NFC Championship Preview Done By Matt Durburg

49ers vs. Eagles (-2.5)

Sunday @2:00

49ers

Brock Purdy yet again put up a phenomenal performance against the Cowboys in the divisional round. Purdy was 19/29 with 214 yards. Not a bad look for a rookie in the playoffs. This week will be the ultimate test. A rookie quarterback has NEVER started a Super Bowl. If you’re not an Eagles fan, then you should be rooting for the 49ers this weekend. It would be very interesting to watch Mr. Irrelevant on the biggest stage. This weekend we didn’t see a usual 49ers offense. They seemed quite slow and the Cowboys defense really did some damage. However the 49ers defense was rock solid. Fred Werner has one of the best nights he has had all season. When throwing in Werners direction, Dak Prescott had just a 19.8 passer rating. Impressive to say the least for a linebacker. The other superstar, Nick Bosa, had a great day as well. He has been held to 0 sacks all postseason but his presence was there. He had 5 pressures, 1 hit, and 4 hurries. Look for the 49ers defense to be on point this game. Definitely looking at a low scoring game. 

Eagles

After the Eagles game on Saturday against the Giants, head coach Nick Sirianni had some high praise for the quarterback. He compared Jalen Hurts to Michael Jordan the way he commands the field and slows the game down. If there is any sign to tell you that someone might not play well in the next game, comparing them to Michael Jordan might just do it. However, the numbers have no indication of Jalen Hurts slowing down. On Saturday he had a quiet day but did his job. He was 16/24 with 154 yards and 2 touchdowns. The ground game was where they tore up the field. The running backs: Miles Sanders, Kenneth Gainwell, and Boston Scott combined for 234 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jalen Hurts had 34 yards on the ground and 1 touchdown. The ground game is not because of Kenneth Gainwell being an amazing running back. The Eagles O-line has been one of the best of all time. It will be a very interesting matchup to watch against the amazing front 7 of the 49ers. They are going to have to put the ball in the air some more and then we will really be able to see how much MJ Jalen Hurts really has in him. 

AFC Championship Preview done by Brady Goodman

Bengals (-1) vs. Chiefs

Sunday @ 5:30

Bengals

Joe Burrow did what he had to do this game, nothing more, nothing less. He threw for 242 yards and 2 touchdowns with no interceptions. He also had a controversial touchdown pass taken off the board. Burrow distributed the ball well, throwing 8 times to Ja’Marr Chase, 6 times to Hayden Hurst, 5 times to Samaje Perine, and 4 times to Tee Higgins. Coming into the game with 3 starting offensive linemen out, many expected Burrow to take even more sacks than he is accustomed to. Burrow escaped the pocket using his legs, rushing for over 30 yards. He only took one sack. Joe Mixon put up 105 yards on the ground. Coach Zac Taylor stressed a balanced game plan, throwing 36 times and rushing 34. The Bengals’ defense only gave up 10 points to the high-powered Bills’ offense. Even though they only sacked Josh Allen once, their one interception was enough to get up by two possessions and never look back. Mike Hilton led the team in tackles with 8. If the Bengals’ balanced offensive attack and impressive defensive performance can carry over this week against Kansas City, they could be on their way to a second straight Super Bowl appearance. With Patrick Mahomes banged up and less mobile than normal, expect the Bengals’ defense to pressure more than usual. One thing to set the Bengals apart from the Chiefs would be if Joe Cool has a great day. I’m talking over 300 yards in the air and minimal interceptions. You never can count Mahomes out though. It is worth mentioning that Burrow is 3-0 all-time against Mahomes. I expect this game to live up to the hype. 

Chiefs

The main topic this week for the Chiefs is Patrick Mahomes’ ankle. Last game against the Jaguars, Mahomes got rolled up on in the second quarter. Mahomes had to leave the game after finishing the drive with a touchdown pass. After halftime, he came back out and finished the game with a large amount of tape surrounding his ankle. Despite his hobble, he threw for 195 passing yards and two touchdowns. In his short time out, Chad Henne also led a 98 yard touchdown drive, showing that the Chiefs can still succeed with their backup quarterback. Isiah Pacheco helped propel the Chiefs to victory, rushing 12 times for 95 yards. The Chiefs’ defense got Trevor Lawrence’s face in the dirt twice and picked him off once. The game sealer was Nick Bolton’s fumble recovery from Jamal Agnew’s red zone fumble. The Chiefs handed Trevor Lawrence his first ever loss on a Saturday. This week, the Chiefs will host a similar yet more experienced team than that of the Jaguars. The Bengals will visit Arrowhead for the second straight AFC Championship looking even better than they did last year. The Chiefs will be looking to avoid a fourth straight loss to Joe Burrow and the Bengals and return to the Super Bowl for the third time in the last four years. To do this, the Chiefs’ offense will have to run the ball well and Mahomes has to be magical. It will be interesting to see how much his ankle affects his play, and if he can get back to ‘normal,’ which is being the best quarterback in the league. The Chiefs defense must do what the Bills couldn’t and get Burrow on the ground more than once. To win this game, the Chiefs need to capitalize on the three backup offensive lineman that will likely be starting for the Bengals.