In a venue built for champions, the Los Angeles Rams carried off the crown jewel: a Super Bowl trophy, per the AP. It took a precise 79-yard drive capped by Cooper Kupp’s 1-yard touchdown reception with 1:25 remaining for a 23-20 victory Sunday over the Cincinnati Bengals to give the Rams their first NFL title since the 1999 season—and their first representing Los Angeles since 1951. They did it in their home, the $5 billion SoFi Stadium, making the Rams the second consecutive host to win the championship after Tampa Bay became the first a year ago.
Kupp had four receptions from QB Matthew Stafford for 39 yards on the winning drive. Even with that brilliant, decisive march to the Lombardi Trophy, it was LA’s “fearsome fivesome” that made the difference. Led by Aaron Donald and Vin Miller, they sacked Joe Burrow a Super Bowl record-tying seven times, shutting down the Cincinnati offense after a 22-second spurt to start the second half gave the Bengals the lead. Fittingly, Burrow was under pressure on fourth-and-1 and threw incomplete on the Bengals' final possession, setting off a football fiesta the city of Los Angeles has not seen since the LA Raiders won the 1983 championship. (More Super Bowl stories.)