Four stats that will decide the AFC Championship
By Matt Conner
Let’s look at a handful of statistics that will likely tell the story, one way or another, for the Chiefs and Bengals in the AFC Championship.
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals are back at practice on Wednesday in preparation of another showdown known as Patrick Mahomes vs Joe Burrow IV. It’s the fourth time in the last 13 months that these teams have met, and the second straight AFC Championship game featuring both teams. That has set the stage for the beginning of a rivalry that might just define the entire AFC for a generation.
In this year’s AFC Championship game, there’s a lot of attention on some obvious points—from the Bengals’ three consecutive wins to the tremendous passing stats of Mahomes and Burrow. While the final score is the only real numbers that matter, it’s often possible to break down a game into some interesting details and overlooked statistics that tell spell out some of the reasons why a game turns out as it does.
In advance of the Chiefs hosting the Bengals on Sunday, we thought we’d look at a handful of stats that might end up defining this matchup for the chance at a Super Bowl LVII appearance.
30.7
That’s the average starting position for the Bengals this year on the field: their own 30.7 yard line. If that sounds like a healthy starting post, it is. It’s ranked third overall in the National Football League.
A big part of the Chiefs defense, if they cannot manufacture turnovers (we’ll get there), is to wait on teams to make a mistake over time without giving up the big play. That means they need the Bengals to earn every yard they can. Special teams haven’t been great this season for the Chiefs, and the team just lost Chris Lammons (thanks, Cincy) from their coverage units, but maybe Dave Toub’s players are ready to make a statement.
If so, pinning the Bengals as deep as they can in their own territory would be a nice way could be an important yet overlooked aspect of the game.