The Cincinnati Bengals got to Super Bowl 56 ahead of schedule. It was still entirely too late for their fans.
It’s been more than three decades since the Bengals Ickey Shuffled their way to the biggest game of the year. It’s also only two years since Cincinnati held claim to the league’s worst record and a spot atop the 2020 draft order. Joe Burrow’s arrival, alongside one of the league’s most explosive receiving corps, has defined his franchise’s rise from punchline to Super Bowl threat. Now he’s one win away from southwestern Ohio’s first major championship parade since the Reds won the World Series in 1990.
There’s more to this team’s dramatic rise than engineering one of the league’s most dynamic passing offenses. Trey Hendrickson leads a rebuilt defense that put the clamps on Patrick Mahomes twice this winter to eliminate the reigning AFC champs from contention. Jessie Bates and Mike Hilton have been a major part of that rise, leveling up in the postseason to ground opposing quarterbacks. The Bengals have also demonstrated a significant edge in special teams thanks to the icy demeanor of rookie kicker Evan McPherson, whose field goals have been a port in the storm against swirling defenses.
There are several ways Cincinnati can overcome the +4.5 point spread against it and topple the Rams in Los Angeles for the franchise’s first Super Bowl win. Here are the three most obvious ways it gets done.