Just when it seemed impossible for any football game to be more exciting than the slate of games played during the Divisional Round, the NFL‘s Championship round doubled down with two thrilling games that came down to the final minutes of play on January 30.
AFC Championship
It took everything the Cincinnati Bengals had — and more than sixty-five minutes of gameplay — for the team to book their first trip to the Super Bowl since 1988 with a shocking win against the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime. The 27-24 victory cements quarterback Joe Burrow as one of the league’s coolest QBs in high-pressure situations.
“This is a proud, proud moment for the Bengals,” said team president Mike Brown as he received the Lamar Hunt Trophy. “The players have done a wonderful job, our coaches have been outstanding this season, and I would like to say one other thing, if I may. We’ve played some close-run games, one after another. Every one of those teams could be where I am right now. When you say the Bengals are going to the Super Bowl, that has a nice ring to it. Our people in Cincinnati will be ‘Who Deying’ through the night,” Brown said.
At one point in the game, the Bengals were down by 18 points, while Chiefs star QB Patrick Mahomes seemed as though he could do no wrong. The Chiefs scored three touchdowns on their first three drives but made a rare mistake on the goal line as the first half expired. Those were the Chiefs’ last points until kicker Harrison Butker hit a 44-yard field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 24 points apiece.
Unfazed by the gravity of the moment, the Bengals picked off a tipped pass on the third play in overtime, giving Burrow and the Bengals’ offense an opportunity to win. Forty-two yards later, Bengals placekicker Evan McPherson sailed a 31-yard kick through the uprights to claim victory. The comeback victory matches the largest comeback in playoff history.
NFC Championship
Facing their division rivals, the Los Angeles Rams excised demons of the past, downing the San Francisco 49ers in a heated, back and forth contest that came down to a handful of plays determining the outcome. LA’s blockbuster trade last season to acquire veteran QB Matthew Stafford paid dividends as the Rams secured a 20-17 victory to advance to their first Super Bowl since 2019.
Stafford was drafted first overall in the 2009 NFL draft by the Detroit Lions. Despite showing tremendous skill at the position, Stafford never achieved a winning season in Detroit. In stark opposition to his time with the Lions, in his first year with the Rams, Stafford has made it to the biggest stage in sports.
“This is a whole lot better than what I thought it was going to be like,” Stafford said in his postgame interview with Terry Bradshaw. “This is an unbelievable team, an unbelievable atmosphere. I am just so happy to be part of this team.”
The 49ers had a chance to intercept an errant pass from Stafford in the closing minutes of the game, but the ball fell harmlessly to the turf as it slipped directly through the waiting hands of 49ers Jaquiski Tartt. With the gift of good luck in hand, the Rams advanced to score the tying field goal. The Rams defense took the field, forcing a three-and-out that gave the Rams offense one last chance.
The game-winning field goal kick came from 30-yards but left almost two minutes for the 49ers to engineer an opportunity. Instead, the Rams defense picked off QB Jimmy Garappolo for what is likely his last pass as a 49er, securing the victory and advancing the team to the Super Bowl for the second time in the five years since the team relocated to Los Angeles.
Super Bowl LVI will kick off on February 13 from SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. It will be the second year in a row that one of the competitors in the game will be playing on their home turf.
