NFL Reactions: Conference Championship Weekend

At least the networks got it right. Fortunately, the AFC game was saved for last. it certainly would have been anticlimactic to have to watch the NFC game we had after such an amazing AFC contest. As always, the beauty of the NFL is its unpredictability. Both of these games featured some very unpredictable elements. But for those who bet or play fantasy, that uncertainty often becomes a great cause for frustration. However, the ups and downs make it a thrill ride that I'm happy to jump on year after year. and now we're on to the Super Bowl! 

Sunday Takeaways

• I was at every home playoff game that Michael Jordan ever played in Chicago. If anyone should know firsthand that a legend should never be counted out, it probably should be me. I could not have been more guilty of this mistake when projecting Patrick Mahomes to struggle against the Bengals. Not only was he fighting through a difficult injury, but reports would have us believe that Travis Kelce was playing hurt as well. And during the game, the Chiefs lost both Kadarius Toney and JuJu Smith-Schuster to injury. They even lost Mecole Hardman for a while. Throw in the fact that we've come to see the Bengals defense confound Mahomes in the past, and his performance was even more incredible. Maybe it was as simple as making one of the greatest players ever feel that he was an underdog. Or maybe it's just something about greatness that most of us will never be able to quantify. Regardless, this performance will always be on my mind, especially when the NFL Playoffs come around each year. Many have lived by the credo to never bet against Tom Brady. Maybe I need to apply that mentality with Mahomes. Of course, I'll be projecting the Super Bowl soon. Let's see whether or not I'll apply that message in the next game we'll see.
• Also, a ton of credit has to be given to the Kansas City coaching staff. They doubled down hard on Mahomes. They threw more than twice as often as they ran the football despite facing a defense that's been excellent against their QB when he was at full strength in three meetings over the prior 13 months. The coaching staff also did a great job of getting a few big plays out of the screen game. And the defense was coached up brilliantly. Although Tee Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase had fine performances, the blend of coverage and pressure was a masterpiece.
• Let's not take a single thing away from the Eagles because of the 49ers' injuries. The Eagles have been an elite team all year. It would have been great to see these teams battle with their best players. However, it's the NFL. That's simply not realistic. 
• It may not be an issue, but I still wonder if Hurts' shoulder is fully healthy? Even before Philly was able to lean on the run once the game was in hand, it appeared that they had little intention of leaning on their passing attack. Going into this matchup, the 49ers were a brick wall against the run. They were also a unit to attack through the air. However, the Eagles mostly threw only when they needed to. That said, they also took a couple of deep shots, and aside from the DeVonta Smith catch on fourth down that the 49ers failed to challenge, none of the other shots worked out. But it didn't appear that they wanted Hurts as a passer to be the engine of the offense in this game. That said, a two-week layoff before Super Bowl Sunday would likely get him close to, if not 100%, if he's not already there.
• The beauty of the Eagles all year is that they can play any style and win. Their offensive line is as good as they come. And they are that rare offensive line that is dominant in both the run and pass game. As good as the 49ers' front seven is, the Eagles line did all they needed to do to give their RBs a chance to find space and give Jalen Hurts time to throw.
• On defense, the Eagles weren't tested in the playoffs so far. After facing an underwhelming Giants offense, they played the 49ers without a starting-caliber QB. That's not their fault. They have a devastating pass rush and an excellent set of outside corners. This is a championship-level defense.
• It's disappointing when we don't see the best version of teams this deep in the playoffs. The 49ers losing Brock Purdy was bad enough. But losing Josh Johnson put the team in a horrible spot. Once Johnson was injured, bringing back an injured Purdy was the desperate move they had to make, though he was unable to throw the ball. Facing an elite Eagles defense, the great weapons on the 49ers were rendered useless. Unless you were an Eagles fan, this game was effectively over early in the third quarter.
• On defense, San Francisco seemed to be hoping that the referees would swallow their whistles. It's often not the worst idea. We've seen plenty of playoff games where the officials "let the players play." If that was their strategy, it backfired. Many of the penalties the 49ers committed were egregious. Ultimately, it didn't matter in what ended up being a noncompetitive game.
• The 49ers will be one of the preseason favorites again next year. With a full offseason to craft an offense with the amazing playmakers they have, we may see some incredible things from them in 2023.
• The Bengals have nothing to hang their heads about. Losing three starting offensive linemen in the last month or so of the season definitely caught up with them. Even though the original offensive line was not playing great, the dropoff to the players they had to use was significant. Also, a big issue with having turnover on the line so late in the season is that they were unable to build needed chemistry. That caught up with them against the Chiefs.
• I don't know how Cincinnati will handle the salary cap when it eventually comes time to pay Joe Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, but I hope they can find a way to keep this trio together for the foreseeable future. This is one of the most exciting passing trios I've seen, and it would be amazing to see them grow together. Don't think for a minute that any of them has reached their peak.

Quick Look Ahead to the Super Bowl

• Soon after the game ended, I checked the opening line on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Eagles were 2.5-point favorites with the over/under set at 49.5. By the time I finished this article, the line moved to two points.
• Certainly, I'll be breaking this down in the greatest detail over the next few days, but there are a number of matchups I'll be specifically diving into.
• The first matchup will be how the Eagles middle-of-the-field defense will hold up against Travis Kelce.
• I'll also be interested to see how well the Kansas City running backs will match up against this defense as both runners and receivers.
• On the other side of the ball, I'll be looking to see what type of edge the Eagles have in the running game. This is mostly in relation to the running backs. We already know the Chiefs are one of the worst defenses in the league in dealing with running QBs.
• I'll definitely have at least one Super Bowl preview livestream on the RotoWire social media outlets in each of the two weeks leading up to the game. The best place to set a reminder for those is at RotoWire YouTube.