A last-minute field goal saw the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 at the AFC Championship and punch their ticket to the Super Bowl on Sunday, setting up a showdown against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a high-ankle sprain only days earlier but produced a heroic sprint to get the Chiefs the first down with the game tied and mere seconds left on the clock.
An unnecessary roughness call on defensive end Joseph Ossai, who shoved Mahomes out of bounds, put kicker Harrison Butker within range and the Chiefs had their revenge a year after Cincinnati ended their path to the Super Bowl.
“The work’s not done,” head coach Andy Reid said to a euphoric Kansas City crowd. “We’ve got a few practices here and then we’ve got to take care of business.”
The Bengals rolled into icy cold Kansas City on a 10-game winning streak but struggled at first to keep their cool amid the ear-splitting cheers from the home fans, as a relentless Chiefs defense sacked Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow four times in the first half.
But the game turned into an epic duel as Burrow leveled the score with a 27-yard touchdown pass to Tee Higgins in the third quarter and Mahomes retaliated, connecting with Marquez Valdes-Scantling in the end zone.
A touchdown on a two-yard sneak by Samaje Perine put the Bengals back in contention, but the Chiefs would not be denied their third trip four years to the Super Bowl.
The win set up a tantalizing showdown between the Chiefs’ powerhouse offense and one of the most devastating defenses in the league, after the Eagles thrashed the San Francisco 49ers 31-7 in the NFC Championship on Sunday.
