Participants,

Two more amazingly close games, with each separated by a FG – 1 in an unexpected OT!  That makes 5 out of the last 6 games decided by 3 points and every Divisional Round and Conference Championship game decided by 1 score.  This year’s playoff games are not for the faint of heart!

Let’s take a closer look at the Conference Championship games from last Sunday:

Wincinnati Bengals 27, Kansas City Chiefs 24 (in OT)
Welcome to the new Joe Cool.  Coming back from an 18-point 1st half deficit, when it looked like a Chiefs blowout, Bengals QB Joe Burrow engineered repeated drives and the D came up huge after the intermission to literally de-feather the Chiefs headdress right in front of the Arrowhead faithful.

The Chiefs dominated the first 30 minutes with 3 long TD drives and a 21-3 lead.  The second half was a reversal and it was tied at 24 when the clock struck 00:00.  The all-important coin toss was (again) won the by Chiefs, so a long march down the field for an easy TD by one of QB Mahomes’ several speedy (WR’s Hill, Hardeman or Pringle) and reliable (TE Kelce) options would send the Chiefs to their 4th consecutive SB.

Great plan, except nobody informed the Bengals D.  A totally unexpected INT early in the drive set up the Bengals for a stretch of key runs by RB Joe Mixon, leading to the game winning FG by the rookie K, Evan McPherson.

Signed, sealed and delivered – Wincinnati is going to the SB for the 1st time since 1989!  Interestingly, Joe Burrow becomes the first overall #1 QB pick in the NFL Draft to play in the SB.  With a win on 2/13, he would also become the first-ever QB to win the college National Championship, the Heisman and the Super Bowl.  Get ready for some history on Super Sunday!  Will the Chiefs ask the league to re-evaluate the OT rules?

HSBT Update
Buffalo Bill starts to make a move with 84 points (without picking the winning team), with Greg the Great right on his heels with 66 points.  Kudos to him and JTB for picking the Bengals.  Not a whole lot of movement in the current standings.

LA Rams 20, SF 49ers 17
Seeya, Jimmy G.  The Rams D came up huge late in the game and earned another home game on Super Sunday.  The Super Bowl had never been played on one the teams home field until last year, and now we have a 2nd consecutive occurrence.  Another super-close game.  Can anyone stop Rams WR Cooper Kupp?  He led the league in receptions, receiving yards and receiving TD’s (the triple crown for WR’s) and seems to be open on almost every passing play.

I guess money might be able to buy you a SB ring, as the Rams depleted their bank account over the past 2 years to sign several marquis players with this mission in mind.

Did it seem like their were more fans rooting for SF than LA?  They were noisier, at least.  How well will the Bengals faithful travel to SoFi in another week or so?  Playing at home for the SB is SoFi(ne) for the Rams.

HSBT Update
Greg the Great suddenly becomes relevant with a 200-point blockbuster!  Pete the Terp is the only other Participant to earn at least 100 points, which sends a gentle reminder to everyone that he is primed.

HSBT Update
Now we get down to what really matters.  The winners, the losers and the (hmm) forgetters from last weekend.  All was going well with the submission of picks until Sunday at 2:55pm (5 minutes from kickoff of the 1st game and the deadline to submit your picks).  Ben the Butler had not sent in his picks.  Maybe that massive snowstorm had him shoveling the walk or sledding with the kids.  The Commish frantically reached out to him via text and email, with no luck in securing his picks by the 3:00pm deadline.  Wham, -25 points for each of the 2 Conference Championship games.  His pick for the 2nd game was received at 4:05pm.  Sorry we had to enforce the league rules, Ben the Butler.

With that, however, every Participant still has a chance at securing the trophy this year!  Here is how it played out last weekend:

• Comeback Kid – He extended his 102-point lead to a now insurmountable 122-point lead, even without picking a winner last weekend.
• Greg the Great – The biggest movement up the leaderboard, showcased by that 200-point effort in the SF/LA game. From 8th to 2nd in 1 week.  Look out!  He successfully picked both winners and was 1 or 2 Participants to go 2-0.
• Buffalo Bill – A good effort over the weekend and now has 482 points. One more solid pick and he might capture his first trophy since 2003.
• 2022 Winner – In a tie with Buffalo Bill at 482 points. Arguably, the odds-on favorite to shine in the SB and capture his 7th  He’s one of 2 Participants to live in the home state of one of the SB teams, so some local knowledge will be to his advantage.
• Pete the Terp – Just off the pace with 469 points. He’s in the race as we make the final turn and sprint for home.
• JTB – Maintains a stronghold on 6th place with 436 points but has the Bengals winning it all for those precious 100 Bonus points. That, along with living only 120 miles from Wincinnati, should be enough to jettison him past everyone and win his 2nd trophy!
• HenricoFiveOh – Surprisingly below average showing for the all-time trophy winner, with only 53 points in the last 2 games combined. The goose-egg in the 1st game did not help.  Will need a super sprint to the finish to win his 9th  But not out of reach.  With 383 points, he will need to craft some magic on Super Sunday.
• Ben the Butler – Minus 50 points for the weekend. Mount Everest lies ahead.  Can he overcome a 422-point deficit to win his first trophy?  It will help if he submits his game pick on time.

The Commish will issue his game predictions next week, so stay tuned and keep warm!

Until then, I remain
~~ The Commish