"Eli Apple asked for this" - Bengals CB gets smoked on Twitter for woeful display in Super Bowl 2022

As the Cincinnati Bengals lost to the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl, Eli Apple seemed to be the focus of everyone's attention. He gave away a penalty in the red zone that led to the game-winning touchdown throw to Cooper Kupp, which he again failed to cover. He had previously failed to lock down that side during the game and let Kupp run riot on the way to his Super Bowl MVP award.

After the game, no one was feeling too sorry for the cornerback as players and fans alike piled on him. Sports writer and podcaster Chris Rosvoglou went as far as to state that Apple "asked for it."

Eli Apple roasted by both fans and players on Twitter

Let us begin with a compilation of the lowlights for Eli Apple in this game. This will help us put into context why people went off on him:

After such a performance, his NFL peers did not wait to lay into him for repeatedly failing to generate a big play. Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman got in on the act, flaunting his Super Bowl ring and wishing Eli Apple would become better at his job.

Hardman's teammate Tyreek Hill did not hold back, either, laughing at Apple's misfortune.

The Baltimore Ravens were not far behind the Chiefs in celebrating the fact that Apple and the Bengals lost. Lamar Jackson and Rashod Bateman piled on.

Other hits have come from all directions as Apple's NFL peers seem to revel in his misery. Fellow cornerback Cam Sutton deemed him "cooked."

But the animosity did not end with just the players. Apple had famously fallen out with the New York Giants and then slagged off their entire fanbase, saying he hated them. With Odell Beckham Jr. becoming a Super Bowl champion and him giving up the game-losing touchdown, it was sweet schadenfreude for Giants fans.

The Giants are not the only fanbase the Bengals cornerback has slagged off, deeming New Orleans the smelliest city and saying he hated their fanbase, too. They also had their own sweet revenge as Eli Apple choked.

But despite all the ways of saying he was bad, perhaps the best definition of his performance was this one-liner.

Shambles is about right. Eli Apple will now have to live with this forever and if Twitter is any indication, people are not going to let him forget it in a hurry.