For the second time in as many years, an NFC team will have a chance to win the Super Bowl on its home turf.
The Rams beat the 49ers 20-17 in the NFC championship game on Sunday night to clinch their second Super Bowl appearance in the last four years. Los Angeles will advance to play the Bengals and will be the de facto home team as their home field, SoFi Stadium, is set to host Super Bowl 56.
The Buccaneers became the first team to win a Super Bowl in their home stadium last year, when Tom Brady led them to a 33-9 rout of the Chiefs. The Rams will be hoping to have the same luck in 2022, and sportsbooks have taken that home-field advantage into account. That's part of why the Rams opened as 3.5-point Super Bowl favorites, per FanDuel Sportsbook.
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The Rams opened the year with 15-1 (+15000) odds to win the Super Bowl. Those were the ninth-shortest odds in the NFL but only the second-shortest in their division, behind the 49ers.
Meanwhile, the Bengals were serious long shots to win Super Bowl 56 before the season. In fact, only the Jaguars, Lions and Texans had longer odds than the Bengals' 120-1 (+12000) odds. Joe Burrow can give Bengals bettors a massive payday if he is able to lead the team to a victory.
If you're not one of the lucky few with Super Bowl tickets outstanding on the Rams or Bengals, there are still plenty of ways to get in on the action. Below are the opening odds for Super Bowl 56 along with an explanation of why the Rams are favored in this contest.
(All odds listed are per FanDuel Sportsbook.)
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Super Bowl 56 odds, spread, line for Rams vs. Bengals
- Opening spread: Rams -3.5
- Moneyline: Rams -180; Bengals +155
- Over/under: 49.5
The opening line for Super Bowl 56 has the Bengals underdogs against the Rams. This was expected for a couple of reasons.
First, the Rams won't have to travel to play in the Super Bowl. They'll be at home in Inglewood, Calif. while the Bengals will have to across the country — and three time zones — for the game. That gives the Rams a significant edge, even though they struggled to get home fans in the seats during the NFC championship game.
Additionally, the Rams match up well against the Bengals. Cincinnati allowed Joe Burrow to be sacked 51 times during the regular season, more than any other NFL quarterback, and the Rams have a defensive line loaded with top-tier pass rushers. The league's most-sacked quarterback has never won the Super Bowl, so if the Rams can use Aaron Donald, Leonard Floyd and Von Miller to pressure Burrow, they should have a good chance to win and cover.
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Meanwhile, the Bengals' defense isn't quite as strong as the Rams'. They may not be able to cover all three of the Rams' top wide receivers — Cooper Kupp, Odell Beckham Jr. and Van Jefferson — given the inconsistent play of Eli Apple. That is being factored into the matchup edge as well.
Burrow is the great equalizer. He has been red-hot and has kept the Bengals in games they weren't supposed to compete in. They beat the Chiefs as 7.5-point underdogs, after all. But even with his strong performance, the matchup on paper favors the Rams as Matthew Stafford could go toe-to-toe with Burrow. And, again, the Rams won't have to travel.
The sportsbooks are apparently expecting a higher-scoring game as well. The over/under for the game is 49.5. That's no surprise, either, considering both Burrow and Stafford are playing well and each has multiple receiving weapons at his disposal.