Only three more games left in this NFL Season and we have two amazing matchups coming up today. We have four options for Super Bowl 59 (Chiefs vs Eagles, Chiefs vs Commanders, Bills vs Eagles, and Bills vs Commanders). Last week I went 2-2 on my picks. The Commanders went crazy on both sides of the ball and stunned the league-leading Detroit Lions on the road. They are now back in the NFC Championship Game for the first time since 1991. The Eagles barely beat the L.A. Rams in a snowy environment. Saquon Barkley went crazy, rushing for over 200 yards and scoring two touchdowns. The Chiefs played the Texans in what was a pretty close and competitive game throughout. They found a way to win that game as well and now are playing in their seventh consecutive AFC Championship Game. In another snow game, the Bills defeated the Ravens, who lost the game in heartbreaking fashion as their leading TE Mark Andrews failed to catch a simple pass that would’ve sent the game into overtime. With that win, I believe Josh Allen has secured this year’s MVP. Regardless, that sets the stage for the Conference Championship round, and without further do, lets get into my predictions.
NFC Championship Game – Washington Commanders (6) @ Philadelphia Eagles (2):
First off, we have the NFC Championship Game, which is an NFC East divisional showdown between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Commanders. I am just thinking about Cowboys and Giants fans who are going through their worst nightmare right now (LOL!). The Commanders went through a lot of turmoil in their years under their previous owner in Dan Snyder, but that changed the moment he sold the team and soon later, they ended up drafting Jayden Daniels and getting a new Head Coach in Dan Quinn. Look at them now as they are in the NFC Championship game, playing against the Eagles for their third time this year.
These teams split their regular season matchups, for which we have to consider that Jalen Hurts ended up missing one of those games due to injury. Regardless, the Commanders are definitely the one of the best stories in the NFL this season and they are heading into this matchup with lots of momentum. Their season could’ve been over if they had lost that game to the Chicago Bears, but y’all know what happened with that Hail Mary from Jayden Daniels. That was the moment we all realized how special this Commanders team could be. They have been looking good on both sides of the ball in their last two playoff outings as they didn’t commit any turnovers and forced interceptions and fumbles on defense. The Commanders were underdogs in both of those games, however they played two efficient games of football against the Buccaneers and Lions to get to this point. If they pull of another road upset here in Philadelphia, we will have a rookie quarterback in the Super Bowl for the first time in NFL History.
On the other hand, the Eagles have been one of the best teams in football overall and they are essentially a team that is built to win it all. I have said it before and will say it again, Saquon Barkley should be this year’s MVP, but we all know that he won’t win due to it being a QB award. To add on, the Eagles also have one of the best offensive lines in the league that provide excellent pass protection and also make it easier for Saquon to get easy gains by running. The plan has been pretty simply for the Eagles most of this season, which was to give Saquon the ball and let him do everything. In their two games played this season, Saquon essentially dominated the Eagles, scoring two touchdowns and rushing for nearly 150 yards in both of those games. Jalen Hurts has not been himself during these playoffs, but similar to whenever that has happened this season, the Eagles chose to give the ball to Saquon, which worked all time.
If the Commanders want to win this game, they will need to limit the turnovers, which will be a tough task considering their going up against the strong Eagles defense. Also, , the last time these teams faced off, the Commanders had five turnovers. This defense will be the toughest test Jayden Daniels will face in these playoffs as the Eagles defensive line have people like Jalen Carter, who can get to Jayden Daniels and make things difficult for him. A huge reason as to why the Commanders were able to upset the Lions is that Jayden Daniels was accurate throwing the ball due to the time he had in the pocket. The Lions or the Buccaneers were not able to do that in their games against the Commanders. Both fan bases are passionate and will be ready to go for this game. This will probably be a close game, but at the end, I have the Philadelphia Eagles going back to the Super Bowl. The Commanders have not been good at stopping the opposing run game, which is something we saw last week against the Lions where Jammer Gibbs ran the ball effectively. Overall, I believe that Saquon will go off and feast against this Commanders defense. The Eagles also need to get a solid lead early on and maintain momentum on offense by running the ball with Saquon. This will limit the time that Jayden Daniels and the Commanders offense will be on the field. If the Commanders want to have a chance, well first off they must limit Saquon, which is a hard thing to do itself. After that, Jayden Daniels must utilize the Commanders offensive weapons like Terry McLaurin and get him the ball. However, at the end, I feel like the Eagles just have more experience and are just the better team overall, which is why I am picking them to head back to the Super Bowl after two years. (Winner Prediction: Philadelphia Eagles)
AFC Championship Game – Buffalo Bills (2) @ Kansas City Chiefs (1):
Finally, we have the game we all have been waiting for, it’s another chapter of the Chiefs Bills rivalry, and another chapter of Patrick Mahomes vs Josh Allen. For the fourth time in the past five postseasons, we will have another Chiefs Bills matchup. This rivalry includes the famous “13 seconds” game in the 2021 divisional round, which was probably one of the greatest games in NFL History, if not the greatest. The Chiefs have won three of their four playoff matchups against the Bills all-time, including a matchup in Orchard Park last year in the divisional round as well. Essentially the only loss the Chiefs have had all season was against this Buffalo Bills team in Orchard Park (They didn’t play their starters in the other game they had lost).
This rivalry has only gotten more intense throughout the years as the Bills have been mostly dominating the regular season matchups, while the Chiefs have been taking care of business when things matter the most in the playoffs. Can the Bills break their three-game losing streak against the Chiefs in the postseason? The Bills were not even expected to reach the playoffs this season and everyone instead thought that this year was a rebuilding year (including me). Well, we were all wrong as the Bills had a top 10 offense and defense in the league this season. Like I said before, Josh Allen has pretty much secured his first MVP after the Bills beat the Ravens last week. After their previous shortcomings (mostly to this Kansas City team), the Bills will definitely be hungry for revenge.
As for the Chiefs, they are the same Kansas City Chiefs who cannot be doubted upon any time. The Chiefs always find a way to win, which is particularly due to the play of their defense. Once again, this game will be at Arrowhead, and also, the Chiefs will have Isaiah Pacheco and Hollywood Brown, who they did not have in their loss against the Bills this season. Like always, the Chiefs have a lot of experience under the trio of Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, and Travis Kelce, who have been to seven straight AFC Championship games. The Chiefs have also embraced the role as the new villains of the NFL and certainly have parallels to the Tom Brady and Bill Belichick-led New England Patriots. As a matter of fact, there have only been two teams in the Mahomes-Reid era that were able to stop the Chiefs from advancing. First was obviously the New England Patriots in the 2019 AFC Championship, and the other was the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2022 AFC Championship. If the Bills want to join that list, they need to have an effective run game and unlike the Texans last week, not commit any mistakes like missing field goals or having multiple turnovers. They also need to wear out the Chiefs defense and not led Kareem Hunt or Isaiah Pacheco get momentum in the run game. If all of those happen and the Bills can have solid drives on the offensive side of the ball, they might finally beat Kansas City in the postseason. Will all of those happen? Nope, and similar to what has happened all season long, the Chiefs will find a way to win the game in the weirdest way possible. I just feel like not betting against the Trio of Mahomes, Kelce, and Reid when it comes to these types of games and especially due to the fact they are playing at Arrowhead, the Chiefs will be going back to the Super Bowl. I don’t like saying that, but I just don’t feel like picking against Mahomes and the Chiefs in the Playoffs.
(Winner Prediction: Kansas City Chiefs)
