LA Rams give Silent Stan plenty to shout about with Super Bowl win… Kroenke went all in on moving from St Louis to £4BILLION stadium – and after triumph over Bengals, the Arsenal owner’s gamble paid off
Stan Kroenke went all-in and the gamble paid off as the Los Angeles Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI.
Perhaps the roaming Rams have now finally found a home. In just their 19th game at SoFi Stadium, the NFL’s comeback kings roared back again in a 23-20 victory.
Owner Kroenke, known as ‘Silent Stan’, moved the Rams back to LA from St Louis in 2016 and has since spent big on players and the £4billion venue.
LA Rams owner Stan Kroenke triumphantly lifts the Vince Lombardi Trophy on Sunday evening
Kroenke has spent big on the Rams and has now been rewarded with a Super Bowl victory
After collecting the Vince Lombardi Trophy and with the turf covered in blue-and-yellow ticker tape, the 74-year-old, who also owns Arsenal, said: ‘As far as building this stadium goes, I think it turned out alright.’
After a thrilling season, the showpiece was far from pretty. But with Super Bowl MVP Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald dominating on either side of the ball, there was no fairytale finish for Joe Burrow and the Bengals.
‘I just don’t have words,’ said an emotional Kupp afterwards.
At 36, Sean McVay became the youngest head coach to win a Super Bowl.
The Rams celebrate Super Bowl triumph after a late comeback to win 23-30 against Bengals
Rams pass-rusher Aaron Donald celebrates after taking down Joe Burrow to seal the victory
The Rams were leading by 10 in the second quarter, then behind by seven in the third. But with their offense stalling – star receiver Odell Beckham suffered a knee injury – they delivered when it mattered.
Trailing by four with two minutes left, they won a third straight play-off game thanks to a thrilling late drive. Quarterback Matt Stafford combined with Kupp, pushing the Rams forward 79 yards before the receiver caught a one-yard touchdown pass to put them ahead.
Burrow, who was sacked seven times in total, was then halted on fourth down when Donald span the quarterback around and threw him to the floor for the game-ending incompletion.
Odell Beckham Jnr was forced off in the Super Bowl following a serious first half injury
‘You’ve got to be relentless – if you want something bad enough, you have to go get it,’ said Donald, who had talked of retiring before the game.
McVay added: ‘You talk about a resilient team. For the offense to be able to find a way and for Aaron finding a way to finish it off, it’s poetic.’
For surprise package Cincinnati, their dream run was finally halted. ‘It hurts, it’s disappointing,’ said Burrow. ‘We’ll take this and let it fuel us for the rest of our careers.’