Monday night at SoFi Stadium may have given NFL fans more than a wild finish - it also sparked a debate about who should get the anthem spot when the league returns there for Super Bowl LXI.
Morgan St. Jean handled the national anthem before Monday Night Football, and a chunk of the reaction online was immediate and loud. Some fans came away convinced she had already auditioned for the next Super Bowl in front of the right crowd.
“Beautiful Anthem. Wow!
Get her out there for the Super Bowl in this building. Morgan St Jean heck of a job,” one fan wrote on the night.
Another user was even more emphatic: “Absolutely moving, beautiful expression of our National Anthem that made people feel the power and patriotism of our Republic,”
Not everyone was fully sold, though. One comment took a more reserved view: “Started off ok, but then…”
St. Jean was introduced by Rams.com as an “American singer-songwriter, content creator and Los Angeles native.” Her performance came on the heels of last week’s anthem by Irma Thomas before Saints-Falcons, which drew widespread praise.
The Super Bowl connection is obvious: Super Bowl LXI is scheduled for Feb. 14, 2027, at SoFi Stadium. It will be the ninth Super Bowl played in Los Angeles, and the venue last hosted the game in 2022, when the Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals.
The game itself delivered plenty of drama. The Bills pulled out a 37-34 overtime win after Tyler Bass drilled a 45-yard field goal. Los Angeles had its shot to answer in the extra period, but Buffalo blocked the Rams’ kick attempt.
Josh Allen powered the Bills with another huge night on the ground, rushing for 121 yards on 10 carries as Buffalo moved to 4-1. Matthew Stafford threw for 383 yards for the Rams, who dropped to 2-3.
In Other News...
Bills Win Took A Back Seat To Bradley Chubb Postgame Drama
Buffalos overtime win over the Rams should have been the full story, but the postgame scene quickly pulled attention away from the result. During a jersey exchange after the game, Rams offensive tackle Alaric Jackson punched Bills linebacker Bradley Chubb, turning a routine moment into the kind of after-the-whistle flashpoint that can linger long after the final horn. The NFL responded with a two-game suspension for Jackson, adding an official layer to an incident that left the Bills dealing with more than just a hard-fought victory.
Joe Brady said there is still plenty to sort through about what happened after the game, and Buffalo is waiting for the details to continue coming in. For now, the Bills are moving on to the Raiders, trying to keep their focus on the next opponent while the league reviews a scene that overshadowed the ending in Los Angeles. [Read more 🡒]
Ray Davis Took Heat For A Bills Return Fans Can't Ignore
Ray Davis gave the Bills a jolt on the opening kickoff, but the return ended in a way Buffalo fans could not quite shake. What should have been a routine special-teams play turned into one of the more unusual moments of the day, with Los Angeles Rams punter Ethan Evans in the chase and Davis being steered toward the sideline before the return could fully break loose.
Evans, who is not exactly built like a traditional coverage ace, drew plenty of attention for the way he ran Davis down and finished the play. For Buffalo, it was the kind of sequence that leaves a little frustration behind, because the return had enough early momentum to make fans think something bigger might be coming. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Face A Bigger Test Than Their Record Has Answered
Josh Allen and the Bills head into Week 6 with the kind of momentum that makes every matchup feel like a measuring stick, and the Raiders are the next team asked to see how real the start can be. Buffalo has already shown it can win in different ways this season, with Allen again carrying the offense and covering for the rough patches that tend to show up over the course of a game. Las Vegas arrives with a winning record of its own, which at least gives this one the outline of a legitimate test instead of a routine AFC checkpoint.
The intrigue is whether the Raiders can keep Buffalo from turning the afternoon into a familiar Allen-led grind, because the Bills have been living with a few self-inflicted issues even while the results keep coming. Las Vegas has enough on paper to make the game interesting on both sides of the ball, but the bigger question for Buffalo is whether its offense can keep separating when the margins tighten and the game starts asking for answers rather than projections. [Read more 🡒]