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Unlike the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Finals or the World Series, the Super Bowl between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, February 13, won’t be a seven-game series much to the chagrin of some fans who want more of a gridiron fix. Football’s biggest spectacle, in general, has never been about who can reach four victories first between the two opponents.
However, there’s one matchup in particular at SoFi Stadium that Sportscenter hopes can be its own seven-game series — and a battle leading into the hype machine for Super Bowl 56 in Inglewood.
That matchup? The Rams’ All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey versus the Bengals’ All-Pro rookie Ja’Marr Chase.
What Some are Calling the Upcoming Ramsey vs. Chase Battle
As noted by Brett Kollmann of “The Film Room” on You Tube, he enthusiastically hailed the cornerback/receiver showdown as “a religious experience.”
Kollmann isn’t the only football fan craving this matchup, though.
Pro Football Focus’s Fantasy Football Twitter account used a popcorn emoji to help illustrate how epic the one-on-one field battle will be.
Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report is one looking forward to seeing the veteran shutdown cornerback and fast-rising wideout go at it.
Clutch Points created this graphic edit that went up on their NFL Twitter account at 9:16 a.m. PT on Monday, January 31:
Points Bet Sports Book already gave away their odds on who will be the Most Valuable Player of the big game and threw Chase’s name in their ringer:
Finally, Jordan Dajani of CBS Sports posted his “Five Early Predictions” of the Super Bowl on Monday, January 31 and believes Ramsey and Chase will be “fun to watch” between two of the best in their respective positions.
Chase Already Holds One NFL Mark Over Rams Legend
How much of an impact has the rookie from LSU made in these playoffs?
The 21-year-old has already shattered a more than two decade NFL record — once held by a Rams legend.
According to Pro Football Focus, Chase has racked up 279 receiving yards in his first three playoff games. That number breaks the 1999 mark set by Super Bowl winner with the St. Louis Rams Torry Holt:
There’s more. Including the three playoff wins, Chase has surpassed 100 catches, 1,700 yards and has scored 14 touchdowns.
And, along with shattering Holt’s record, Chase has this NFL-best mark:
How do Both Match up Right Now?
Chase didn’t put up the most explosive of numbers in the AFC championship game. After all, 6 catches for 54 yards won’t lead to many fantasy football points during the regular season. And it was far from these numbers he put up during the regular season victory over K.C.
But he showed his selfless side on one crucial short pass that became a huge gain:
And, he showed the world what he can do versus one-on-ones with a conference title at stake:
According to Pro Football Focus, Chase drew five different coverage defenders against the Chiefs. But all three of his first down grabs came when he drew a cornerback in coverage (Charvarius Ward, L’Jarius Sneed and Rashad Fenton, who surrendered the Chase touchdown).
Chase, though, breezed through three AFC teams that lack a cornerback with the credentials Ramsey has. And that’s where Ramsey becomes the rookie’s biggest challenge yet.
Per PFF, Ramsey only saw the football get thrown his way twice when assigned to Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk in coverage during the NFC title game. Their combined catch and yardage total versus Ramsey? Zero catches, no yards.
And via the analytics site, Ramsey has only had one game this season where he surrendered past 100 yards his side: The 104 he had against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the divisional round, which was still won by the Rams. But, he has seven games this season where opposing receivers couldn’t top the 20-yard total yardage mark versus him.
Either way, the Super Bowl comes equipped with intriguing heavyweight battles and Ramsey/Chase is one — the kind that makes people stock up on popcorn or wish it goes seven games.
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