Joe Burrow #9 of the Cincinnati Bengals towards the Tennessee Titans through the AFC Divisional Playoff at Nissan Stadium on January 22, 2022 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Andy Lyons | Getty Pictures
The Kansas Metropolis Chiefs have the largest star in quarterback Patrick Mahomes. However the Cincinnati Bengals could be the higher AFC group for the 2022 Tremendous Bowl among the many remaining Nationwide Soccer League playoff groups, not less than for Finest Purchase.
Loop Capital Markets, in a observe to shoppers this week, tried to find out which Tremendous Bowl LVI matchup would drive probably the most gross sales of latest TVs and residential theaters on the retailer. It concluded a Cincinnati Bengals versus Los Angeles Rams matchup would profit the retailer most.
Loop Capital used “metropolitan statistical space” metrics to help in figuring out the inhabitants dimension of a metropolis and surrounding counties. The MSA for Cincinnati and Los Angeles is 15.5 million, mixed. The golf equipment’ mixed 36 years since they final appeared in a Tremendous Bowl – 33 of these years belonging to the Bengals’ absence – would additionally favor potential gross sales, Loop stated.
The agency decided a Chiefs-49ers contest “could be the least fascinating end result” for Finest Purchase, given there’s solely been a mixed three years for the reason that final Tremendous Bowl look of the groups, and the smaller mixed native fan populations.
The NFL is coming off one in every of its most-watched playoff weekends after the Chiefs’ thrilling win over the Buffalo Payments. The sport averaged 42.7 million viewers and peaked at greater than 51 million individuals who watched Mahomes lead the Chiefs to a 42-36 victory.
The Chiefs star led a drive with 13 seconds remaining within the fourth quarter to tie the sport at 36. He additionally threw the game-winning landing in time beyond regulation to advance the group to its fourth consecutive AFC championship. CBS Sports activities’ telecast was the most-watched divisional postseason sport on any community since 2017.
On Saturday, the community additionally aired the Bengals playoff win over the top-seeded Tennessee Titans. That sport averaged 30.7 million viewers and peaked at 38.3 million.
So why the Bengals?
Loop estimated the “nationwide curiosity” amongst soccer followers would favor watching Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, noting he is additionally “simply two years faraway from profitable a school nationwide championship.” And first-year Rams quarterback Matt Stafford “would garner a good quantity of curiosity,” too.Â
The group received its first playoff sport in 31 years after beating the Las Vegas Raiders within the wild card contest on Jan. 15. Regardless of showing within the Tremendous Bowl twice (1981 and 1988 seasons), the Bengals have by no means received an NFL championship.
Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs seems on earlier than Tremendous Bowl LV towards the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium on February 07, 2021 in Tampa, Florida.
Kevin C. Cox | Getty Pictures Sport | Getty Pictures
Mahomes’ revenge additionally intriguing
However nationwide curiosity does not utterly rule out the Chiefs.
Mahomes squaring off towards Stafford was the second most favorable matchup within the observe. The mixed MSA of these two NFL cites is 15.4 million mixed. Additionally, Finest Purchase’s “33 shops within the mixed fanbase areas could be the very best of the potential matchups,” wrote Loop Capital managing director Anthony Chukumba.
And the Chiefs know all about Tremendous Bowl droughts.
The group received its first NFL title in 50 years in 2020 after beating the 49ers in Tremendous Bowl LIV. Earlier than that, the final time the Chiefs final appeared in a Tremendous Bowl was in 1970. The Chiefs could not pull off a repeat final yr, although, falling to Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Loop estimates there’d be nationwide consideration round Mahomes’ trying to redeem the Chiefs and becoming a member of the listing of quarterbacks with a number of Tremendous Bowl wins of their fifth yr within the NFL.
Deebo Samuel #19 of the San Francisco 49ers rushes through the sport towards the Inexperienced Bay Packers within the NFC Divisional Playoff sport at Lambeau Subject on January 22, 2022 in Inexperienced Bay, Wisconsin.
Michael Zagaris | Getty Pictures
No love for the 49ers
Although the Chiefs, Bengals, and Rams are Loop’s selection of groups that might favor extra tv gross sales for Finest Purchase, the agency reveals little love for the 49ers. This can be a bit stunning, particularly for the reason that 49ers are one of many extra in style NFL groups.Â
The 49ers’ wild card win over the Dallas Cowboys drew 41.5 million viewers. The win over the Inexperienced Bay Packers final week attracted 36.9 million viewers. And the group’s loss to the Chiefs within the 2020 Tremendous Bowl drew 100 million viewers on NBC Sports activities, the community host of this yr’s Tremendous Bowl in Los Angeles.
Final season’s Mahomes-Brady Tremendous Bowl sport was the worst-rated since 2007, with solely 96.4 million viewers. Â
The 49ers even have wide receiver Deebo Samuel, who’s shortly turning into a rising star. However Loop tasks a Bengals-49ers contest could be “suboptimal” for Finest Purchase as a result of mixed MSA of roughly 7 million individuals residing within the Cincinnati and San Francisco areas.
Loops famous Finest Purchase’s 26 shops within the mixed territories, and with “notable exception of Burrow, we predict nationwide curiosity within the sport could be pretty restricted — notably given the 49ers’ pretty descript roster (together with Garoppolo) who’s perennially seen as being another mediocre sport from dropping his beginning job.”
In the meantime, a Tremendous Bowl LIV rematch would symbolize “the worst of the 4 potentialities for Finest Purchase tv gross sales” as a result of mixed 6.9 million MSA inhabitants and attainable Chiefs fatigue, because the group has performed in two straight Tremendous Bowls.
“Whereas the Chiefs characteristic well-known gamers corresponding to Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Tyreek Hill, we predict the 49ers’ aforementioned largely ‘no identify’ roster would power reporters to work time beyond regulation to concoct compelling nationwide ‘story traces.'”
“On the brilliant aspect,” Loop concluded, “with the 49ers having eradicated the Inexperienced Bay Packers, a possible Tremendous Bowl boycott by ‘immunized’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers is not a attainable overhang.”
Disclosure: NBCUniversal is the mother or father firm of CNBC.
