Participants,

We certainly had 2 unexpected finishes in yesterday’s conference championship games.  And a big day for one HSBT participant, too.  Let’s get right into the details:

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Kansas City Chiefs 17, Balti-less Ravens 10
This was supposed to be the marquis game of the day, featuring 2 of the top QB’s in the league and 2 of the top D’s in the league.

The Chiefs came out early with a score that defined the tempo for the rest of the day.  Their D bottled up Ravens QB Jackson and he was certainly less than Lamar-velous.  A big letdown.  And rookie WR Zay Flowers did not help the cause, with a key fumble in the end zone on what should have been the game-tying score in the 4^th quarter.  When the highlight of the day is your QB completing a pass to himself, then you have some issues.

Chiefs TE Travis Swift Kelce dominated the supposedly tough Raven D, with 11 catches and a TD.

HSBT Update
JTB leads the way with 165 points, while Ice Cold posts his 2^nd goose-egg of the playoffs.

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
San Francisco 49ers 34, Detroit Lions 31
The way the Lions played in the first half, it was clear they would be making a Trip to the Strip in 2 weeks.  Instead, they opted for a trip back to Motown.  Talk about blowing a 24-7 halftime lead!  The 49ers in the first half looked like the team that barely beat the Packers last weekend and could get nothing going on offense.

The second half was a total reversal of fortunes.  The 49ers capitalized on a few opportunities (not to mention the last 2 fourth down tries by Detroit that ended up short and gave the ball to the 49ers deep in the Lions end) and QB Brock looked Purdy good on a few very key scrambles late in the game.

Back to the drawing board for Lions Head Coach Dan Gamble.

HSBT Update
Comeback Kid returns to his winning way with 218 points, while Pete the Terp (obviously very disappointed by his Ravens loss earlier in the day) garners his 1^st goose-egg of the playoffs.

HSBT Standings (with 1 very large game to go):

• JTB – 777 points (can he hold on for his 2^nd trophy?)
• 2024 Winner – 595 points (and is the only Participant with a shot at the 100-point Super Bowl Bonus)
• HenricoFiveOh – 567 points (starting to make some noise)
• Comeback Kid – 561 points (does he have enough gas in the tank to make another run?)
• Buffalo Bill – 555 points (it’s been a “few” years since his last trophy victory; will this be the year?)
• Greg the Great – 489 points (will need another wild score prediction to have a shot at his 7^th trophy)
• Ice Cold – 419 points (welcome to the pressure cooker!)
• Pete the Terp – 388 points (may even be out of the running for the bronze chicken wing award)

The league’s expert analysis, advice and predictions for the Super Bowl will be forthcoming late next week, as you each get some additional time to determine your predictions!

Until then I remain,

The Commish