The Cincinnati Bengals are set for a championship game rematch with the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday night at Arrowhead Stadium.
Cincinnati took down the Chiefs in overtime 27-24 last year to advance to Super Bowl 56. The Chiefs and Bengals have met three times in the last 13 months and Cincinnati has won all three games.
Bengals-Chiefs previewWhy Bengals running back Joe Mixon wants to spend the rest of his career in Cincinnati
Bengals-Chiefs previewLessons from how the Bengals have won the chess match vs. Patrick Mahomes
Bengals-Chiefs preview‘We’re a more complete team’: Joe Burrow expresses confidence in this Bengals roster
Kansas City was the best team in the AFC during the regular season, earning the No. 1 overall seed in the conference. Cincinnati finished 12-4 and won the AFC North for a second consecutive year.
The Chiefs are hosting the AFC championship game for the fifth year in a row. Kansas City’s quarterback Patrick Mahomes is likely to win his second league MVP.
Mahomes suffered a high ankle sprain in the Chiefs’ win over the Jaguars in the divisional round. He has practiced every day this week as a full participant and said he is feeling better than expected.
Cincinnati will again be without starting left tackle Jonah Williams and right guard Alex Cappa. Williams is dealing with a dislocated kneecap and Cappa suffered an ankle injury. This marks the third game Cappa will have missed and the second for Williams.
What the Bengals must do to beat the Chiefs:
Continue to stress a fast start on offense
The Bengals are 10-0 this season when having a lead after the first quarter. Throughout the season, this team has showed they are at their best when they get off to a fast start and the offense operates with no hiccups.
When Cincinnati’s offense has gotten off to slow starts and struggled to protect quarterback Joe Burrow, that’s when they’ve had issues.
Against a team like the Chiefs that led the league in scoring this year, the Bengals will need to put up points. Each time these teams have played, the game has been decided by three points.The margin for error will be small and the Bengals need to capitalize on their opportunities when they have the ball.
Bengals-Chiefs previewHow Germaine Pratt's mottos and hustle led to a breakout year on the Bengals
Bengals fansBass: Of the Bengals, Bengals fans and the Winter of Our Disrespect
Bengals-Chiefs previewBengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase has all of the answers
Burrow is playing with extreme confidence right now and doesn’t allow the moment to get bigger than it is. As long as the offensive line can protect Burrow from defensive tackle Chris Jones disrupting the offense, Cincinnati should be able to operate at ease.
Jones is one of the best interior defensive linemen in the game. He logged 15.5 sacks this year and can dominate the line of scrimmage at any minute.
The fast start is the key for this team.
Mix up pressure looks and tackle well
The main storyline all week surrounding the upcoming Bengals and Chiefs game is about Mahomes’ ankle. As the NFL’s best quarterback on the run this year, Mahomes’ mobility is his biggest threat. If the ankle injury hampers his ability to move around, it still doesn’t mean he’s not capable of making elite plays from the pocket.
Expect Cincinnati’s defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, who three times has come up with masterful game plans to stop Mahomes, to throw a lot at him to gauge his health status. It would not be shocking if Anarumo calls several different pressure packages on the Chiefs’ opening drive.
Mahomes’ ability to get the ball out on screens and check downs to his running backs is also a strength of his. Jerick McKinnon and Isiah Pacecho have added a boost on the ground to this Kansas City offense. In the first meeting between the Chiefs and Bengals, these two combined for over 100 rushing yards.
Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is Mahomes’ favorite target and he will find a way to get the ball in his hands. Kelce is as dangerous as they come as a pass-catcher.
The Chiefs will get yards – they are a talented team.
But as Anarumo says, he doesn’t care about yards. The focus is on limiting points. Cincinnati has been among the league’s best in the red zone defensively this year and they’ll need another stellar performance at Arrowhead.
Win the turnover margin
Similar to last week when the Bengals traveled to Buffalo to beat the Bills, the turnover margin is the biggest key to winning in the postseason.
Just ask head coach Zac Taylor.
“Winning the turnover battle is always critical in games like this,” Taylor said on Friday afternoon. “Field position, turnover battle, handling whatever elements come our way. I think those are big factors.”
Mahomes threw 12 interceptions during the regular season and as a team the Chiefs turned the ball over 23 times.
Cincinnati’s defense created 24 takeaways in the regular season and they’ve added three more in the playoffs. The last time Burrow threw an interception was on Dec. 24 in New England. The Bengals' ability to take care of the ball on offense while attacking on defense with the goal of creating turnovers is one of the main reasons this team is playing in this game.
Source link
