Matthew Stafford produced a lot of big numbers, but few wins and none in the playoffs, in his 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions. The script flipped in his first year as quarterback of the Los Angeles Rams.

Stafford and the Rams, a team built to win right now, are not only playing in Super Bowl 56 – they’re hosting Super Bowl 56. The NFC champions take on Joe Burrow and the upstart Cincinnati Bengals in the Big Game on Sunday, Feb. 13 at SoFi Stadium. It’s the second straight year a team is playing the Super Bowl in its home stadium, this after never occurring in the first 54 years of the event.

Burrow’s Bengals were +12500 to win the Super Bowl when the season began, odds that tied them with the Jets and were only below the Lions and Texans. The Rams had the third-lowest odds at +1200, mainly due to their addition of Stafford.

One team ahead of schedule vs. another that’s right on schedule.

Let’s take a look at how Super Bowl 56 betting enthusiasts should be playing this one across the board, from spread and total to several prop bets ahead of the big game in Los Angeles.

Super Bowl 2022 Rams vs Bengals Odds

Take a look at Bengals vs Rams odds, injury report, betting lines and more.

Super Bowl 2022 Moneyline Betting

The Rams are -190 on the moneyline on betting sites, meaning it would take a $190 wager on L.A. to win $100 in profit with a straight-up Rams victory. Conversely, the Bengals are +160; a winning $100 wager wins $160 in profit.

The underdog has fared very well lately, winning seven of the last 10 Super Bowls straight up. Cincinnati is 7-4 straight up as the underdog on betting apps, though the Rams are 12-5 when favored.

Each team is hot. The Rams have won eight of nine, the lone loss an OT thriller Week 18 vs. the 49ers. The Bengals have taken six of seven, the only defeat in that span was when their starters didn’t play in a Week 18 loss to the Browns.

Super Bowl 2022 Point Spread Betting

Underdogs have owned the spread at the Super Bowl, covering 10 of the last 14 times. That slides right into the underdog role Cincinnati has embraced all year.

Few teams were a bankable success the way the Bengals were. Their 13-7 against-the-spread record was third-best in the NFL (behind the Cowboys and Packers) but it gets better, as they were 8-3 ATS as an underdog, including 5-1 when getting at least 3.5 points. Cincy was also an impressive 8-1 ATS against teams with a .550 or higher win percentage.

The Rams were only 10-10 against the spread, and 7-10 when favored. They were just 4-5 against above-.550 teams. They come in covering just two of their last five games, while the Bengals are on a 7-0 covering streak.

Super Bowl 2022 Totals Betting

The Over/Under for Super Bowl 56 dropped a whopping 2.5 points in the opening 12 hours of posting. Considering the trends, that makes some sense.

It matches up well with the season stats. Combined, the Rams and Bengals scored a solid 53.8 ppg but allowed only 43.2. Despite an assumed offense-first approach of the Bengals, the Under was 12-8 in Cincy games this season. When the Bengals are the underdog, the Under is 8-3. The Over was 10-9-1 in Rams games but 7-9-1 when they’ve been favored.

Despite this being the era of offense in the NFL, the Under has hit in the last three Super Bowls. Each of those totals, however, ranked in the 50s. The last six times the total was in the 40s, the Over has hit.

Each team has favorable offensive matchups here. Cincy attempted 119 more passes than runs and faces an L.A. pass defense that ranks 24th. It’s even more pronounced on the other side. The Rams attempted 187 more passes and face a 27th-ranked Bengals pass D.

Super Bowl 2022 Prop Bets

Betting on the game itself is just the beginning on the biggest sports betting day of the year.

Prop bets are plentiful during the NFL season but it’s taken to new levels for the Super Bowl. Last year, more than 500 prop bets were posted at online sports betting sites, from the usual NFL betting items such as total yards thrown by the quarterback to the length of the pregame national anthem.

And of course, there’s the classic coin toss – truly a pick ‘em bet if there ever was one.

It can get overwhelming to sift through all the NFL odds and determine which can add a little bankroll to your Super Bowl and viewing pleasure. But there are lines that can slip through the cracks and provide significant value for your NFL picks.

There are a number of different types of props to consider:

Player props: How many yards (Over/Under a posted total) or touchdowns a specific player may get are available for the Super Bowl.

Team props: Total points in a quarter or half and which team will score first are examples of the many team-based bets available.

Exotics: These are the props that often aren’t available on any given Sunday but are saved for the fun of the Super Bowl. The coin toss, what color Gatorade the winning coach may be doused with, halftime show antics – these are among the dozens of examples that will be available by kickoff.

Super Bowl MVP: Arguably the most popular prop bet is Super Bowl MVP. Quarterbacks are typically the favorite – and they usually take the award, with the winning QB named MVP in nine of the last 12 Super Bowls. This year is no different.

Here’s a look at this year’s top Super Bowl MVP candidates (+5000 or lower) at DraftKings:

PlayerTeamMVP Odds
Matthew StaffordRams
Joe BurrowBengals
Cooper KuppRams
Aaron DonaldRams
Odell Beckham Jr.Rams
Ja'Marr ChaseBengals
Joe MixonBengals
Cam AkersRams
Tee HigginsBengals
Tyler HigbeeRams
Von MillerRams
Kendall BlantonRams
Tyler BoydBengals

Odds via DraftKings and accurate as of publication.

5 Essential Super Bowl 56 Betting Strategies

Consider the spread: Nearly 15% of all games since 2015 were decided by exactly three points, by far the most common margin. Cincinnati took that trend to an astonishing new level. Nine of their 20 games were decided by exactly three points. Only four of the Rams’ 20 games were decided by a FG, but four of their last five have been decided by three or less.

Five of the last six NFL Playoff games have been decided by three points – the only one that wasn’t was an OT touchdown to end the Bills-Chiefs thriller. The spread is 3.5 or 4 points, depending on the online sportsbook.

Avoid the 50-50 bets: The coin toss is one of the more popular Super Bowl props every year, but betting on it is exactly what the sportsbooks want you to do. The chance of winning is literally a coin flip; with odds at -110 or even -115 at some places, there is no value in a game of chance.

Offense wins championships: In the previous five years, both Super Bowl teams ranked in the top five in scoring. This year the streak was snapped but it was close, the Rams ranked sixth, the Bengals eighth. All 12 teams the past six years ranked in the top half in passing (L.A. is fifth, Cincinnati seventh). Teams get to the Super Bowl by scoring a lot and making enough defensive stops.

Punt on RBs for MVP: Quarterbacks dominate the Super Bowl MVP award, winning nine of the last 12 and well over half of all the MVPs all-time. Other positions can win, but RB hasn’t been one of them. The last: Terrell Davis of the Broncos in 1998. Three linebackers and a safety have won it since the last time a running back did.

Don’t worry about location: This is only the second time in Super Bowl history a team will be playing on its home field for the title. Last year the Buccaneers were home and they destroyed Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs 31-9.

But the Big Game brings in fans from around the nation, and L.A. home games barely provided an advantage from a crowd perspective. Besides, the Bengals were 8-2 against the spread on the road. The Rams were only 5-5 ATS at SoFi Stadium.

Where Can I Legally Bet On Super Bowl 56?

After a U.S. Supreme Court ruling expanded sports betting across the United States in 2018, a large number of states have jumped at the chance to offer wagering on the Big Game.

This year could be the biggest yet for Super Bowl betting, following the recent launch of mobile sports betting in New York and mobile sports betting in Louisiana. Many operators are now live in both markets and offering special sign-up deals for new customers ahead of the game on Feb. 13.