The Cincinnati Bengals shocked the world by overcoming a 11-point halftime deficit to beat the Kansas City Chiefs and clinch the first of the two spots in Super Bowl LVI.
A lockdown defensive performance in the second half helped lift the Bengals to a 27-24 victory in overtime on Sunday afternoon. An interception in overtime gave Cincinnati a chance to come up with the game-winning score and Joe Burrow led the offense straight down the field, setting up a 31-yard field goal from rookie kicker Evan McPherson.
Although the Bengals didn’t want to be considered underdogs, fans and media members watching Sunday’s game were largely stunned at the outcome. Among those who weighed in after the fact was ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit.
“This team believed in themselves as the regular season ended and they headed into the postseason. Back to back wins AT #1 Tennessee and then today AT 2-time defending AFC champ Kansas City. Now off to LA for the Super Bowl-don’t count out Joe B and this squad-they are dangerous!” Herbstreit wrote on Twitter Sunday evening.
This team believed in themselves as the regular season ended and they headed into the postseason. Back to back wins AT #1 Tennessee and then today AT 2 time defending AFC champ Kansas City.
Now off to LA for the Super Bowl-don’t count out Joe B and this squad-they are dangerous! https://t.co/gOy41FF1Ta— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) January 30, 2022
Herbstreit got to see plenty of Burrow back at LSU in 2019, when the former Ohio State transfer led the Tigers to a National Championship. Now the Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall pick has Cincinnati just one win away from lifting the Lombardi Trophy.
For the second time this season, the Bengals got off to a slow start against the Chiefs. Back in Week 17, Cincinnati labored in the first half before exploding in the final two quarters to get the 34-31 win.
The Bengals showed tremendous resilience once again on Sunday to keep plugging away and overcome another two-score deficit to Kansas City. This time, that toughness paid dividends as it granted Cincinnati a trip to Super Bowl LVI in two weeks time.
The Bengals will await the winner of Sunday night’s NFC Championship to see who they’ll face in Los Angeles on Feb. 13.
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