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Throughout some down time in the course of the two weeks between the AFC Championship Recreation and the Tremendous Bowl, Joe Burrow watched a documentary on Corridor of Fame quarterback and household good friend Kurt Warner. Within the locker room following the Bengals‘ loss to the Rams, Burrow considered one thing from the documentary that helped form his postgame perspective.
“They misplaced one,” Burrow stated, referring to the Tremendous Bowl Warner and the Rams misplaced to the Patriots 20 years in the past. “Later throughout the documentary, he stated that they let it sting an excessive amount of, that they did not have fun what they completed.
“Clearly, it stings, however we had a terrific 12 months. Did not come out this final recreation the way in which we needed to, however I feel we nonetheless have one thing to have fun.”
Within the documentary, Warner described the frustration of dropping to the Patriots in Tremendous Bowl XXXVI. A 14-point favourite, the Rams have been unable to win their second Lombardi Trophy in three years, an achievement that may have positioned them in a choose class of groups which have been gained a number of championships.
“The one recreation in my profession that I’ve thought greater than any of the others was dropping that Tremendous Bowl,” Warner stated. “Shedding that chance to do one thing distinctive and particular.”
Seven years later, Warner suffered one other last-minute loss within the Tremendous Bowl. However his expertise in Tremendous Bowl XXXVI helped him view the Cardinals‘ 27-23 loss to the Steelers in a special gentle.
“You’ll suppose [it] could be just like the Patriots recreation the place it might simply demoralize you, a recreation that you considered usually,” Warner stated. “However my perspective modified, not solely in that season however as an individual and all through my profession.”
Like Warner, Burrow and his teammates aren’t taking solace in the truth that they got here near profitable the Tremendous Bowl. Whereas that they had one of the vital sudden Tremendous Bowl runs in historical past, the Bengals have been targeted solely on profitable the franchise’s first Tremendous Bowl after that they had come up quick of their first two journeys to the large recreation.
Enjoying in opposition to a workforce who many picked to make a deep playoff run in the course of the preseason, the Bengals (a workforce many picked to complete final within the AFC North this season) said their case to be topped world champions. As they did a number of weeks earlier in Kansas Metropolis, the Bengals overcame an early deficit. The Bengals led for a lot of the second half till Cooper Kupp’s game-winning landing with 1:25 left. Burrow led Cincinnati previous midfield on their ultimate drive, however as soon as there, the Rams’ cross rush uncovered one aspect of the Bengals’ workforce that can actually be addressed this offseason with the intention to put Burrow in a greater place to succeed if he and the Bengals are ever in an identical state of affairs.
They got here up quick on Sunday evening, however Burrow stated that he will not let it diminish what was a particular season in Cincinnati. A franchise that had endured 31 years and not using a playoff win, the Bengals gained three playoff video games this previous January. Within the course of, they revitalized a metropolis and a fan base that over the previous twenty years had grown accustomed to being let down.
Cincinnati’s fan base has a number of causes to be optimistic for the longer term. A lot of that optimism begins with their quarterback, who expects this Tremendous Bowl expertise to be the primary of a number of ones for himself and the franchise.
“We’re a younger workforce,” Burrow stated on Sunday evening. “You’d wish to suppose that we’ll be again on this state of affairs a number of occasions over the course of the subsequent few years. We take this and let it gasoline you for the remainder of our careers.”
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