner led the team to a victory over the Tennessee Titans.
READ MORE: How the Rams got to Super Bowl LVI: Key draft picks, wins, 2022 NFL playoff results and more
But while Warner won’t be walking through the Ram’s locker room doors on Sunday, Los Angeles are in good hands with Matthew Stafford under center. Stafford, the former No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, has been a revelation for the Rams since his trade from the Lions last offseason.
In his first season as a starter for Los Angeles, Stafford threw for 4.886 yards, 41 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. In three games this postseason, Stafford has completed 72.0 percent of his attempts for 905 yards, six touchdowns and just one interception in wins over the Arizona Cardinals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and San Francisco 49ers.
Be sure to check back after each game for final scores and follow ProFootballTalk for more on the 2022 NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl LVI as well as game previews, recaps, news, rumors, and more.
Read more NFL
NFL QBs with most Super Bowl wins: Where does Tom Brady rank after Super… Super Bowl 2022: Why does the NFL use Roman numerals for naming? Who is playing Super Bowl halftime show 2022? Performers, date, how to watch,…
Who is playing in Super Bowl 2022? Teams, players, kickoff time on Sunday, NFL live stream originally appeared on NBCSports.com
