SUPER BOWL PLUMS
Super Bowl 56 is here people.
Conference Championship weekend we went 2-0 making us 49-54 on the year. Which means even if I hit today, I'm under .500 for the year.
Pretty terrible when you consider how excited I was at the beginning of the season to do a weekly capping blog...
But that's why we bet right? There's always tomorrow. There's always next season.
Super Bowl 56 sees the Cincinnatti Bengals playing at the Los Angeles Rams.
Bengals +4
Rams -198 | Bengals +166
O/U 48.5
Listen, what Joe Burrow and the Bengals have accomplished is unreal.
But remember, they've faced the easiest schedule of opposing pass defenses and the second-easiest schedule of opposing rush defenses.
This will be, by far, the best defense they have faced.
Burrow has been pressured on 36% of his postseason dropbacks, a number that will seem low today when he sees this Rams pass rush.
Burrow is deadly versus man coverage- we're talking 15 TDs, 5 INTs, 10.9 yards per attempt on 145 dropbacks, he's just "meh" vs. zone schemes: 12 TDs, 9 INTs, 8.5 ypa on 417 dropbacks.
The Rams play zone 78% of the time, which is good for second-most in the NFL.
Because they usually go with a 5-man front, the Rams are vulnerable on short passes over the middle. But I don't think it will matter.
Offensively the Rams are nothing to shurg at either. With Matthew Stafford seeking a legacy win, Odell Beckham Jr. motivated to quiet his critics, and Cooper Kupp looking to end his MVP-caliber season on a high note, this offense has something legitimately to prove. They also have a coach with more big-game experience (even though he got dusted by Belichick on this stage a few years ago).
The Rams have too much firepower on defense and as much as I love Burrow, Cincinnatti, and their fans, I don't think this is their year. But they'll have plenty of other chances in the next 10 years.
Bengals 27
Rams 33
Good luck everybody. Bet Responsibly!
Let the boy watch.