For the second straight season, the host team of the Super Bowl captured a Lombardi Trophy in its own stadium, and did so with a veteran quarterback as the clear missing link. Last year, it was Tom Brady who celebrated a title with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. On Sunday, Matthew Stafford achieved the feat with the Los Angeles Rams.
The Rams' approach to the 2021 campaign was one of a gambler going all-in on the present. By acquiring Stafford in a blockbuster deal with the middling Detroit Lions just one year ago, they pushed every last chip to the center of the table. The risk paid off, as the 34-year-old Stafford helped lead the Rams to a 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl 56 at SoFi Stadium. A legacy-defining win for Stafford, who had long been overlooked in the NFL.
"I think guys like [Aaron Rodgers], Russell Wilson, other quarterbacks around the league are looking at this thinking, 'I want to LeBron-ify this sport," Tyler Dunne of GoLongTD.com told The DA Show on Monday. "'I want to pick and choose veterans who I want to play with, somewhere.' We'll see how it plays out, but I do think they're going to try. Are they going to be able to pull it off? I don't think so. The Rams, especially, it kind of took the right circumstances...
"Jalen Ramsey in Jacksonville, it got pretty bad with that relationship. They were willing to part with him, he wanted out... The timing was perfect. Same thing with the Lions and Stafford... I don't know what that situation is, what the team is, who're the available players this offseason. It just seems like this is a really tough 'model' for other teams to just suddenly adopt. But we'll see. I think QBs are going to try to take control of this league this offseason again."
Midway through the fourth quarter, trailing by four, Stafford orchestrated his greatest scoring drive. In a span of five minutes, he led the Rams downfield for 79 yards on 15 plays, and with less than 90 seconds left, he connected with superstar receiver Cooper Kupp for the title-cinching touchdown pass. Overall, Stafford completed 26 of 40 passes for 283 yards with three scores and two interceptions.
Los Angeles drew first blood midway through the first quarter. On a 3rd-and-3 from Cincinnati's 17-yard line, Stafford found Odell Beckham Jr. in the low-right corner of the end zone, capping of a six-play, 50-yard drive. Stafford's second touchdown also went to Kupp, who was left wide open on a corner route from 11 yards out early in the second quarter. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Rams' championship-winning drive was the longest go-ahead drive in the second half in Super Bowl history.
The entire Super Bowl conversation between Dunne and DA can be accessed in the audio player above.
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