For the second time in four years, the Rams are headed to the Super Bowl.

Led by Matthew Stafford under center and a run-stopping defense, the Rams closed the NFC Championship Game with 13 unanswered points to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17.

Up next are the AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI on February 13.

Stafford, who threw for 337 yards, took over with 6:49 to play in a 17-17 ballgame. He calmly marched the ball down the length of the field, hitting all five of his pass attempts on the drive and setting up kicker Matt Gay for the eventual game-winning field goal from 30 yards out.

Los Angeles got another monster game from star wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who caught 11 balls for 142 yards and hauled in both of Stafford’s TD tosses. Receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was also fantastic in the Rams’ passing game, finishing with nine catches and 142 yards. LA’s defense, meanwhile, limited San Francisco to just 50 yards rushing.

The Chiefs’ reign atop the AFC is over. The Bengals overcame an 18-point first-half deficit to stun the Chiefs in overtime, 27-24, in Sunday’s AFC Championship game in Kansas City to advance to Super Bowl 2022, where they’ll play the Rams or 49ers.

Evan McPherson won the game for Cincinnati with a 31-yard field goal after Patrick Mahomes was intercepted by Vonn Bell 14 seconds into overtime.

Joe Burrow went 23-for-38 with 250 yards and two touchdowns with one interception.
Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase connected for a touchdown with 14 seconds left in the third quarter, with the Bengals tying the game 21-21 on the ensuing two-point conversion.

McPherson kicked a 52-yard field goal with 6:07 remaining to put the Bengals up 24-21, their first lead of the game, before Harrison Butker kicked a 44-yard field goal for the Chiefs to tie the game as time expired in regulation.

Cincinnati has reached the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1988 season, when it fell to San Francisco in Super Bowl XXIII.

New York Giants have named Brian Daboll their new head coach. Previously the offensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills, Daboll acknowledged that Giants fans are expecting results and a rapid turnaround after the somewhat turbulent tenure of Joe Judge.

“I have a pretty good idea where our fan base’s feelings are right now, and I get it. I promise we will work our tails off to put a team on the field that you will be proud to support and give us the results we all want,” Daboll said.

Daboll looked like the leading candidate for most of the process. That became even more true when the Giants hired Joe Schoen, also formerly of the Bills, as GM. There were some brief rumors that Daboll was eyeing a different opening, but that obviously did not come to anything.

Though he has no head coaching experience, Daboll has been an offensive coordinator in both college and the NFL for over a decade. He has a rebuilding job ahead of him, and the organization will no doubt want to see what he can coax out of quarterback Daniel Jones.