NFL 2021: Five Key Statistics for Conference Championships

The NFL’s Final Four for 2021 epitomizes what an unpredictable season this has been. The Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, and Kansas City Chiefs all won their divisional playoff contests on the final play of the game. Andy Reid’s team survived at home in overtime, while the Bengals, Niners, and Rams all prevailed on the road. Will there be a surprise or two on conference championship Sunday?

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Including playoffs, there have been 282 games played this season. There have been a total of four 200-yard receiving performances. Two of them belong to Bengals’ rookie wideout Ja’Marr Chase, both in the regular season and one of those vs. the Chiefs (266) in Week 17. The others belong to Green Bay’s Davante Adams (vs. the Bengals in Week 5). The other came last week via Buffalo’s Gabriel Davis, 201 yards and 4 TDs vs. the Chiefs.

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Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs have reached the AFC Championship Game for the fourth straight year and are hosting the game once again. Reid knows something about this kind of streak. As head coach of the Eagles, he took Philadelphia to the NFC title tilt four straight years from 2001-04. He lost the first three and then the Birds went to Super Bowl XXXIX. His Chiefs are now looking to make their third consecutive Super Bowl appearance.

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Last Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs survived the Buffalo Bills in overtime, 42-36. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was brilliant, especially in the fourth quarter and in the extra session. He’s been Andy Reid’s starting quarterback for four straight postseasons and the team owns an 8-2 record in 10 games. The strong-armed Mahomes has thrown for a combined 3,106 yards and five times as touchdown passes (25) and interceptions (5) in those contests.

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That’s the current winning streak for the San Francisco 49ers when it comes to facing the rival Los Angeles Rams. This season, Kyle Shanahan’s club swept their NFC West rivals for the third consecutive season. And the Niners have won their last four games dating back to Week 17. Including the playoff victories over the Cowboys and Packers, Shanahan’s squad is 8-3 away from home this year, including a 27-24 OT win at Los Angles in Week 18.

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Today’s NFL has thrived via offensive football. So when a team is blanked, it raises eyebrows. The last time a team was shut out in the playoffs was when the Chiefs handed the Texans a 35-0 loss in the 2015 wild card playoffs. There have been 31 shutouts in NFL postseason history. And more than half (16) have come in this round dating back to 1933. Since the 1970 merger, there have been 20 shutouts, eight in either the AFC or NFC title game.