The road to Super Bowl 56 in Los Angeles is almost complete.
The Kansas City Chiefs will host the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday in the AFC championship game, marking a matchup of two teams with drastically different fortunes in recent years. The Chiefs will be hosting the conference title game for a fourth consecutive year and are seeking their third straight trip to the Super Bowl, which would make them just the fourth franchise in NFL history to put together such a streak. The Bengals, meanwhile, ended their league-worst 31-year playoff victory drought earlier in January and are looking to make it to the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1988 season.
The two teams already met in Week 17, with the Bengals serving up a surprising 34-31 victory. Joe Burrow threw for 446 yards and four touchdowns to set the pace for Cincinnati, while Ja'Marr Chase set an NFL single-game rookie record with 266 receiving yards. Patrick Mahomes was held to 259 yards and two touchdowns in the loss.
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USA TODAY Sports will have live updates, analysis and more from our NFL reporters and editors, including Jarrett Bell and Jori Epstein on the scene in Kansas City. Check back often for more:
Bengals-Chiefs score: Kansas City 21-3 with 5:04 remaining in second quarter
The Chiefs are making it look easy against the Bengals.
Patrick Mahomes once again marched Kansas City down the field, with Clyde Edwards-Helaire breaking a few key runs. On first-and-goal from the Bengals' 3-yard line, Mahomes flicked the ball to Mecole Hardman for an easy score.
Mahomes has thrown for three touchdowns with 154 yards on 13-of-14 passing.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Bengals offense off-kilter
The Bengals might be at risk of letting this game get away from them.
Kansas City's defense forced another punt after allowing one first down via a 12-yard Joe Mixon run.
Joe Burrow has missed on his last five throws, and pressure continues to be a problem. The right side of the offensive line is once again letting up, with Chris Jones getting pressure on third down and forcing a checkdown to running backSamaje Perine, which fell incomplete.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Bengals-Chiefs score: Kansas City 14-3 with 12:14 remaining in second quarter
The Chiefs are confounding the Bengals' defense early.
After starting off the second drive with a 31-yard connection to Mecole Hardman, Patrick Mahomes pulled out a bit more of his patented magic. On third-and-2 from the Bengals' 5-yard line, Mahomes twirled around in the pocket to evade the rush, rolled right and found Travis Kelce for a touchdown.
Kansas City now has scored on six straight possessions dating back to its game against the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Bengals-Chiefs score: Kansas City 7-3 with 0:36 remaining in first quarter
Cincinnati answered Kansas City back with a long march of its own, but the Bengals had to settle for a field goal.
The Bengals went 61 yards on 14 plays and had a chance to hit Ja'Marr Chase in the end zone, but the Chiefs broke up the attempted connection.
Evan McPherson then kicked the 32-yard field goal.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Bengals TE C.J. Uzomah injured
Cincinnati lost one of its key targets on its second drive when tight end C.J. Uzomah hobbled off with a left knee injur
Uzomah tied for the team lead last week with seven catches and was expected to play an integral role for Cincinnati.
Ja'Marr Chase has drawn double coverage early and often, and the Bengals have looked to emphasize the intermediate game with Uzomah and slot target Tyler Boyd.
Uzomah was later carted off to the locker room and ruled doubtful to return.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Bengals-Chiefs score: Kansas City 7-0 with 7:17 remaining in first quarter
Patrick Mahomes had little trouble marching the Chiefs down the field for a score on the team's first drive.
Kansas City went 84 yards in 11 plays, capped off by a 10-yard touchdown to Tyreek Hill in the back right corner of the end zone.
Mahomes went to Hill often out of the gates, connecting on all three of their targets for 24 yards and the score.
It marked the first time in Mahomes' postseason career that he threw a touchdown pass on the opening drive.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Three-and-out for Bengals on first possession
Score one for Kansas City's defense.
The Chiefs held the Bengals to a three-and-out on the opening series of the game. On third-and-5, linebacker Willie Gay Jr. broke up a pass intended for tight end C.J. Uzomah.
Not a bad start for a group that allowed Joe Burrow to pass for 446 yards the previous meeting.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Weather forecast for Bengals-Chiefs
It should be smooth sailing for the AFC championship game, as the weather forecast calls for it to be 44 degrees and sunny throughout Sunday's game.
Winds are expected to be mild, with little effect likely on the kicking game.
Chiefs, Bengals inactives
Tyrann Mathieu appears good to go.
The Chiefs' three-time Pro Bowl safety was not among the team's inactives for Sunday's AFC championship game against the Bengals. Kansas City's inactives included QB Shane Buechele, CB DeAndre Baker, RB Derrick Gore, DE Joshua Kaindoh, OT Prince Tega Wanogho and DT Khalen Saunders.
The Bengals' inactives are DE Cam Sample, DT Josh Tupou, CB Vernon Hargreaves, WR Stanley Morgan, WR Trenton Irwin, HB Trayveon Williams and OL Fred Johnson.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Previewing the AFC championship game matchup
Do the Bengals have another upset in them?
One week after stunning the top-seeded Tennessee Titans, Cincinnati might face its toughest task yet in topping Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs for a second time this year.
The Chiefs were a unanimous pick among USA TODAY Sports' staff to win the conference title on Sunday, but there might be hope for the Bengals to pull off another stunner.
Among the keys for the Bengals: Protect Joe Burrow, who was sacked nine times in the divisional round.
For more on the matchup and what to watch, check out the Cincinnati Enquirer's full breakdown of the keys to the game.
How the Chiefs got here
Kansas City's 42-36 divisional-round win over the Buffalo Bills was so entertaining it just has to be relived (except for Bills fans).
An instant classic culminated with 25 points in the final two minutes of regulation, as Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen put on a quarterback duel for the ages.
With 13 seconds left, Mahomes managed to save Kansas City's season by push the Chiefs downfield to set up a 49-yard Harrison Butker field goal forcing overtime, where the quarterback then dealt his team to victory with an 8-yard scoring pass to Travis Kelce.
Was it the best playoff game of all time? USA TODAY Sports' Nate Davis ranked the 22 greatest postseason contests in NFL history, and Bills-Chiefs ranked very close to the top.
It also sparked a wider conversation about the NFL's overtime rules and whether they are fair.
The contest marked a distinct change of pace from the No. 2 seed's 42-21 wild-card win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, which proved to be Ben Roethlisberger's career finale.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
How the Bengals got here
Few expected fourth-seeded Cincinnati make it this far.
After all, it took a last-minute stand for the Bengals to end a 31-year playoff drought and beat the Las Vegas Raiders 26-19.
But Cincinnati turned heads with its divisional-round win over the No. 1 seed Tennessee Titans, even though rookie kicker Evan McPherson needed to hit a 52-yard field goal as time expired to notch the victory. For McPherson, there was no doubt about whether the kick would be good.
Now on Sunday, Burrow and the Bengals have yet another opportunity to shed their "underdog" label.
- Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
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