Super Bowl: In the end, the superstars decide

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He can believe it: Cooper Kupp provided the decisive touchdown and became MVP

Photo: Julio Cortez/AP

Then the superstars:

In the end, the Cincinnati Bengals only seemed like an already beaten opponent who saw what was coming, but didn't know how to prevent it: They tried with all means, including those that were not allowed, the stars of the Los Angeles Rams pushing back, stopping the Cooper Kupp catcher from a touchdown in the final minutes, taking the walking mismatch Aaron Donald out of the game.

But in the end it was Kupp who managed the decisive touchdown.

And in the end it was Donald who made the two crucial defensive plays.

The result:

The Rams won in their own stadium, the spectacular SoFi Stadium, 23:20 (13:10) against the Bengals.

Read the match report here and the live ticker here.

The starting position:

Hardly any other team in NFL history united so many superstars in one team like the Los Angeles Rams.

The pressure to win the Super Bowl this year was correspondingly high.

The Bengals, on the other hand, were the surprise team in the league, with many young players ahead of their development.

An NFL title?

Possibly, but then only in the coming years, said many experts.

However, they made it to the final.

First half:

After Rams touchdowns by Odell Beckham Jr. and Cooper Kupp, it was a trick play by the Bengals that turned the game around.

Running back Joe Mixon got the ball in the opposing end zone and unceremoniously threw it at Tee Higgins, who caught for a touchdown.

It was the connection for the Bengals and further setbacks were to follow for the Rams: Beckham apparently injured his knee badly and had to be out, shortly afterwards Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford threw the ball into the arms of a Bengals defender.

Momentum is a popular word in football, and that's probably what the Bengals had.

The halftime show:

Hardly ever has there been such a star line-up for the Super Bowl break: Dr.

Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar, 50 Cent - they all came, they were all eagerly awaited by hip-hop fans around the world.

What will be remembered, apart from isolated sound problems, is probably Eminem kneeling at the end of the performance, an obvious reference to former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who wanted to take a stand against racism and police violence and thus become the number one enemy of many became more conservative in the United States.

The coolest in the stadium:

The halftime show isn't actually intended for the players who are provided with cool packs during the break or who receive new instructions.

Bengals rookie kicker Evan McPherson didn't care, he relaxed and watched the show up close while his teammates lingered in the catacombs.

Incidentally, McPherson set the record for most field goals in a postseason (14) and did not miss a single shot.

Not even on the biggest stage in sport.

Second half:

The show continued after halftime, the Bengals only needed twelve game seconds for the next touchdown.

Higgins grabbed the league's best pass defender, Jalen Ramsey, in the face grid, which the referees did not punish.

A clear wrong decision that could have decided the game, especially since Stafford threw his second interception immediately afterwards.

The fact that in the end not only the scene before the second Bengals touchdown was talked about was also because the protection for quarterback Joe Burrow collapsed and the Rams with Kupp became one-dimensional, but it was still Kupp.

The MVP:

It came as no surprise to anyone after this season that it was Kupp who was presented with the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player (MVP) title.

No player dominated the regular season like the Rams' pass receiver.

He was ahead on all the core stats for his position: most pass catches, most yards rushed, most touchdowns.

Kupp only played at a small college, the chances of a great career were supposedly just as small.

Nevertheless, he concentrated on football, his wife Anna financed their life together with temporary jobs.

And now this. A story America loves.

Ring on finger:

In the US, players traditionally get a ring for winning a championship.

But this time the Rams professionals were not alone: ​​Safety Taylor Rapp proposed to his girlfriend after the final whistle as the newly crowned Super Bowl winner.

And she said yes.