The chaos and excitement of the divisional round will be tough to duplicate, but with a pair of Super Bowl berths on the line this week, championship weekend is sure to provide plenty of drama.
All four of last week’s contests featured a go-ahead score to end the game.
This Sunday’s slate of championship games is perhaps its most diverse in several years.
- The Kansas City Chiefs are hoping to secure a third straight Super Bowl appearance as they take on the surprising Cincinnati Bengals at 2 p.m. Sunday in the AFC Championship on CBS.
- The Los Angeles Rams host the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship at 5:30 p.m. Sunday on Fox.
SoFi Stadium in LA is hosting Super Bowl LVI on Sunday, Feb. 13. DraftKings has an offer for new customers that will take them all the way through the Big Game.
Bet $5, win $280 at DraftKings
DraftKings Sportsbook in Iowa has an NFL offer that lasts all the way through the Super Bowl, which means you have three more chances to sign up for their promotion as a new customer.
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- PLUS Weekly King of the Court NBA Prop Token
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- Open your new DK account with at least a $5 deposit.
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- If the bet wins, you’ll receive $280 in bonus bets on top of whatever you won on the wager.
- Just make sure you are over 21 and use the DraftKings offer on your first settled NFL moneyline bet as a new customer.
FanDuel provides cash offer for championship weekend
FanDuel Sportsbook in Iowa wants to introduce itself to customers who place their first bet in during the three remaining NFL playoff games.
Get $150
- Bet $5 Get $150 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins
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- Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER. 21+
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- Bet $5 and win $150 cash on any NFL team this weekend.
- Make a moneyline bet on the playoff game of your choice.
- Customers can register for FanDuel on their desktop, but they’ll be instructed to download the app to take advantage of this offer. (FanDuel will help you through the process.) If you made a winning bet, the payout will appear in your account in about 72 hours.
When teams score, new BetMGM customers score, too
A new customer’s first bet of $10 or more at BetMGM Sportsbook IA could be a $200 win. The team you place money on doesn’t even have to win the game. Any trip to the endzone unlocks a $200 offer.
- Up to $1,500 in Bonus Bets if Your First Bet Doesn't Win*
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The Iowa sportsbook will unlock a pair of $100 bonus bets once your original wager is settled.
Chiefs championship weekend odds
Kansas City is making a bit of NFL history this weekend, becoming the first team to host four straight AFC Championship games. Kansas City prevailed last Sunday night in one of the most thrilling playoff games in NFL history, a back-and-forth, 42-36 overtime win over the Buffalo Bills.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes produced yet another legendary performance in last week’s divisional-round win, tallying 447 total yards (378 passing) and three touchdowns, engineering a remarkable, game-tying drive, which began with just 13 seconds remaining. Wide receiver Tyreek Hill pulled in 11 receptions for 150 yards punctuated by a late, go-ahead 64-yard touchdown with 1:02 left to play in regulation.
The Chiefs have covered in both their playoff games this year, including the line of -2.5 against the Bills last week.
Kansas City knocked off the Buffalo Bills in last year’s AFC title game, 38-24 behind 325 passing yards and three touchdowns from Mahomes. The electrifying quarterback has thrown for 914 yards and nine touchdowns in his three previous AFC Championship appearances, without having thrown a single interception. The Chiefs as a whole are averaging 34.6 points per game during their AFC title game streak.
AFC Championship is a rematch
The Bengals are enjoying a historic postseason of their own, securing their first playoff win in 31 years in the Super Wildcard round – 26-19 triumph over the Las Vegas Raiders. They followed up the breakthrough win by upsetting the No. 1-seeded Tennessee Titans, 19-6 in Nashville.
Cincy is hoping to reach the Super Bowl for just the third time in their history, a would-be first trip since 1989. The Bengals have covered in both of their games this postseason, winning out-right as a four-point underdog against the Titans.
The Bengals are led by second-year quarterback Joe Burrow (4,611 yards passing, 34 touchdowns and a 70.4 percent completion rate) and the electric rookie receiving threat of Ja’Marr Chase, who was fourth in the league this year with 1,455 receiving yards. The first-year receiver out of LSU has recorded 225 total receiving yards and 14 receptions in two games this postseason.
Burrow was sacked nine times by the Titans’ defense last month, but still managed to pilot the game-winning drive after the Bengals picked off Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill for a third-time with 20 seconds left. A few plays later and Cincy’s Evan McPherson, another tremendous rookie, was kicking the game-winning field goal.
The Bengals captured a tantalizing, come-from-behind victory over Kansas City, 34-31 in Week 17.
The Bengals-Chiefs winner will face an NFC West team in the Super Bowl.
A rubber match in the NFC title game
The Rams and 49ers face-off for the third time this year in the NFC Championship in LA with the Rams favored by 3.5 points. The over/under total is set at 46 for championship weekend.
San Francisco upset the top-seeded Green Bay Packers, 13-10 last Sunday in a frigid, snow-speckled game which featured a wild blocked punt and touchdown by the 49ers plus another game-winning field goal as time expired.
The LA Rams blew a 17-point lead in the second half of their contest with the Bucs in the divisional round, but managed to pull out a victory on a last-second field as well, prevailing 20-17.
The NFL’s top receiver this year, Cooper Kupp (145 receptions, 1,947 yards, 16 touchdowns) wiggled free for a pair of big receptions during the Rams’ final drive, finishing the game with nine catches for 183 yards and a touchdown. Matthew Stafford threw for 366 yards and two touchdowns while he ran for another score.
The Niners swept the Rams in the regular season, both times as 3.5-point underdogs.
- A Nov. 15, a 31-10 thrashing on Nov. 15
- A 27-24 win in Week 18.
Deebo Samuel (1,770 total yards and 14 total touchdowns) torched the Rams for three total touchdowns this year, 192 receiving yards and 11 receptions.
Both the Rams and the 49ers have made Super Bowl appearances in the last five years, San Francisco in 2020 and LA in 2019, though each suffered losses.
The Niners last won a Super Bowl in 1995 while the Rams — located in St. Louis at the time — prevailed in Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000.
