Winners and losers of NFL convention title video games: Josh Allen, Payments nonetheless can't get previous Chiefs – USA TODAY

Eagles-Chiefs.
The matchup for Tremendous Bowl 59 in New Orleans is formally set, because the NFL wrapped up its convention championship weekend, and as Kansas Metropolis seeks to turn into the primary staff in NFL historical past to win three consecutive Tremendous Bowls.
Philadelphia sprinted previous the Washington Commanders in a 55-23 drubbing to safe its fifth Tremendous Bowl look in franchise historical past. And because the Eagles have accomplished all season lengthy, they relied on All-Pro running back Saquon Barkley to power through in the rushing game.
Within the AFC title sport,  the Chiefs withstood a late Payments cost, as an all-out blitz from Kansas Metropolis defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo pressured a Josh Allen heave on fourth down that fell incomplete and sealed the game.
Listed below are the winners and losers from the NFL’s convention championship video games.
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It’s clear that Chiefs coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Matt Nagy noticed a mismatch they might exploit by the working capability of quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who posted a season-high 11 carries for 43 yards and two touchdowns – additionally a season excessive.
The Chiefs dialed up a sequence of designed runs for Mahomes on rollouts, lots of them on key third downs and performs within the pink zone. By faking choice handoffs, Kansas Metropolis obtained Buffalo’s protection to commit, after which Mahomes used his imaginative and prescient to speed up into open area. That was most evident in Kansas Metropolis’s last landing of the sport, a 10-yard rollout that gave the Chiefs a seven-point lead early within the fourth.
Whereas the Chiefs have a stable run protection — they ranked eighth within the common season — the Eagles are on one other stage. After speeding for 229 towards the Commanders, Philadelphia is now averaging 227.7 speeding yards per sport within the postseason. It has additionally scored 10 speeding touchdowns after dropping seven on Washington. 4 of these scores have gone for greater than 40 yards.
Within the playoffs, Saquon Barkley has run the ball 66 occasions for 442 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Of the 12 video games within the postseason to date, all however one of many profitable groups additionally gained the turnover battle: the Chiefs within the AFC championship sport. In reality, 10 of the 12 winners from this postseason performed turnover-free soccer. The collective turnover margin of profitable groups within the 2024 playoffs has been +18.
But Kansas Metropolis has now gained 17 consecutive one-possession video games, together with 12 this season, counting the playoffs. There is no such thing as a staff higher at situational soccer than the Chiefs, no staff extra clutch, no staff whose methods and play calls appear to foil opponents with extra frequency.
Getting into Sunday, Eagles receiver A.J. Brown was getting extra pub for a book he read on the bench than for his on-field manufacturing. He had caught solely three passes in Philadelphia’s earlier two playoff video games; towards the Commanders, he erupted for six receptions for 96 yards and one landing.
It was thematic of Philadelphia’s strategy to stability. Within the first two Eagles playoff victories, Jalen Hurts threw for 131 and 128 yards. Towards Washington, Hurts threw for 246. It was an encouraging signal for Philly’s passing sport, regardless that the majority of these yards — 226 of them (or 91.9%) — went to solely three targets: Brown, tight finish Dallas Goedert and receiver DeVonta Smith.
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is broadly thought of one of many high assistants within the NFL, and his work within the playoffs constantly affirms that. Towards the Payments, Spagnuolo appeared to have solutions for many issues the Payments threw on the Chiefs.
For example, Spagnuolo understood Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen’s tendency to run behind his left guard on quarterback sneaks, and Spagnuolo crowded that area with a few of Kansas Metropolis’s high defenders. Buffalo by no means appeared comfy in short-yardage conditions. After which, regardless that it’s well-known that Spagnuolo likes to blitz on third and fourth downs, he saved a posh one which disguised a nook blitz till the very finish of the sport, deploying it on a fourth-and-5 with two minutes left to play. Allen needed to backpedal and heave a prayer that bounced off of tight finish Dalton Kincaid’s fingers.
For a lot of the season, Washington protected the ball, tying for eighth in giveaways (17). Once they wanted it most, nevertheless, the Commanders coughed up the ball. Washington turned the ball over 4 occasions, and Philadelphia scored 28 factors off of them. In reality, in case you issue within the turnover on downs — which doesn’t formally depend as a turnover —  early within the fourth quarter, the Eagles really scored 35 factors off of “giveaways.”
Buffalo is now 0-4 towards the Chiefs within the playoffs throughout the Patrick Mahomes-Josh Allen period. Allen turned the primary quarterback in NFL historical past to lose 4 playoff begins towards one other quarterback. Sean McDermott turned the primary coach to do the identical to a different head coach.
Towards Kansas Metropolis, the Payments performed largely nicely, balanced soccer. They didn’t commit a single turnover. They scored touchdowns on all three pink zone journeys. Allen performed extraordinarily nicely, going 22-of-34 for 237 yards with two touchdowns and including 39 speeding yards. But Buffalo wanted him to perform a little extra as a runner, and towards elite groups just like the Chiefs, good video games are required to win.
After Terry McLaurin scampered off with a 36-yard landing reception in the course of the second quarter, Washington missed its two-point conversion try. The rating was 14-12, with the Eagles holding the small lead.
The Commanders would go on to be outscored 41-11 the remainder of the best way. Within the first 4 drives of the sport, Washington put up 173 yards; within the last eight, that quantity was solely 187.

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