Jan 30, 2022; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Cincinnati Bengals kicker Evan McPherson (center) celebrates his game-winning field goal against the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime with punter Kevin Huber (left) and guard Hakeem Adeniji (right) of the AFC Championship Game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
NFLBy Matt Clapp on

The Cincinnati Bengals are going to the Super Bowl! Cincinnati erased an 18-point deficit to take down Kansas City 27-24 in overtime on the road.

It looked like it may be a rout early on, with the Chiefs looking unstoppable on offense en route to a 21-3 lead after three Kansas City possessions.

But the Bengals made two huge plays over the final 70 seconds of the first half, with a 41-yard touchdown reception from Samaje Perine, followed by a goal-line stop at the one-yard line as the clock ran out (on a very questionable decision by Patrick Mahomes; this throw should go quickly to the end zone to either get another play, or to just take the field goal to go up 14 points).

In the second half, the Chiefs’ offense all of a sudden became stoppable. Mahomes was even intercepted by 311-pound defensive tackle B.J. Hill. That led to a Bengals touchdown — Joe Burrow to Ja’Marr Chase — and a two-point conversion that tied the game 21-21.

And with just over six minutes remaining, the Bengals took a 24-21 lead on an Evan McPherson 52-yard field goal.

The Chiefs were driving with the chance to win the game, but Cincinnati made big plays defensively in the red zone to move Kansas City back to a 44-yard field goal try, which Harrison Butker made to send the game to overtime.

Kansas City then won the overtime coin flip, giving them a chance to repeat last week’s heroics with a game-winning touchdown on the first drive. However, the Bengals defense came through on 3rd-and-10 with an interception by Vonn Bell on 3rd-and-10.

The Bengals moved the ball well on the ensuing drive, and McPherson — who went 4-for-4 continued his remarkable rookie season with a walk-off 31-yard field goal.

What an amazing comeback and complete turnaround from early in the game.

The Bengals win the conference championship for the third time in franchise history (the first time since 1988), and now they hope to win their first Super Bowl title when they face either the Los Angeles Rams or San Francisco 49ers in two weeks.

Here’s more reaction and factoids on the Bengals’ incredible win:

About Matt Clapp

Matt is an editor at The Comeback. He attended Colorado State University, wishes he was Saved by the Bell's Zack Morris, and idolizes Larry David. And loves pizza and dogs because obviously.

He can be followed on Twitter at @Matt2Clapp (also @TheBlogfines for Cubs/MLB tweets and @DaBearNecess for Bears/NFL tweets), and can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.

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