What We Learned From the N.F.L.’s Conference Championship Games

It’s always Patrick Mahomes. For the past five seasons, at the end of winding journeys through the A.F.C., Mahomes has awaited an opponent in a conference championship game at Arrowhead Stadium.

This season, though, Mahomes and Kansas City hosted the rival that booted them from the playoffs last year and one that had the upper hand in their last three meetings. Facing the Joe Burrow-led Bengals, Mahomes lacked his usual mobility but picked his spots to help Kansas City get a hard-fought win over Cincinnati, 23-20.

Kansas City’s first two drives ended in field goals, with the team’s receivers hampered by injuries and draped in creative coverages. Mahomes began to test what the defense offered on Kansas City’s third drive, when he rolled out to the right, pumped to a receiver on a short route, replanted and then found tight end Travis Kelce in the end zone for a 14-yard score.

Kelce (seven catches for 78 yards) wasn’t his usual tackle-busting self, limited as he was by a sore back that had been spasming in Friday’s practices. The receiver Mecole Hardman, another reliable veteran, was limited after battling a groin injury all week.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/30/sports/football/afc-nfc-conference-championship-takeaways.html