The Eagles were eliminated from the playoffs several weeks ago at this point, and the offseason will officially begin after tonight’s Super Bowl. Philly fans should be quite familiar with the Rams at this point, while the Bengals may be a bit of a mystery to some.
I asked our writers to give their predictions for tonight’s game, and we’ll all try to beat Dylan, who correctly predicted pretty much every game in these playoffs. I also posted this poll on Twitter, so we’ll see if any of us can guess the exact score:
The line is currently at Rams -4.5 at most books, but DraftKings Sportsbook and Caesars Sportsbook both have the line at -4 as of this writing. Now, let’s get to the picks.
Rams 34, Bengals 17
Sure, the Bengals have a shot to win. At any given time, the offense can click, and the defense can step up to shut down a top offense. By predicting a Rams blowout, I’m not fully counting out the Bengals – but looking at these two teams objectively, the Rams excel in every category.
Defensively, the pass rush will dominate the Bengals trash tier line. Whatever the Aaron Donald sack prop bet is, take the over. The secondary matches up extremely well with the Bengals wideouts, and aside from a weak LB core, it SHOULD be a good outing for this Rams D. On offense, the Rams have the pieces to be an unstoppable unit, and I think it’s a forgone conclusion that Sean Mcvay is one of the most brilliant coaches in the NFL.
I’m rooting for the Bengals; but brain says Rams.
-Noah Berger (@EaglesVictim)
Rams 28, Bengals 24
Stafford finally gets his ring; the Rams defense does just enough to stop Burrow on the final drive. Stafford wins SB MVP. The Bengals have surprised me this season; I didn’t think they’d even sniff the playoffs. Although they have a great “what if” story, I don’t think they have enough to stop the Rams.
The Rams have an outstanding secondary & defensive line & I think that will ultimately overpower the Bengals offense.
-Nate Eichner (@EichnerNate)
Rams 35, Bengals 21
Cooper Kupp runs roughshot over Eli Apple. Rams pass rush eats the Bengals for lunch. Bengals don’t force the same turnovers they did against KC and Tennessee. The game is over by the fourth quarter, Burrow racks up some garbage time yardage.
-Dylan Patrowicz (@DylanPatrowicz)
Bengals 32, Rams 22
I’ve gone back and forth on this game for the last two weeks. Part of me thinks it could be a Rams blowout if they get off to a hot start and build an early lead. But another part of me (I have many thinking parts) thinks there just might be a bit of magic left in this Begals team, and this Rams defense may not be able to stop Joe Burrow and all of his weapons.
32-22 is an odd score, but I think this could be an odd game with aggressive decisions that lead to some unusual numbers. I also have 2-2 in one of my Super Bowl box pools, so the universe will also have me putting some 2-2 energy out there throughout the night. And just to make sure everything goes according to plan, I’ll be wearing my Akili Smith Bengals jersey. No one can compete with that energy.
-Mike Maher (@mikeMaher)
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Mike Maher is the editor and publisher of The Birds Blitz and Juiced Ball Era. Follow him on Twitter @mikeMaher and @TheBirdsBlitz and check out his Eagles news archive for all of his latest stories about the Eagles and the NFL.
