Steve Starr
- BetOnline has Kansas City as 7-point home favorites over the Bengals in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game
- Patrick Mahomes has a 7-1 career record with 23 touchdowns and one interception in AFC playoff games
- Joe Burrow is the first QB drafted No. 1 overall to win a Divisional Round playoff game within his first two seasons.
Kansas City will host its fourth-consecutive AFC Championship Game against a Bengals franchise that hasn’t reached this point of the postseason since 1988.
While Joe Burrow scored a 34-31 comeback victory over Patrick Mahomes in Week 17, he’ll need to dethrone the Chiefs in Arrowhead this Sunday to bring Cincinnati to its first Super Bowl in 33 years
Let’s examine the latest odds for the Championship Sunday tilt and be sure to check out the top betting sites for NFL football in 2022, as well as tips for how to wager on Super Bowl 56.
Chiefs vs Bengals
 | Spread | Money Line | Total Points |
| Cincinnati Bengals | +7.0 (-115) | +270 | Un 54.5 (-113) |
| Kansas City Chiefs | -7.0 (-105) | -325 | Ov 54.5 (-107) |
AFC Championship Game Preview
Patrick Mahomes led three go-ahead drives in the final minutes of the fourth quarter and overtime to defeat the Bills 42-36 in Sunday’s instant classic. After narrowly outdueling Josh Allen with 447 total yards and four touchdowns, the Chiefs phenom will now face another challenger to his throne in 25-year-old Joe Burrow.
Despite being sacked a playoff-record nine times, the former Heisman Trophy and National Championship winner connected on over 75% of his passes in a 19-16 upset victory over the No. 1 seeded Titans on Saturday. His 73.2% completion percentage through his first two postseason games is also the highest in NFL history.
ICYMI: Patrick Mahomes told Joe Burrow that he’d see them in the playoffs.🔮 #ChiefsKingdom #RuleTheJungle pic.twitter.com/N8dNhAqfiw
— SportsGrid (@SportsGrid) January 24, 2022
Mahomes and Burrow meet again
Cincinnati is the only team to beat the Chiefs in the past 12 games. In the Week 17 comeback victory, Burrow threw for 446 yards and four TDs while Mahomes was held to just 50 passing yards and three points in the game’s second half.
Mahomes predicted a rematch in the post-game handshake, telling Burrow “See y’all in the playoffs.” He’s 4-1 all-time versus teams he lost to previously that season, posting a 100+ passer rating in all five contests. However, Burrow has also had his opponent’s number in rematches this year, posting a 3-0 record over the Steelers, Ravens, and Raiders.
Best Bets
Bengals to cover the 7-point spread. While Burrow’s protection could certainly be better, he has two of the best receivers in the NFL in Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase, who had 11 catches for 266 yards and three TDs (the most by a rookie in NFL history) the last time these two teams met. Joe Cool can also rely on a strong running game led by Joe Mixon, a kicker in Evan McPherson that is almost as confident as he is, and a “peaking at the right time” defense that’s forced seven turnovers in the past three games.
At the same time, we can’t predict an outright upset here – the Chiefs are 9-2 at home this year and Mahomes has lost only two of 10 career playoff games (both to Tom Brady).
Patrick Mahomes is the grim reaper 💀 pic.twitter.com/n80S67GXVf
— PFF (@PFF) January 24, 2022
Bet the UNDER on 54.5 points. These two teams combined for 65 points the last time out and the Bills offense just dropped 36 on the Chiefs’ defense on Sunday night. Still, this is a sky-high total and the expected return of star safety Tyrann Mathieu (concussion) should help solidify KC’s secondary.
While Steve Spagnuolo’s blitz-happy defense will be exploited through the air, Chris Jones and company will also have no trouble getting home against Burrow. In another back-and-forth nail-biter, we like Mahomes to advance to his third-straight Super Bowl.
Final Score Prediction: Kansas City 28, Bengals 25.
See below the top sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
