The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 in the NFL American Football Conference (AFC) Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri on Sunday to advance to Super Bowl LVII.

The Chiefs will play the Philadelphia Eagles, which knocked the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football Conference Championship Game earlier on Sunday, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on February 12.

The Chiefs had lost all of the three games, both in the regular season and postseason, against the Bengals before Sunday since quarterback (QB) Joe Burrow was drafted by the Bengals with the first pick in 2020. Burrow came close to extending that winning streak to four competitions, if his pass to wide receiver Tee Higgins on 3rd & 3 at 7:02 in the fourth quarter hadn't been intercepted by the Chiefs' cornerback Joshua Williams.

The Chiefs had 30 seconds for their final drive. They were on 3rd & 4. QB Patrick Mahomes, whose mobility was obviously limited by a high ankle sprain to his right leg, carried the ball to rush five yards. Not only did he earn a first down for his team, he also drew an unnecessary roughness from defensive end Joseph Ossai.

Ossai's act resulted in a 15-yard penalty for the Bengals and enabled the Chiefs to shoot a field goal at 45 yards instead of more difficult 50+ yards. Harrison Butker made that shot for his team to lead by three points when there were only three seconds left, too little for the Bengals to come back.

Mahomes completed 29 of his 43 passes for 326 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's game. The Chiefs offensive line did their best to protect him so he wouldn't have to get out of the pocket to work and carry the ball to move forward. However, the team suffered a series of injuries that tore their game plan apart piece by piece.

Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed exited the competition in the first half with a head injury; wide receiver Kadarius Toney soon left as well with an ankle injury; then in the second half, linebacker Willie Gay Jr. had to be escorted to the locker room by the working staff; later, wide receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman both quitted the game due to injuries.

With no reliable receiving targets to hit, Mahomes felt the pressure on the pocket grow quickly as the game went on. That was the difficult situation he and the Chiefs were facing and, thus, how significant his final carry was to the team's offense.

In Sunday's QB contest, Burrow was outmatched by Mahomes. He threw 26-for-41 to generate 270 yards, one touchdown but two interceptions. He was sacked five times that cost the Bengals 32 yards. He had multiple highlights including completing a 14-yard rush and finding wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase for a 35-yard connection.

Burrow, 26, like he said, has his "whole career" ahead as the Bengals' championship window, as long as the team improves their squad in the right way.