5 takeaways from Championship Sunday as Bengals, Rams head to Super Bowl

The matchup for Super Bowl LVI is set: The Cincinnati Bengals (you read that correctly) and the Los Angeles Rams will meet on Sunday, Feb. 13, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, which also happens to be the Rams' home field. The Bengals upset the Kansas City Chiefs to get here, while the Rams came from 10 points down in the fourth quarter to hold off the San Francisco 49ers. Let's take a closer look at some of what went down and what it means.

Bengals defense does the impossible

Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs were supposed to be unbeatable. They sure looked that way after last week's heart-stopping win over the Buffalo Bills and then again after racing to touchdowns on their first three possessions to take a 21-3 lead against Cincinnati.

Kansas City ran 33 offensive plays in the first two quarters, picking up 18 first downs while facing third down just four times and converting all four. The team's only other drive of the first half ended at the 1-yard line when Eli Apple tackled Tyreek Hill as the clock struck zero. But the Chiefs were going to get the ball to begin the second half. This was going to get ugly.

After that? Kansas City punted four times, and Mahomes tossed a pair of interceptions. The Chiefs managed just 83 total yards and six first downs, with 49 of those yards and four of those first downs coming on the final drive that resulted in the field goal that forced overtime. And instead of Kansas City going to the Super Bowl for the third year in a row, it will be the Bengals - the Bengals! - heading to the Big Game for the first time in 33 years.

Cincinnati made a key adjustment in the second half by frequently rushing just three defenders and dropping eight into coverage, which took away a lot of Mahomes' passing lanes. It's not an exotic defense, but it worked.

According to Next Gen Stats, the Bengals dropped eight into coverage nearly twice as often in the second half (45% of all dropbacks) as the first half (24%). All told, Cincinnati brought three pass rushers 35% of the time - a season-high.

If only things were that easy, of course. One reason this strategy worked is because the Bengals often seemed to disguise their pressure before bringing just three or four pass rushers. And Cincinnati's front won its battles without having to blitz: The Bengals totaled four sacks, but according to Next Gen Stats, defensive ends Trey Hendrickson and Sam Hubbard were able to pressure Mahomes frequently, while tackle B.J. Hill added three pressures and an interception of his own.

Mahomes simply couldn't find anyone open even when he had plenty of time to throw, like on third-and-goal from the 9 near the end of regulation when he danced around forever before Hubbard sacked him for a 15-yard loss and forced a fumble the Chiefs recovered. Lots of credit has to go to cornerbacks Apple, Chidobe Awuzie, and Mike Hilton, along with safeties Vonn Bell and Jessie Bates III - it was Bates who made a sensational defensive play to tip the ball to Bell on Mahomes' interception in overtime.

A Cincinnati defense that finished 19th in DVOA during the regular season completely locked down one of the greatest offenses of the modern era. The win was also the Bengals' second over KC in the last five weeks. And now, a franchise that didn't win a playoff game for 31 years and was the NFL's worst team just two years ago is headed to the Super Bowl.

It was a quick turnaround that had lots to do with Burrow's arrival at quarterback, but he also didn't do this alone. A fitting conclusion to what's been an extraordinarily unpredictable campaign.

Matthew Stafford, NFC champion

One year to the day after Sean McVay rescued him from purgatory, Matthew Stafford is headed to the Super Bowl.

Stafford delivered by providing the kind of downfield, big-play presence the Rams offense had been lacking with Jared Goff at the wheel. That big-armed ability had been on display throughout the season, and it was there again in the NFC title game.

The Niners managed to pressure Stafford more than any team this season - 38.3% of his dropbacks, per Next Gen Stats. He still delivered a performance that resulted in 0.34 expected points added per dropback, and a fantastic 0.56 EPA/dropback on third and fourth downs, per Ben Baldwin's database.

This touchdown to Cooper Kupp on third-and-13 took both terrific ball placement and arm strength:

Kupp and Odell Beckham Jr. combined for 20 catches for 255 yards and two TDs (both Kupp's), which is a credit to both wideouts' ability to run routes along with McVay's system for scheming them open:

There's still no doubt that Stafford's skill at stretching the field has helped the Rams, though. Per PFF, he was 31-for-67 for 1,272 yards and seven TDs during the regular season on throws of 20 or more air yards. Goff, by contrast, was just 13-for-43 for 416 yards and three TDs on deep balls in 2020. Stafford has provided a dynamic this offense had been missing.

Best of all, there haven't been any backbreaking turnovers. The same Stafford who threw eight interceptions in the regular season's last four games has thrown only one in three postseason games.

Yes, that lone pick came in the end zone in the first quarter against San Francisco, killing an early drive, and Stafford gift-wrapped a fourth-quarter interception that Niners safety Jaquiski Tartt dropped. But in a postseason with so many close games, the margin for error for every team often was that small. After all these years, everything broke right for Stafford when it absolutely had to, and now he's got a chance to win a ring.

What happened to Mahomes and the Chiefs' offense?

Cincinnati made a big adjustment, as outlined above. But how did an offense that motored up and down the field for an entire half stall out so thoroughly the rest of the way?

In short, coach Andy Reid and the Chiefs did little to counter the Bengals' modified approach. When Cincinnati's defense wasn't pressuring Mahomes - as the unit did on a full quarter of his dropbacks, per Next Gen Stats - he was hanging in the pocket or running around before trying to make a play downfield.

KC's alleged kryptonite all season long was a defense that kept two safeties back, forcing Mahomes into staying patient by dinking and dunking his way up the field. The Bengals played him this way for most of the first half, but Mahomes handled it with aplomb:

Mahomes also successfully attacked Cincinnati deep on two occasions when the club did bring a safety down into the box. However, the Chiefs never responded with screens, quick passes, or check downs to force the Bengals to do anything differently when they went with more eight-man coverages after halftime. It was a head-scratching reaction to an otherwise straightforward adjustment.

It's easy to question Reid's decision to try scoring a touchdown instead of kicking a field goal right before the half, which only didn't work because Mahomes threw to Hill short of the goal line, and Apple made a great tackle. But KC was rolling at that point and set to get the ball back in the second half. When Cincinnati changed things up, Reid failed to respond.

Look, Reid is one of the league's best coaches and certainly its best exponent of the modern approach to pass-heaviness and aggressiveness. The knock on him has always been his inability to adapt when things aren't going exactly according to plan, and this game will forever fall under that part of his otherwise terrific legacy.

What's next for Jimmy Garoppolo?

All season long, Garoppolo appeared to be auditioning for his next job. The Niners, after all, had traded a boatload of draft picks to move up to select his replacement, and 2022 is the final year of his contract. An offseason trade was almost certainly in the cards. But what if he were to lead San Francisco back to the Super Bowl? And what would happen if the Niners managed to win it?

Those questions are moot now, and it's all but certain San Francisco will look to move him this offseason, to at least try to get something in return for him.

Yes, Garoppolo battled shoulder and thumb injuries, but the Niners' motion- and shift-heavy offense, which relies on a run game predicated on misdirection and jet-sweeps, plus a variety of personnel lineups and a heaping dose of Deebo Samuel's hybrid ability, was always designed to cover for Garoppolo's shortcomings. Those shortcomings were on display in the NFC title game, particularly when it fell on the quarterback to make a play.

After L.A. battled back to tie the score at 17, Garoppolo took a delay of game penalty on second-and-10. He then threw way late to Brandon Aiyuk before rushing a useless check-down when pressured on third and long.

When he got the ball again with 1:09 to go while trailing by 3, pressure from Aaron Donald and Von Miller led to another rushed throw that was intercepted.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan did the Niners no favors by punting on fourth-and-2 from the Rams' 45 when San Francisco still had a 17-14 lead, but Garoppolo is also not a QB who can make a play when his team absolutely needs him to. And that's the kind of stuff that can be the difference between winning and losing at this time of year.

Garoppolo in 2022 would carry a $25.55 million cap number for any potential trade partners. A lot of teams are going to be making moves to acquire QBs this offseason. What might a team be willing to give up for Jimmy G?

A look ahead to the Super Bowl

There will be lots to dissect in the next two weeks but the biggest matchup for Super Bowl LVI might be the Bengals' offensive line against the interior of the Rams' defensive line.

Joe Burrow took more sacks (51) than any QB in the league this season, and he survived a nine-sack game in the divisional round against the Titans. The Rams have a game-wrecker in Donald in the middle, and the Bengals also like to play with a lot of empty formations.

Then again, against Kansas City, Burrow managed to escape the pocket more than once and showed an ability to extend plays and run with the ball. If he can do that against L.A. - and there's nothing to suggest he can't - we ought to be in for one heckuva Super Bowl.

Dom Cosentino is a senior features writer at theScore.