Postgame Observations: Bengals' Rally Falls Short in 23-20 Loss to Chiefs in AFC Championship Game

Cincinnati's rally fell short in the AFC Championship Game.

KANSAS CITY — The Bengals’ magical ride came to an end on Sunday night in Kansas City.

The Chiefs never trailed in the 23-20 win.

Joe Burrow and the Bengals started slow, trailing throughout the first half. Their second half rally fell short.

They had two chances to take the lead in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t take advantage of either opportunity.

Kansas City will play Philadelphia in Super Bowl LVII. The Bengals finish the season 14-5. They won a franchise record 10-straight games prior to the loss.

Here are some of our postgame observations:

Too Little, Too Late

Cincinnati rallied from multiple deficits, including a 13-3 first half hole, but never led. They also tied the game at 13 and 20 in the second half, but couldn’t get over the hump.

Offensive Line Issues

The Bengals’ backup offensive linemen showed their true colors against the Chiefs.

Max Scharping, Hakeem Adeniji and Jackson Carman had their issues, but it wasn’t just them. The entire offensive line struggled to protect Burrow.

He was sacked four times in his first nine dropbacks and five times total. The fifth sack happened on 3rd-and-8 with less than a minute in regulation. The Bengals were forced to punt and the Chiefs took advantage.

Patrick Mahomes led Kansas City on a 4-play, 26-yard scoring drive that was aided by an unnecessary roughness penalty on Joseph Ossai. Harrison Butker kicked the game-winning 45-yard field goal with three seconds remaining. 

Slow Start

The Bengals' offense struggled in the first quarter. They only picked up one first down on their first two possessions and Joe Burrow was sacked three times. Right tackle Hakeem Adeniji was called for a false start that negated what would've been a first down run by Burrow on their opening drive. They were also called for a delay of game on their second possession. In total, Burrow was sacked three times and they were called for two penalties, despite running just eight offensive plays on their first two possessions.

Hail Ja’Marr

The Bengals trailed the Chiefs 20-13 at the start of the fourth quarter and were facing a 4th-and-6 from the Chiefs’ 41-yard line.

Burrow threw a deep pass for Ja’Marr Chase, who was being covered by two Chiefs defenders: Bryan Cook and Jaylen Watson. It didn’t matter.

Chase skied for the catch, to not only give the Bengals a first down, but to put them in prime position to tie the game.

Samaje Perine scored a 2-yard touchdown two plays later to tie the game 20-20.

Big Turnover

Patrick Mahomes bobbled Creed Humphrey’s snap at the Bengals’ 46-yard line late in the third quarter. The Bengals recovered the fumble to give their offense the ball back.

That set the stage for Chase’s amazing play on fourth down. 

It wasn't enough, but it was one of the best plays of the season. 

Cincinnati fights Kansas City for a spot in the Super Bowl today at 6:40 p.m. ET on CBS. The game is available via fuboTV—start your free trial here.

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