Super Bowl 2022 key matchups: TV, live stream, time, prediction for Bengals vs. Rams in Super Bowl 56

After 21 (!) weeks of games and a week off after the conference championships, Super Bowl Sunday kickoff is almost here. It’ll be the Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams going head-to-head for the right to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy and call themselves champions of the 2021 season. 

As always, we’re here to break down the matchup. But first, here’s how you can watch the Super Bowl on Sunday night. 

How to watch

Date: Sunday, Feb. 13 | Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
Location: SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, California)
TV: NBC | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Spread: Rams -4, O/U 48.5

When the Rams have the ball

The Los Angeles offense runs through Cooper Kupp, who is just about impossible to cover. He’s in the midst of arguably the greatest wide receiver season ever, having followed up his 145-catch, 1,947-yard, 16-touchdown regular season with 25 catches for 386 yards and four touchdowns during the Rams’ three-game run through the NFC. 

Kupp aligns more often than not in the slot (63.2% of his routes, according to Tru Media), which makes Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton one of the most important players on the field. You don’t necessarily think of Kupp as a physically imposing presence, but the size advantage he (6-2, 208 pounds) has on Hilton (5-9, 184 pounds) could come into play here, especially on plays where Matthew Stafford is willing to throw into traffic. Of course, the Bengals play mostly zone coverage, so Hilton will get help from safeties and linebackers on this assignment. But it’s not like other teams haven’t tried that all year. Kupp just shreds it anyway. 

All the attention devoted to Kupp should leave copious one-on-one opportunities for Odell Beckham Jr. and Van Jefferson on the outside. As we covered in our X-factors breakdown earlier this week, the way Jessie Bates III and Von Bell handle the back-side dig to Beckham could play a huge role in this game. 

Bengals…