The 56th Super Bowl played between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals took place Feb. 13. The final score was 23 to 20 in favor of the Rams. The game looked to end in a win for Cincinnati, but in the final minutes of the game, quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Cooper Kupp secured the win for Los Angeles. 

The Rams kept the lead for the first half of the game, starting the third quarter with 13 points as opposed to the Bengals’ 10. Their streak seemed to end as the Bengals were able to score a touchdown and secure a field goal within the first few minutes of the third quarter. This, combated with the loss of wide receiver Odell Beckham who suffered due to an injury, put the Rams in a difficult position. Unable to score a touchdown, the Rams settled for another field goal late in the third quarter, bringing the score to 16 to 20 in favor of the Bengals. 

“I think Odell Beckham’s injury really affected the Rams offense,” junior Jeremy Chuah said. “He could catch virtually anything. I think the Rams should have made this game a lot less close, this was definitely their year.”

The score remained consistent throughout the majority of the fourth quarter with the  Bengals’ lead. It looked to many as if the game was over and the Bengals had secured their victory. Within the last two minutes of the game, however, the Rams started closing in on the endzone. In order to win the game, the Rams would have to score a touchdown, as a field goal, worth three points, wouldn’t tie the scores up. With one minute and 25 seconds remaining in the fourth and final quarter, the Rams once again took the lead. A touchdown scored by Kupp with a pass thrown by Stafford brought the score to 23 to 20. 

“The Rams just had a better offense and defense, especially in that last quarter, ” junior Pranav Patil said. “They definitely deserved the win and that last play was really impressive.” 

Unable to score within the last minute and a half of the game, the Cincinnati Bengals lost Super Bowl 56 to the Los Angeles Rams. Patil believes that even though the game was close and could have ended in a win for the Bengals, the Rams had a better team and really pushed for the last touchdown of this year’s Super Bowl which just narrowly gave them the victory. 

“The Super Bowl is always fun when it’s really close, especially when it’s two teams who haven’t won in a long time,” Patil said. ”I think we saw a great season from both teams and even though the Bengals didn’t win, they played really well.”