Once Super Bowl foes, Rams and Bengals are spicing up the wild-card chase

Jake Browning was a new member of the Bengals' practice squad when the franchise surged to great heights. He watched Joe Burrow lead a trip to Super Bowl LVI in the 2021 season, which ended with a nail-biting Cincinnati loss.

The team crashed to earth this year while Browning chilled on the sideline. The 27-year-old quarterback threw one incompletion in garbage time of Week 1 as Burrow played through a calf strain that compromised his productivity. The wrist injury that shelved Burrow in November seemed like it would wreck Cincy's season.

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Browning's first start after that setback produced a forgettable loss. His next two were spectacular. Scoring 34 points in back-to-back weeks helped the Bengals edge the Jaguars in overtime, rout the Colts, and enter the AFC playoff conversation.

The Rams are their NFC analog. The winner of that dramatic Super Bowl - Los Angeles beat the Bengals 23-20 on Feb. 13, 2022 - plummeted in the standings last season and seemed washed. But recent wins over the Seahawks, Cardinals, and Browns, combined with a moral victory achieved by pushing the Ravens to extra time, elevated L.A.'s stock.

Offensive awakenings saved the Rams' and Bengals' seasons. Franchise cornerstones teamed with breakout stars to propel each club into the wild-card chase.

Spurred by Matthew Stafford's return to health and vintage form, the Rams averaged 34.7 points against Arizona, Cleveland, and Baltimore. They ranked third in that span in expected points added per dropback and were second in EPA/rush, per Ben Baldwin's database. Hot and balanced, L.A. became the fourth team this season to score 100 points, net 750 passing yards, and rush for 450 yards in a three-game stretch, according to Stathead.

Stafford sprained his throwing thumb in Week 8. Evidently, he's fine now. When Puka Nacua was blanketed downfield, he placed the ball perfectly to set up Nacua's 70-yard touchdown against the Browns and majestic diving grab against the Ravens.

Nacua is on pace to tie Ja'Marr Chase's rookie record for receiving yards (1,455 over 17 games). Between Nacua, Cooper Kupp, and Tutu Atwell, Rams wideouts have produced nine 100-yard performances, which ranks third in the NFC. Los Angeles was the first team since Week 12 of 2022 to tally three passing TDs against Baltimore.

Like Nacua, L.A.'s Kyren Williams is a budding force. Among NFL running backs, the second-year sensation only trails Christian McCaffrey in rushing yards per game (89.0) and average scrimmage yards (110.0). Williams' escape up the gut for 56 yards against the Cardinals typified his impact on the Rams' 12th-ranked rushing attack, which was 27th in yardage last season.

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In Cincinnati, Browning looks at ease in the pocket despite his inexperience. He took first-team reps in training camp while Burrow nursed his calf strain but saw no action in the regular season until this year, Browning's fifth in the NFL.

His completion rate over three starts is 79.3%. His 112.8 passer rating on snaps where he doesn't face pressure ranks third in the NFL behind Brock Purdy and Tua Tagovailoa, per PFF. By total EPA, Browning's 32-for-37, 354-yard masterclass against the Jaguars was the league's 10th-best QB performance this season.

Browning has fed Chase and Joe Mixon - those playmakers combined to put up four TDs and 420 scrimmage yards in the past two weeks - and shown mastery of basic concepts. Play-action passes led to Chase's juggling catch in overtime of the Jaguars game and rookie running back Chase Brown's 54-yard TD against the Colts. Good blocking on screen routes in each matchup sprung Mixon and Brown for big gains.

Limited to five touches in six appearances before December, Brown's 20 touches against the Jaguars and Colts yielded 83 scrimmage yards per game. He became the third NFLer to run 22 mph this season when he left defenders in the dust and scored on Indianapolis, per Next Gen Stats. The No. 163 selection in the draft - Brown was taken 14 picks before Nacua - jolted Cincinnati at a pivotal time.

These hot streaks need to be sustained because both teams have a lot of work ahead to reach the wild-card round. The Bengals' 26% chance to make the playoffs ranks 10th in the AFC, per The New York Times' simulator. At 31%, the Rams have the NFC's ninth-best chance to qualify.

Cincinnati's remaining opponents all have winning records. Saturday's foe is the Vikings, who ranked first in defensive EPA/play between Weeks 4-14, according to Baldwin's data.

Minnesota's offense provides a cautionary tale. Following an unsightly 3-0 win, the club benched a replacement quarterback, Joshua Dobbs, whose performance fell off a cliff after a few encouraging weeks.

Favorably, that means Browning gets a shot to outduel Nick Mullens, the Vikings' fourth starting QB of the year. Showdowns follow with talented defensive teams whose offenses have struggled to score lately (Steelers, Chiefs) or commit oodles of turnovers (Browns). There's a path for Cincy to finish with 10 wins, which usually translates to a playoff berth.

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Several factors could boost the Rams in the NFC race.

• Their next three opponents have combined to go 15-24 and either can't stop the run (Saints, Giants) or can't defend whatsoever (Commanders rank 32nd in yards and points allowed).

• L.A.'s final opponent, the NFC-leading 49ers, might rest key starters if they have nothing to play for in Week 18.

• The 7-6 Vikings face a difficult remaining schedule (Bengals, Lions, Packers, Lions again); 6-7 Green Bay just lost to Tommy DeVito's Giants; and the 6-7 Seahawks carry a four-game losing streak into Monday's clash with the Eagles.

• Three NFC South teams (Buccaneers, Falcons, Saints) are 6-7, but none have posted three wins in any four-game span since the Bucs did so to begin the season. That reduces the likelihood the division will finish strong and produce a second playoff qualifier.

In the offseason, Bobby Wagner's release and the trade of Jalen Ramsey to the Dolphins portended the possible breakup of the Rams' core. Rather than deal Stafford, Kupp, or Aaron Donald, though, L.A. retooled and remained relevant. The stretch run will be spicier as a result.

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

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