NFL Conference Championship Sunday grades

After dominating the Bills in the snow, the Bengals' backup-laden offensive line could not protect Joe Burrow on a more reliable playing surface and against a better D-line. The Chiefs hit Burrow 12 times and minimized an underused Bengals run game (71 yards). Sunday night's visuals resembled the 2021 Bengals' protection, with two of their O-line enhancements (Alex Cappa, La'el Collins) out. And the team could not withstand shaky protection this year. While Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins flashed, their matchups against rookies (and frequent double-teams) did not swing the game enough. Considering the narrow margin and Kansas City's offensive lulls, it is hard not to wonder if this game breaks for Cincinnati (14-5) if even one of its offseason additions is available upfront.

BENGALS OFFENSE GRADE: B-minus

Patrick Mahomes lost a fumble, struggled to find targets at points, and his ankle injury was a game-long issue. But the Chiefs (16-3) lost just about every relevant wideout from an already-iffy receiving corps and amassed just 42 rushing yards. Mahomes still came through with enough escapes in crucial spots -- TD throws on fourth-and-1 and third-and-10, giving him 14 in the conference championship round (second only to Tom Brady all time) -- to bedevil the only team that consistently had his number. The soon-to-be two-time MVP's 326-yard effort and consequential scramble represent yet another signature big-stage showing. Arguments for Dan Marino or Otto Graham exist, but the NFL's current top player is almost certainly finalizing the greatest five-year start to a QB career. 

CHIEFS OFFENSE GRADE: B-plus

Kansas City's fifth straight AFC championship game was veering toward classic status. But the Joseph Ossai penalty boosted the Chiefs' chances to the degree it did mark an unfortunate ending to another storied chapter in the AFC's rivalry of the moment. The Bengals applied decent pressure on Mahomes, collapsing his pockets at points and negating Travis Kelce down the stretch. But Cincinnati's secondary, despite facing a K.C. team down three wideouts, could not contain the inconsistent Marquez Valdes-Scantling (season-high 116 yards) dinged the defense's effort. Mahomes finding MVS and Kelce at key points contrasted with the Bengals defense's midgame takeover last year. Given the state of the Chiefs offense, this missed opportunity could be a gut punch.

BENGALS DEFENSE GRADE: B-minus 

Mahomes and Kelce earned due praise, but Jones was the best player on the field Sunday night. The seventh-year defensive tackle tormented embattled Bengals blockers, constantly drawing double-teams, and fittingly finished off Burrow's bid at a 4-0 start to his career against the Chiefs. Jones beating backup Bengals right tackle Hakeem Adeniji for the third-down sack that set up Mahomes' final salvo, gave him five QB hits in the game. The Chiefs mistakenly tried Jones at D-end for much of last season, and while he does his best work inside, the four-time Pro Bowler was a handful wherever he lined up Sunday. The Chiefs' pass rush kept Chase and Higgins from beating their rookie cornerback crew, marking another new development in this rivalry.

CHIEFS DEFENSE GRADE: A-minus

Fortunately for the NFL, no Chiefs points came after the bizarre do-over. Burrow's late grounding call was iffy, and a missed block in the back keyed Skyy Moore's pivotal punt return. Zac Taylor's referee rage checks out and were this the NFL of even the 2000s, officials allowing Ossai's shove to decide the game would have ignited incessant criticism. The Bengals cooled off the Chiefs' pass rush -- until Jones wrecked the revised plan -- and limited Kelce late, but they also let the Chiefs set the tone early. Cincy bailed on the run too often, especially considering it gashed Kansas City for 152 on the ground in Ohio. Joe Mixon totaling eight carries is a tough stat line to justify. Mahomes foiled some of Lou Anarumo's plans, but the Bengals' veteran D-line being unable to hem in the injured megastar obviously keyed this defeat.

BENGALS COACHING GRADE: C-plus 

Seven head coaches -- Don Shula, Bud Grant, Tom Landry, Chuck Noll, Joe Gibbs, Marv Levy, Bill Belichick -- had previously been to four Super Bowls. Reid booked his fourth despite Mahomes' injury sapping his evasiveness -- for the most part -- and bodies steadily dropping at receiver. No longer able to dial up Tyreek Hill kill shots, Reid still displayed his acumen by game-planning for this restricted Mahomes. Steve Spagnuolo (perhaps Tony Romo will get this name right someday) also did not let L'Jarius Sneed's injury cripple his rookie-heavy secondary, and the Chiefs moving Jones around the formation maximized the All-Pro's presence. Both coaches atoned for mistakes in last year's AFC title game, and Reid remains on track to join the above-referenced coaches in Canton.

CHIEFS COACHING GRADE: A-minus

The Bengals have not turned Burrow's rookie contract into a championship, separating them from the Seahawks, Eagles and Chiefs during their QBs' low-cost pacts. But they have plenty to show for their 2020s investments. Math problems are coming. Burrow is eligible for a new deal, and Higgins will enter a contract year. Jessie Bates, Germaine Pratt and Vonn Bell are free agents. Burrow's arrival prompted the Bengals to change their stripes in free agency, but the investments aligning with the rookie-deal QB window made them easier to stomach. Often labeled frugal, the Bengals should be given the benefit of the doubt -- for now. They have built a loaded team, but tests are coming. This stacked Cincy edition failing against a weakened Chiefs squad represents a missed chance on multiple fronts.

Entering the playoffs, it looked like the Chiefs caught some breaks -- Chargers injuries, overhyped Broncos and Raiders outfits, facing Malik Willis, and the Damar Hamlin scare gifting them a bye -- and were the AFC's third-best team. In downing the Bengals, the Chiefs silenced some critics and showed their title window is wide open. Reid will now face the team that fired him 10 years ago. That decision transformed the Chiefs, who went from 2-14 in 2012 to a playoff team in nine of Reid's 10 years. Reaching a Super Bowl without Hill also further bolsters Mahomes and Kelce's legacies. Tom Brady won three Super Bowls in his first four QB1 years; Mahomes is playing at a different level than the all-timer's early years. The Chiefs will need their passer's best stuff against a superior Eagles roster.

NEXT: SUPER BOWL LVII (Feb. 12, in Glendale, Ariz.)

One-sided NFC title games are not exactly new; the 49ers have been part of a few -- including a Packers rout three years ago. But Purdy going down on San Francisco's first drive removed the drama from this contest earlier than most games in conference championship annals. The 49ers (15-5) had to go to a QB4 (Josh Johnson, the NFL's preeminent journeyman) and then back to Purdy once Johnson -- who spent much of this year as the third-stringer on the Broncos' last-place offense -- was concussed epitomized this unusually built powerhouse. While it took three QB injuries to shut down the 49ers' All-Pro brigade, No. 3 emphatically finished the job.

49ERS OFFENSE GRADE: D-minus

With two 49ers QBs losing fumbles and the visitors unable to complete even midrange passes, an Eagles victory did not require heavy lifting. They did answer the bell with a 24-point win. Philadelphia (16-3) is the fifth team to win by at least 21 in both the divisional round and conference championship. The previous four all won Super Bowls . Keyed by its Pro Bowl O-line troika (Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, Landon Dickerson), the Eagles run game dialed up its greatest hits against the NFL's top defense. Miles Sanders scored two untouched TDs, Jalen Hurts froze defenders with RPO action, and the brute-force quarterback sneak -- which the NFL is allowing until a major QB injury nixes it -- churned out another score. Hurts' 15 rushing TDs in his 17-game season are the most by a QB in NFL history. 

EAGLES OFFENSE GRADE: B

Christian McCaffrey's pinball touchdown jaunt tied the game, offering false hope Kyle Shanahan could work a miracle with Josh Johnson -- he of 15 NFL teams and three other pro leagues since 2008 -- similar to how he unleashed Purdy. The Eagles soon dismissed this notion, starting with a 14-play, 75-yard drive with three 49ers penalties. San Francisco only committed three all game against Dallas. These were all legitimate fouls, as was Jordan Mason's roughing-the-kicker infraction that preceded another Philly TD. DeMeco Ryans' group still forced three Philly punts in the first half, holding serve in hopes of Shanahan figuring something out. This was a no-hope effort, and the 49ers' undisciplined play soon showed it. 

49ERS DEFENSE GRADE: D-plus 

Part 2 in the Eagles' soul-crushing stretch: more Haason Reddick havoc. The free agent signing may have ruined some FOX executives' days by injuring Purdy's elbow. The ex-Cardinal and Panther linebacker also came out of the pile with the football on Johnson's bobble, and the second 49ers turnover essentially ended the game. Reddick now has two sack strips in two Eagles playoff games, and his D-line mates pounced on this rare opportunity as well. The Eagles finished with a 61.9% pressure rate, per Next Gen Stats, their highest mark in at least seven seasons. Philly's defense is up to 78 total sacks; it needs four in Super Bowl LVII to tie the 1984 Bears for most combined in a single season. 

EAGLES DEFENSE GRADE: A 

For a stretch, Ryans did his part. The likely Texans coach-in-waiting saw his troops force three straight Eagles punts after the Purdy injury, and Shanahan dialed up a McCaffrey-heavy drive to knot the game at 7. But the play-calling maestro did not follow that up, though he had historically minimal options for a conference title game. And on the injury play, the 49ers put backup tight end Tyler Kroft one-on-one with Reddick. They also failed to block Reddick on his second sack. Shanahan set up the Eagles early by failing to challenge what soon became a blatant DeVonta Smith fourth-down drop. Then again, was that drop not enough to warrant an "after further discussion ' New York corrected us'..." spiel from the refs? At this point, why not just let New York make fixes and scrap the challenge system?

49ERS COACHING GRADE: C-minus 

Since giving the play-calling reins to offensive coordinator Shane Steichen midway through last season, the Eagles geared their offense around Hurts' rushing talents. With a better roster this year, almost no one has presented an answer for it. Nick Sirianni's team is 16-1 with Hurts at the controls this season, and while his 164 total yards Sunday will not cut it against the Chiefs, the Eagles just needed to play mistake-free ball against a uniquely handicapped opponent. Steichen's run-based offense finally broke down the 49ers defense in the second quarter, freezing them with Hurts fakes. Sirianni also converted a layup challenge -- the Reddick strip -- shortly after Shanahan passed on his chance. 

EAGLES COACHING GRADE: A 

The 49ers have created a perennial contender without a franchise quarterback, but this unusual success story keeps seeing exciting chapters end badly. This early-seasons Game of Thrones arc has produced crushing outcomes -- Mahomes erasing a 10-point lead, Jaquiski Tartt's drop leading to a Rams escape, a second half of nothingness in Philly -- that impeded well-built and well-coached teams. If Trey Lance is truly a miss, the 49ers should be pilloried for blowing three first-round picks on that trade. Their formula will also soon include Nick Bosa on a $30 million-per-year contract, though Purdy -- Lance's curious place aside -- has a contract that will allow this kind of spending. The 49ers have a mostly young core, but missed chances are filling that group's early primes.

Five years after the Carson Wentz contract enabled a veteran-flooded roster, the Eagles have a better team. Howie Roseman's marvelous offseason impeccably complemented Hurts' rookie deal; the longtime GM's swings went for doubles, triples and, in Reddick and A.J. Brown's cases, home runs. The Kelce Bowl will feature the older brother's team trekking to Arizona healthy and devoid of a major weakness. The Eagles bring some of the best O- and D-lines to a Super Bowl in many years, and their secondary also outpaces the Bengals'. The Mahomes-Hurts gap (as passers) will be dissected, representing the Chiefs' gateway. Kansas City might have this Super Bowl's best three players (Mahomes, Jones, Travis Kelce), but Philly's roster fills out most of the top 20.

NEXT: SUPER BOWL LVII (Feb. 12, in Glendale, Ariz.)