It’s funny how conventional wisdom in sports gets influenced by the media hype machine. Networks like ESPN jump on storylines, and conventional wisdom builds around their narratives.

In recent years, the Browns got a ton of buzz when Baker Mayfield was driving all of the attention. This season, in the aftermath of last season’s drama with Deshaun Watson, the Browns were flying under the radar despite loading up the roster in the offseason.

Meanwhile, if you were watching the betting lines leading up to this game, you’ve would have noticed that the sharps were all over the Cleveland Browns for this game. There were some good reasons behind this dynamic. The Browns had some serious issues on defense last season despite some very talented players. The Browns front office made a concerted effort in the offseason to fix the situation. Andrew Berry started this transformation by replacing defensive coordinator Joe Woods with Jim Schwartz, which was a massive upgrade. He then completely rebuilt the defensive line in an attempt to fix two glaring problems – the lack of defensive tackles who could stop the run, plus adding pass rushers to compliment Myles Garrett. Notable additions included free agents Ogbo Okoronkwo, Dalvin Tomlinson, Za’Darius Smith and Shelby Harris. On paper, this defense looked formidable, but we also had to see it on the field.

Meanwhile, Joe Borrow was getting over a calf injury that had prevented him from practicing most of the preseason.

Hence, the sharps were jumping on this game.

Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals saw the new and improved Browns defense on Sunday. The defense simply dominated the Bengals and Burrow from the first snap. The defensive line harassed Burrow the entire game while the secondary clamped down on the Bengals receivers, including Ja’Marr Chase who shot his mouth off before the game about the Browns and the city of Cleveland.

The Browns handily won the game, 24-3, and staked their claim as a team to be reckoned with this season.

In an NFL postseason dominated by close games, the Super Bowl delivered another exciting finish as the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals with a touchdown drive to take the lead at the end of the game. The Bengals had a chance to tie the game with a little over a minute left, but Aaron Donald got to Joe Burrow on fourth down at midfield to end any chance for the Bengals.

While the ending was exciting, both offenses struggled for long stretches in the game. The Bengals couldn’t protect Joe Borrow, and the Rams struggled behind a head-scratching game plan by Sean McVay. Many of us knew the Bengals would have trouble blocking the Rams front, but we didn’t expect McVay to continue calling running plays on first down when it was clear the Bengals were stopping the run. It’s one thing to have a game plan based on Cincinnati struggles against the run, but it’s quite another to continue running the ball on first down when the Bengals were obviously keying on the run.

Matthew Stafford was excellent on the final drive, and that’s exactly what you expect from a top-tier quarterback. His no-look pass to Cupp was nothing short of sensational. Cupp was amazing during the game, including a critical fourth down conversion on a WR sweep that kept the last drive alive. He certainly deserved the Super Bowl MVP trophy, though Donald would have been a worthy choice as well.

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The answer of course is yes . . . Joe Borrow can pull this off. The question is what are the chances he can pull it off and would you be willing to bet real dollars he can pull this off.

As you can see from the screen shot above from the Super Bowl media day interviews, Burrow has certainly been adding to his “Joe Cool” image. He’s confident bordering on cocky, and he gives all the right visual with the shades and cool demeanor. He’s already proven that he one of the best, if not the best, young quarterback in the NFL, and he can certainly add to his legacy with a win today in the Super Bowl.

The kid is incredibly talented. But he’s up against a Los Angeles Rams team that matches up very well against his Cincinnati Bengals, so we might be looking at a Dan Marino scenario where a brilliant young quarterback gets stifled by a superior football team in the Super Bowl. Burrow fans would hope that if this transpires that Joe will have more shots at the title unlike Marino who suffered for years trying to get back to the big dance.

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What happened? The Kansas City Chiefs were on a roll and they had just stunned the Buffalo Bills the prior weekend in one of the most thrilling playoff finishes in memory. Patrick Mahomes was on a roll after an early season slump. He was taking what the defense gave him and letting his playmakers do the rest. The Chiefs seemed unstoppable and they were a touchdown favorite against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Chiefs were in command of the game. They were up 21-3 at one point in the first half. The Bengals cut the lead to 28-3, but then Mahomes worked his magic at the end of the half to set up the Chiefs in the red zone, poised to at least get a field goal before the half. But they got cocky. Mahomes wanted to take another shot with 5 seconds left in the half, and Andy Reid let him do it. But Reid didn’t stress the obvious . . . take your shot but don’t let the clock run out. This play needed a quick read and immediate throw. If it wasn’t there then Mahomes needed to throw it out of bounds. But instead Mahomes threw a flair pass in the flat to Tyreek Hill, but the elusive Hill got tackled in the field of play. Time ran out, and the Chiefs squandered an easy three points.

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The officials have been a problem all year in the NFL, so we shouldn’t be surprised to see bad officiating impact playoff games and possible the Super Bowl. The controversial play in this game involved an early whistle on a Bengals touchdown. That call helped the Bengals get their first playoff win since 1991 with a 26-19 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.

Joe Burrow led the way, completing 24 of 34 passes for 244 yards and two touchdown passes – one to tight end C.J. Uzomah and receiver Tyler Boyd. Burrow played like a seasoned veteran, which is what we’ve all come to expect from this talented quarterback. Meanwhile, Derek Carr had plenty of chances throughout the game and in the fourth quarter, but he couldn’t make the plays when needed. Carr is a solid quarterback, but he showed again that he’s not among the elite passers in the NFL.