The divisional round of the playoffs actually settled a couple of narratives on who one of the best teams within the NFL were after an exciting weekend of games. Ultimately, the league has its 4 best teams playing on conference championship weekend.
The Philadelphia Eagles rolled to victory over the recent York Giants, showcasing they’re still among the finest teams within the league and the Super Bowl contender they have been all season. Philadelphia will host the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers, who won a showdown against the Dallas Cowboys to set the conference up with a matchup of its top two seeds.
The AFC Championship Game has a highly anticipated rematch between the Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals in what is certain to be among the finest games of the season. Patrick Mahomes had a gutty performance on a high ankle sprain for the Chiefs to get past the Jacksonville Jaguars while Joe Burrow led the Bengals to a dominant victory over the Buffalo Bills — in snowy Buffalo.
Conference championship weekend has the makings of an all timer. Here’s a early primer of what is coming up next week.
All odds courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook
NFC Championship Game
(2) San Francisco 49ers at (1) Philadelphia Eagles
When: Sunday, January 29, 3 p.m. ET
TV: Fox | Stream: fuboTV
Line: Eagles -2, O/U 45.5
The 49ers and Eagles do not have a wealthy playoff history, with Philadelphia and San Francisco meeting just one time within the postseason (49ers won 14-0 in 1996 NFC Wild Card round). Jalen Hurts and Brock Purdy — each of the starting quarterbacks in the sport — weren’t even born yet. Hurts (24 years, 175 days) vs. Purdy (23 years, 33 days) will probably be the youngest matchup in NFC Championship Game history.
Purdy is the fourth quarterback drafted within the sixth round or later (or undrafted) to succeed in a conference championship in his first season as a starter. The 49ers are playing of their 18th conference championship game, essentially the most in NFL history (and third in last 4 years). They’re the one NFC team never to play in Philadelphia in a playoff game on the road.
Hurts is the youngest quarterback in Eagles history to succeed in the conference championship game, breaking Donovan McNabb’s record from 2001. That is the Eagles’ seventh conference championship game appearance since 2000, essentially the most within the NFC and trailing only the Recent England Patriots for essentially the most within the NFL. The Eagles are trying to find their fourth Super Bowl appearance in franchise history and second within the last six seasons.
The Eagles finished with the highest offensive within the NFC in points and yards per game. The 49ers finished with the highest defense within the NFC in points and yards per game. This game will definitely pin the age-old offense vs. defense debate, setting the stage for a thriller in Philadelphia.
AFC Championship Game
(4) Cincinnati Bengals at (1) Kansas City Chiefs
When: Sunday, January 29, 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: CBS | Stream: Paramount+
Line: Chiefs -1.5, O/U 47.5
A rematch of last yr’s AFC title game against the Chiefs and Bengals is already well worth the hype. Add Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow to the combination and NFL fans may very well be set to embrace one other classic, especially with Mahomes playing through a high-ankle sprain.
Mahomes has never beaten the Bengals since Burrow has turn out to be the starting quarterback, going 0-3 against him over the past two seasons — including last yr’s AFC Championship Game which Kansas City blew a 21-10 second quarter lead and lost 27-24 in additional time. Each of those meetings have been decided by exactly three points, with Cincinnati outscoring Kansas City 26-6 within the fourth quarter and additional time in those games.
Mahomes will join Tom Brady (eight straight) and Ken Stabler (five straight) because the only quarterbacks to begin five straight conference championship games because the Chiefs are the primary team in NFL history to play five consecutive conference championship games at home. He’s also the one quarterback to steer a team to 5 conference championship games before turning 30. The Chiefs wish to turn out to be just the ninth team to succeed in the Super Bowl 3 times in a four-year span.
The Bengals are searching for to succeed in the Super Bowl in consecutive seasons, attempting to turn out to be the primary team since seeding began in 1975 to succeed in back-to-back Super Bowls without having a top-two seed in either season. Joe Burrow can join Russell Wilson because the only quarterbacks to begin two Super Bowls of their first three seasons. Burrow is 5-1 in his playoff profession and 3-0 on the road (the Bengals never won a postseason road game prior to Burrow). Cincinnati has never lost an AFC Championship Game, going 3-0 in franchise history.
Mahomes vs. Burrow IV needs to be a classic, no matter how the Chiefs quarterback plays along with his high ankle sprain.
