Jeff Reinebold has warned not to bet against the resilience of the Kansas City Chiefs as they enter their sixth straight AFC Championship Game behind the leadership of quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
The Chiefs’ usually-dominant offense had been marred by mistakes and inconsistencies on a bumpy road to the playoffs this season, but they remain in pursuit of a second successive Super Bowl title having awoken to topple the Miami Dolphins and red-hot Buffalo Bills over the last two weeks.
Awaiting Andy Reid’s team this Sunday are the Super Bowl-favourite Baltimore Ravens, who underlined their credentials once more with a resounding victory over CJ Stroud’s Houston Texans last weekend.
The Chiefs have featured in three of the last four Super Bowls. Will their rise as the NFL’s latest dynasty continue?
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Neil Reynolds and Jeff Reinebold question who is more likely to star for the Ravens against the Chiefs – Lamar Jackson, or their outstanding defense?
“That six straight yes has been with Patrick Mahomes, but the rest of the roster has really changed an awful lot,” said Reinebold on the Inside the Huddle podcast, which you can listen to above.
“How many teams could withstand the loss of Tyreek Hill? How many teams could rebuild their offensive line not once but twice in those six years and still put a Championship calibre team on the field? How many teams have played with as many young guys in the secondary as the Kansas City Chiefs have and still played at a Championship level?
“It’s amazing. Does anybody even remember that Tyrann Mathieu was a Kansas City Chief one time? This was one of the superstar names that came through there that they’ve been able to move on from and now it’s L’Jarius Sneed.
“It’s really a credit to Brett Veach, Andy Reid, the Hunt family and the Chiefs franchise. We saw Patrick Mahomes getting frustrated earlier in the season, but I think Patrick Mahomes’ competitive fire ignited that team and is a critical part of their success. Don’t bet against a great competitor!”
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Highlights from the Kansas City Chiefs against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Divisional Round
Lamar Jackson has catapulted himself into lead MVP contention this season as the heartbeat of a Ravens side that has shown few weaknesses in their search of a first Super Bowl since the 2012 campaign.
While Jackson has spearheaded one of the league’s most dynamic offenses, defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald has surged into head coach candidacy with a unit that ranked first in scoring as well as leading the NFL in sacks.
As for Kansas City, their charge has been driven by the influence of Steve Spagnuolo’s disguise-heavy and hard-hitting defense. Who can shut down the opposing MVP quarterback? That might well prove the difference.
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Her Huddle’s Hannah Wilkes and Ash Byrne-Hansen discuss Lamar Jackson’s dominant performance against the Houston Texans in the NFL playoffs divisional round
“I think the offenses will move the football, but it’s going to be about who can control the line of scrimmage, because I think that’s where games are won and lost despite all the focus on the quarterbacks,” added Reinebold.
“When you look at this, there will be some really interesting match-ups. When you look at Baltimore, their safety Kyle Hamilton is 6ft 5ins and 215lbs and has the cover skills of a corner but the length of a linebacker.
“I can’t wait to see if they just match him up on Kelce and let him travel with him the whole game, because Kelce won’t run away from him and Hamilton is long enough to battle Kelce in tight coverage.
“The second one is what Kansas City do to try and make Lamar stay in the pocket and beat them from the pocket.”
Watch the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game this Sunday, with kick-off at 8pm live on Sky Sports NFL; the San Francisco 49ers then host the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game from 11.30pm; watch Super Bowl LVIII live on Sunday February 11