Classic finish looms large

A LOS Angeles Rams team bristling with star-power will seek to deny the giant-killing Cincinnati Bengals a Hollywood ending in the Super Bowl on Monday morning (NT time) as an NFL season full of plot twists reaches its climax.

The first NFL championship game of the post-Tom Brady era sees the Rams play host at their gleaming $5.5bn SoFi Stadium against a Bengals side chasing a first Super Bowl crown.

Around 100 million Americans are expected to tune in for the biggest annual event on the US sporting calendar.

At the heart of a perfectly scripted season finale is a duel between two talented quarterbacks playing in the Super Bowl for the first time.

For the Rams, veteran Matthew Stafford has the chance to finally cash in on his talents after spending 12 seasons with the hapless Detroit Lions before securing a blockbuster move to Los Angeles last year.

The Bengals, meanwhile, are led by the precocious Joe Burrow, who bounced back from a horrific knee injury that ended his rookie season in 2020 to carry Cincinnati to a first Super Bowl appearance since 1989. Burrow said: “I’m tired of watching film I just want to go and play. I’m not comparing myself to anyone. I’m trying to be the best Joe Burrow I can be.”