Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce declared Arrowhead Stadium "Mahomes' house" after finally defeating Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.

There had been plenty of talk in the lead-up about the success Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has enjoyed against the Chiefs, sporting a 3-0 record against Mahomes' crew heading into the contest. It had led to Bengals fans calling the Chiefs' home ground 'Burrowhead', which clearly irked Kansas City players.

Despite playing with a high ankle sprain, Mahomes found a way to get one over the number one overall pick from the 2020 NFL Draft, completing 29 of his 43 passes for 326 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

He also made the game-deciding play when he scrambled on his bad ankle with 15 seconds left in regulation, converting a third-and-four and making it to the sideline to stop the clock. After crossing the sideline, he was hit late by Joseph Ossai, resulting in a 15-yard penalty to put Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker into range for the game-winner.

Burrow put together a respectable stat line, completing 26 of his 41 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown, but he threw two crucial interceptions.

In the immediate aftermath during his on-field interview, Mahomes was interrupted by his future Hall of Fame tight end with a very clear message.

"Burrowhead my a**," he said. "It's Mahomes' house!"

Offensive lineman Orlando Brown Jr also chimed in about Mahomes: "World's greatest! Give him his respect! Stamp him!"

Mahomes was far more under control during his interview, but also referenced his displeasure about the Burrowhead nickname.

"First off I want to thank God, man," he said. "He healed my body this week and gave me the strength to be out here.

"As for this team, man, we play together. I said it from the beginning, when we were in the locker room, I said 'we've got to be together' – and this team stepped up against a great football team.

"We showed this place that it's Arrowhead, it's not 'Burrowhead' out here."

When asked about the Chiefs' impending Super Bowl date against the Philadelphia Eagles, Mahomes gave plenty of respect to the NFC Champions.

"They're a great football team, I've watched them all year long," he said. "Great quarterback, and a great entire team. It's going to be a great challenge for us, but I'm going to celebrate this one first.

"I'm going to get back with my team – I don't think we have any cigars – but we'll be ready to go at the Super Bowl."

A limping Patrick Mahomes led the Kansas City Chiefs to Super Bowl LVII with a 23-20 defeat of the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship Game.

Mahomes had sustained a high ankle sprain in the Divisional round victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars but was determined not to miss the opportunity to gain revenge following last year's loss against the Bengals at the same stage.

In that reverse, Mahomes followed an outstanding first half with an uncharacteristically shambolic second that cost the Chiefs.

However, on Sunday, as the game wore on and the temperature dropped, Mahomes showed signs of his injury affecting him but refused to relent, finishing with 29-of-43 passing for 326 yards and two touchdowns, along with a vital late run.

Mahomes was largely able to stay clean in the first half while Joe Burrow took some punishment, but the Chiefs' sole TD pass found Travis Kelce on fourth-and-one.

Memories of last year's loss might have come to mind as the Bengals came out stronger in the third quarter and Tee Higgins sensationally reeled in a pinpoint Burrow TD pass down the sideline.

A hobbling Mahomes battled on and connected with Marquez Valdes-Scantling for a scrambling score, only for Burrow to find Ja'Marr Chase deep on fourth-and-six to set up Samaje Perine to run it in.

With the scores tied, both QBs struggled to get the job done as overtime neared, but Chris Jones sacked Burrow to force a Bengals punt, with Skyy Moore's 27-yard return keeping the Chiefs alive.

When Mahomes – understandably reluctant to run the ball until that stage – made up five yards and was shoved by Joseph Ossai after running out of bounds, a 15-yard penalty left Harrison Butker with the 45-yard game-winning field goal to set up a Super Bowl meeting with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Kelce keeping fine company

Restricted by his injury, Mahomes needed help from his receivers and got it. He completed passes to 10 team-mates, but Kelce was unsurprisingly his primary target, completing seven of nine attempts for a TD.

That was Kelce's 15th receiving TD in the postseason, drawing him level with fellow tight end Rob Gronkowski and now trailing only wide receiver Jerry Rice (22) for all-time postseason scores.

Burrow takes a beating

This was the first time Burrow had lost to Mahomes, with the Chiefs clearly irked by talk of the Bengals QB's dominance in this matchup. The Chiefs got to Burrow time and again early on, with four sacks before halftime.

Coming into the game, Burrow was 14-1 this season when sacked four times or fewer but 0-3 when sacked five times or more. That fifth and final sack from Jones proved so pivotal.

This year's NFL conference championships have provided a fascinating line-up of potential Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks.

In the AFC Championship Game, Patrick Mahomes is hosting Joe Burrow in a repeat of last year's matchup, with both men having already been to the big game.

Meanwhile, in the NFC, Jalen Hurts and Brock Purdy have each played just two postseason games, green enough both to provoke excitement and concern in equal measure.

Three of these QBs were confirmed as MVP candidates this week, with Purdy the obvious exception as 'Mr Irrelevant', enjoying a fairytale story that would surpass just about any other.

So, which of the four is best placed heading into this weekend, and who can expect to be playing in Arizona in two weeks' time?

Brock Purdy, 49ers @ Eagles

It is safe to say Purdy did not expect to be playing in this game when he was selected with the final pick of the 2022 draft.

Injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo have catapulted the rookie into the spotlight, and he has not disappointed, winning his first seven starts to extend the 49ers' streak to 12 straight victories – a team's longest sequence entering a conference championship since the undefeated New England Patriots in 2007.

Purdy, at 22, will become the youngest QB to start a game at this stage of the season since Ben Roethlisberger in 2004, while he is only the fourth to do so having started five or fewer regular season games.

But given this inexperience, Purdy is the one remaining QB who likely will not be handed complete control of the offense, instead asked simply to consistently put the ball in the hands of the 49ers' outstanding skill players.

Christian McCaffrey, like Purdy, has won every start since joining the 49ers in a mid-season trade from the Carolina Panthers, scoring an offensive touchdown in each of his past eight – one shy of both Ezekiel Elliott's 2022-best streak of nine.

Since his first start, McCaffrey ranks third in the NFL for offensive touches (234); since Purdy's first start, he ranks first (136).

Even with McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel each highly effective targets through the air, the 49ers have shifted their focus to the run game with Purdy under center.

They have run the ball on 50.1 per cent of plays since Purdy's first start, the fifth-highest rate in the NFL and the highest of any team who made the playoffs. Prior to Week 14, that figure was 43.2 per cent.

It is unlikely the 49ers move away from that now against an elite defense that leads the league by a considerable margin in sacks (75), sack yards (517) and sack rate (10.7 per cent).

Purdy may need McCaffrey and Co. to carry him through this round, but a Super Bowl appearance would only encourage those Tom Brady 2001 comparisons.

Jalen Hurts, Eagles vs 49ers

Hurts' appearance on this stage is clearly not as surprising as Purdy's, but few could have foreseen the Eagles QB as the Goliath to his opponent's David back when the season began.

The third-year star has delivered on his potential in 2022.

Hurts' ability to run with the ball was never in question, and this year his 14 rushing TDs rank third among all players, with Josh Allen his nearest rival at QB on a comparatively meagre eight.

But there has crucially been progress in the passing game as Hurts posted career-best marks by just about every metric in the regular season – 66.5 completion percentage, 3,701 passing yards, 22 passing TDs, 1.3 interception percentage and a passer rating of 101.5.

Last week, in the Eagles' playoff opener against the New York Giants, he threw two TD passes and zero picks for a rating of 112.2.

Having missed two games and two Eagles defeats, Hurts heads into the NFC Championship Game with a 15-1 record as a starter this year, no doubt confident of improving that mark further against the 49ers.

In an intriguing battle that pits the league's best run offense (47.0 per cent success rate) versus its second-best run defense (32.1 per cent), Hurts can provide the X-factor.

The 49ers have shown few signs of weakness this year but did so against Marcus Mariota, another running QB, whose Atlanta Falcons ran the ball on 69.6 per cent of plays in Week 6 and were successful 43.6 per cent of the time.

The Eagles will have been watching the tape from that matchup to give Hurts the best possible chance to find joy against an otherwise fearsome defense.

Joe Burrow, Bengals @ Chiefs

Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton dubbed the Chiefs' home stadium, so terrifying for so many visiting teams, "Burrowhead" as Cincinnati prepared for their return in the AFC Championship Game.

Burrow went into Arrowhead last year and got the better of Mahomes, leading the Bengals to a third conference championship win in three attempts all-time.

Although the Los Angeles Rams then defeated the Bengals in the Super Bowl, Burrow has continued to show himself to be the man for the big occasion, taking down the much-fancied Buffalo Bills last week.

He has won five of his first six playoff starts, with only Brady (7-0), Russell Wilson (6-1) and Mahomes (6-1) winning six of their first seven since 1995.

So calm and composed, Burrow is an outstanding passer, ranking second in the league with his 68.2 completion percentage this year and third with his 85.9 well-thrown percentage.

His problem has long been a lack of protection from the Bengals' offensive line, with Burrow taking a league-leading 148 sacks since his debut season in 2020 – a campaign that was cut short by ACL and MCL tears sustained in one hit.

But Burrow took just one sack against the Bills, and the Bengals are consistently doing a better job in giving their QB time to make the pass – albeit with his help.

The Bengals have allowed a pressure rate of just 32.4 per cent this year, the fourth-best in the NFL, as Burrow has taken just 2.46 seconds to release the ball, the fifth-fastest average among QBs with 100 attempts.

It is Burrow's ability to work this quickly while maintaining a league-low pickable pass percentage of 1.53 that cuts him out as a star capable of again going to Kansas City and withstanding all they throw at him.

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs vs Bengals

Mahomes is the one man who cannot be planned for. If he is on his game, there is surely no stopping the Chiefs superstar.

Happily for the Bengals, he was a long way from the Mahomes everyone knows in the second half of last year's AFC Championship Game, and his hopes of performing at peak level will be limited by injury this week.

A high ankle sprain would rule out just about any other QB, but Mahomes, no doubt determined to put right what went so wrong last year, is set to play.

Mahomes completed only eight of 18 passes after halftime in the Chiefs' 2021 defeat, throwing two interceptions for a remarkable passer rating of 12.3.

That was the sixth-lowest rating in the second half of a playoff game this century – not the sort of company the best QB in football is used to keeping.

But that passer rating in the second half against the Jacksonville Jaguars last week, when Mahomes was playing with an injury, was up at 110.7.

Even as he hobbled around the field, Mahomes was able to finish a fourth postseason game with a completion percentage above 70.0 (72.3) and multiple TD passes.

Only four players – Brady (six), Drew Brees (six), Troy Aikman (five) and Joe Montana (five) – have had more such performances. Mahomes has played just 12 playoff games in his career.

If that is the sort of form the Bengals can expect to find Mahomes in this week, with revenge on his mind, all the focus on that ankle might count for very little.

Cincinnati Bengals tight end Hayden Hurst has been cleared to play in Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs after overcoming a calf injury.

Hurst had been limited at Bengals practice on Thursday but was a full participant on Friday before not being listed in their injury report.

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor indicated Hurst was available, having been limited for precautionary reasons. Hurst had missed three games with a right calf injury which he tweaked in Week 13 against the Chiefs.

"I thought he had a good practice today," Taylor told reporters on Friday.

The Bengals tight end had 52 receptions for 414 yards for two touchdowns during the regular season, adding nine receptions for 104 yards and one TD in their two playoffs games.

"He brings a lot of energy, always knows what he's doing, brings physicality, reliable in the pass game," Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow said on Thursday.

"Just a trustworthy, reliable, explosive player. Love to have him."

The Kansas City Chiefs will have Patrick Mahomes under center for Sunday’s AFC Championship game – not that there has been much doubt this week.

Despite suffering a high ankle sprain in last weekend's 27-20 Divisional-round win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Mahomes was able to practice three times this week and declared "I'm ready to go” on Wednesday.

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid has confirmed that Mahomes would play in the AFC title game for the fifth year in a row on Sunday when the Chiefs host the Cincinnati Bengals.

"He looks good," Reid said on Friday. "I mean, he's moving around good. He's going to go out and play."

After Mahomes said on Wednesday that he would be fit, the quarterback began fielding questions about how much a sprained ankle might change his effectiveness or style of play.

"I feel like I can still do a lot of things," he said. "We'll see as we get closer and closer, and we'll see during the game.

"You can't fully do exactly what you're going to be doing in those moments in the game [in practice], but all I can do is prepare myself the best way possible and then when we get in the game, you hope adrenaline kind of takes over."

Mahomes returned to last Saturday’s game to help lead the Chiefs over the Jaguars, but he was clearly limping and was unable to pull off some of his signature improvisation due to his injury.

After a week of rehabilitation, neither Mahomes nor Reid are willing to say publicly if the 2018 NFL MVP will be able to run the entire playbook.

"We have enough in the game plan where you can kind of pick and choose where you want to go with it," he said. "You have a variety of things that you can go to. Obviously, you don't use all the plays in the game plan, but they're available and so if you have to go a certain direction, you can go that direction with the calls."

Meanwhile, the Bengals are not expecting Mahomes to be any less potent.

Cincinnati pass rusher Sam Hubbard said: "We're preparing for Patrick Mahomes like he's 100 per cent, because I'm sure he's going to be playing 100 per cent. That's all you can do."

Patrick Mahomes acknowledges he will be relying on "adrenaline" to carry him through an AFC Championship Game in which the Kansas City Chiefs will be thirsty for revenge against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Mahomes sustained a high ankle sprain last week, an injury that could have ruled the Chiefs quarterback out for the rest of the postseason.

But the MVP frontrunner is set for a swift recovery after his return to practice this week went "better than I expected".

Mahomes is still restricted in his movement, however, as he said on Thursday: "I feel like I can still do a lot of things, but we'll see as we get closer and closer.

"We'll see during the game. You can't fully do exactly what it's going to be like in those moments in the game.

"All I can do is prepare myself the best way possible, and then when we get in the game, you hope adrenaline takes over and you can make those throws when you need to."

The concern for the Chiefs is the Bengals won this game last year, again at Arrowhead Stadium, when Mahomes was fully fit.

This is the first time a conference championship has been repeated in consecutive years since the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens played back-to-back AFC Championship Games in 2011 and 2012, with both of those in Foxborough.

However, the teams split those games. The Steelers, against the Houston Oilers in Pittsburgh in 1978 and 1979, are the only team to have beaten the same opposition at the same venue in successive conference championships.

The Bengals will be confident of joining that company, however, as they have won all three of their conference championship appearances, a record only bettered by the 5-0 New York Giants.

Cincy are also 3-0 in their past three games against the Chiefs, although the margin of victory has been just three points on each occasion. No team have ever won four consecutive games against a single opponent by exactly three points.

If nothing else, this is familiar territory for the Chiefs, who will have hosted five AFC Championship Games in a row.

No other team in either conference have hosted more than three straight championships, although Kansas City are 2-2 over the first four.

Two days after Andy Reid said Patrick Mahomes would play in Sunday's AFC championship game against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Kansas City Chiefs superstar quarterback reiterated his coach's sentiment.

'"AFC championship week," Mahomes said Wednesday. '"I'm ready to go."

Mahomes confirmed he would play four days after sustaining a high ankle sprain while being tackled by two Jacksonville Jaguars defenders towards the end of the first quarter of Kansas City's 27-20 divisional-round win.

He sat out Saturday's second quarter but after X-rays during the game came back negative, he returned in the second half to lead the Chiefs to a fifth straight AFC title game.

An MRI on Sunday showed no structural damage, and Mahomes said the right ankle is doing much better.

"It's doing good," he said. "I've done a few days of treatment, a few days of rehab. I'm excited to get on the practice field and kind of test it out and see where I'm at. But it's feeling good so far."

Wednesday marked the first of three practices for the Chiefs in preparation for the Bengals. Reid said Mahomes would go through a full practice without any limitations, so it appears the team is not too concerned with the injury.

Before practice, Mahomes was named a finalist for the NFL's Most Valuable Player Award.

The 2018 NFL MVP led the league with 5,250 passing yards and 41 touchdown passes while helping the Chiefs to an AFC-best 14-3 record.

Three of the four quarterbacks who have led their teams to their conference's championship game have been named finalists for the NFL's Most Valuable Player Award.

Kansas City Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes, Philadelphia Eagles' Jalen Hurts and Cincinnati Bengals' Joe Burrow are among the five finalists announced on Wednesday.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson were also tabbed as finalists.

Mahomes, the current betting favourite to win the honour for the second time in his career, Hurts and Jefferson are also finalists for Offensive Player of the Year along with Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

The 2018 NFL MVP led the league with 5,250 passing yards and 41 touchdown passes while helping the Chiefs to an AFC-best 14-3 record. Top-seeded Kansas City will host Burrow's Bengals in the conference title game on Sunday.

Hurts compiled 3,701 passing yards, 760 rushing yards and 35 total touchdowns to lead the Eagles to a 14-3 record and the NFC's No. 1 seed. Philadelphia will host a San Francisco 49ers team guided by quarterback Brock Purdy, one of three finalists for Offensive Rookie of the Year, in Sunday's conference championship.

Purdy, the final pick of the 2022 draft who has gone 7-0 since replacing an injured Jimmy Garoppolo, is joined by Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker and New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson as finalists.

San Francisco's stout defence was also represented with end Nick Bosa one of three finalists for Defensive Player of the Year. Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons, the runner-up for the award last season, and Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones are also up for the honour.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was also named a finalist for NFL Coach of the Year along with the New York Giants' Brian Daboll and Jacksonville Jaguars' Doug Pederson, both of whom directed their teams to playoff appearances in their first seasons.

San Francisco garnered two other award finalists in running back Christian McCaffrey and defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans. McCaffrey joins Giants running Saquon Barkley and Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith as candidates for Comeback Player of the Year, while Ryans is a finalist for Assistant Coach of the Year.

Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen and Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson are the other Assistant Coach of the Year finalists.

The Defensive Rookie of the Year award will go to either Jets cornerback Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson or Seahawks corner Tariq Woolen.

All of this season's winners will be announced at the NFL Honors event in Phoenix on February 9, three days before Super Bowl LVII will be held at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizozna.

Voting was conducted before the start of the playoffs by a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the league.

Josh Allen confirmed he will not undergo offseason surgery on his troublesome elbow as he reflected on the Buffalo Bills' season after crashing out of the playoffs against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.

Allen suffered his elbow injury in the Bills' Week 9 loss to the New York Jets in early November, and despite trying to tough his way through it, it clearly affected his play.

The month of November was easily his worst of the season, throwing only four touchdowns with five interceptions over four games while also sporting a passer rating of 75.9 – far below the 98.8 figure he either reached or eclipsed in September, October, December and January.

Although his stats rebounded in the lead-up to and during the playoffs, Allen still appeared to be struggling with his elbow on certain throws, and he could only lead the Bills to one touchdown in the 27-10 elimination loss at home to the Bengals.

Speaking to the media on Monday, Allen acknowledged the pain in his elbow messed with his throwing mechanics but said the rehabilitation plan is simple.

"Rest and recovery is going to be really good for it," he said. "I mean, there was a period, obviously, right after, for a few weeks, where it was pretty bothersome – but again, it didn't affect me all that much.

"I just felt like maybe I was trying to throw it a little differently mechanically, had to change a few things and got away a little bit from how I'm used to throwing the ball. That's just a by-product of that.

"I think, really, two weeks ago is when I felt like I got back to mechanically what I like. Being the rotational thrower, it's very elbow prevalent, and maybe I got a little bit to more of a linear-type deal because I just couldn't really use all that much force and flicking it out there, but, again, just adapting."

When asked about what will stick with him from the 2022 season, Allen said he was proud of how his team came together during a string of traumatic events – including a deadly blizzard in Buffalo and the cardiac arrest of safety Damar Hamlin.

"The adversity that this team [has] overcome," he said. "There's a lot of stuff that happened to a football team that I don't know if it's ever happened before. 

"Just battling through that with the guys in this locker room and us trusting each other. Obviously, we want to win, make no mistake about it. But I'm proud of how this team was able to fight through some of the stuff that we went through."

That sentiment was echoed by defensive leader Von Miller, who said: "It's an honour to be a Buffalo Bill. I've never been on a team that handled as much adversity in a season."

Patrick Mahomes is set on playing in the AFC Championship Game despite his ankle injury, says Andy Reid.

Mahomes sat out the second quarter on Saturday as the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional round.

He sustained a right ankle injury while being tackled by two Jaguars defenders towards the end of the first quarter.

The MVP favourite was listed as questionable but returned for the second half and, despite struggling to move freely, helped Kansas City win 27-20 and reach the conference title game for a fifth successive season.

Mahomes said after the game he would be "good to go" when the Chiefs face the Cincinnati Bengals.

And coach Reid told reporters on Monday the 27-year-old had done "amazing things with limited time" as he looks to ensure he can feature.

"He's worked hard in the treatment and is doing okay," Reid told reporters.

"He told you guys. He mentioned to you that he's going to play. That's his mindset. Then we'll just take it day by day and see how he does.

"As far as the reps, I'll have to see how he feels as we get ready for practice."

Reid also suggested the injury is not as serious as that Mahomes suffered at the start of the 2019 season, also against the Jaguars.

The Cincinnati Bengals revelled in causing problems for those who had formed plans for a neutral site AFC Championship Game as they defeated the Buffalo Bills to secure another road game at the Kansas City Chiefs.

Victory for the Bills on Sunday, due to the cancelled regular season game between the teams when Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest, would have seen them meet the Chiefs in Atlanta.

The NFL had even set in motion ticket sales, which did great business with the game just a week away, but the alternative plan will not now be required after the Bengals won 27-10 in Buffalo.

Joe Burrow had the Bengals in control from the outset, and he had advice for those who had planned to see the Bills play the Chiefs.

"Better send those refunds," he told CBS.

Coach Zac Taylor added at a news conference with a grin: "We had our minds set to go and play in Kansas City.

"It is tough, because they have to formulate the plans for coin tosses, they have to formulate the plans for neutral site games, and we just keep screwing it up for everybody.

"I hate that for the people who have to endure all those logistical issues. We just keep screwing it up, so I'm sorry."

The Bengals won in Kansas City in last year's AFC Championship Game, and Taylor has no doubts they are capable of a repeat.

"We're built for this," he said. "It doesn't matter what anybody thinks about us.

"We don't care who's favourite and who's not; we're built for this. We're excited to go on the road to Kansas City."

The Bills had been 13-1 in home playoff games in the Super Bowl era, but that record merely provided a source of motivation for Taylor's team.

"In our whole team, you just look at the leadership in every position," he said.

"We talked about last night how they were 13-1 in the playoffs, the best home winning percentage in NFL history. I wanted to show that to the team, because I knew what that would do to them.

"It wouldn't put fear in them that 'oh my God, we're walking into an environment that people don't win in', it was completely the opposite for our guys. It was."

Burrow completed his first nine passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns, putting the Bengals 14-0 up before the Bills had a first down.

"He's the greatest," Taylor said. "He does a great job leading this team, managing situations. The bigger the moment gets, the calmer he gets, and the team feeds off that."

But Burrow was keen to deflect praise onto the offensive line, which was missing key personnel but ensured the quarterback took only a single sack.

"It was one of their best games of the year – rushing, pass blocking," Burrow said. "It might be our most complete game of the year as a team."

Burrow, like Taylor, is confident of the team's chances against the Chiefs, believing they are better now than they were when winning that game last year.

"I think we're a more complete team, I think we're a better team," he explained. "We just seem to make plays when it counts. That's all there is to say.

"I think our O-line is better, I think our run game is better, I think our defense is better, I think our special teams is better. We're just overall a much better team than we were last year."

The Cincinnati Bengals will again play the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game after going to the Buffalo Bills and winning 27-10 in the Divisional round on Sunday.

The Bengals went to their third Super Bowl last year after upsetting the Chiefs in the conference title game, and they will get the opportunity to repeat that feat next week.

Damar Hamlin, recovering after his cardiac arrest in the regular season meeting between the teams, was in the building to see the Bills, but Joe Burrow kept his cool with a clinical display in snowy conditions to cut short Buffalo's season.

The Bengals had made a bright start to that Week 17 game before it was halted and did so again in this encounter, taking control before the end of the first quarter.

Burrow completed his first nine passes across two drives for 105 yards and two touchdowns – including a 28-yard TD pass to Ja'Marr Chase – while the Bills had to wait until the second quarter for a first down.

That belated drive ended with Josh Allen running in to score, before a second Chase TD was taken off the board following a marginal review.

But a Bengals challenge after halftime resulted in a Joe Mixon TD when he was initially adjudged to have been halted at the goal line following a six-minute drive, and the lead was out to 17 points early in the fourth quarter.

Still Allen could not get the Bills offense to fire, with his last desperate effort an interception thrown to Cam Taylor-Britt to seal the Bengals' 10th straight win.

Damar Hamlin met with his Buffalo Bills team-mates ahead of their AFC Divisional playoff clash with the Cincinnati Bengals, three weeks on from his cardiac arrest.

The safety collapsed during the first quarter of the pair's Week 17 clash on January 2, and was hospitalised in serious condition after receiving treatment on the field.

But the 2021 draft pick has continued to show a remarkable improvement since, with coach Sean McDermott revealing earlier this week that he had been attending the team's training facility.

Now, Hamlin has gone one step further after missing last week's opening playoff win against the Miami Dolphins in making the trip to Highmark Stadium for the Bills' crunch clash.

Video footage posted on social media showed him in attendance alongside members of his family, ahead of kick-off in the Sunday encounter.

In Hamlin's absence, Buffalo won a taut opening playoff encounter with Miami last week, running out 34-31 victors at Orchard Park.

Josh Allen threw for three touchdowns in all, with the hosts holding their nerve to keep their visitors at bay in the final quarter.

The winner of the Bills-Bengals match will meet the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game next weekend.

An emotionally charged encounter is on the cards when the Buffalo Bills host the Cincinnati Bengals in the Divisional round given the events when the two sides met just over two weeks ago.

In the Week 17 contest in Cincinnati, Damar Hamlin's collapse and cardiac arrest brought the NFL to a standstill.

Now, the Bills will continue to be spurred on by news of Hamlin's improving health throughout the playoffs – not that they have needed much help of late.

A 34-31 Wild Card victory against the Miami Dolphins was the third playoff game in a row in which they have scored at least 34 points. Prior to this run, the Bills had tallied 34 or more points in just five of their first 34 playoff games.

Buffalo are 11-2 in the postseason when scoring at least 28 points, compared to a 7-17 record when scoring 27 or fewer.

The Bills will have confidence in Josh Allen to lead them to another big score after his latest impressive playoff showing. His 352 passing yards against the Dolphins last week represented the third-best such performance by a Bills quarterback in the playoffs, behind only Jim Kelly (405 in the 1989 Divisional round) and Doug Flutie (360 in the 1998 Wild Card round).

It was Allen's fourth playoff game with at least 300 passing yards and multiple touchdown passes, making him one of only 10 players in NFL history to have at least four such games. He has only played seven playoff games in total.

The Bengals might represent a step up, however, with this the first game at the Divisional round or earlier in NFL history to have both teams entering on winning streaks of at least eight games.

Both previous playoff encounters between the sides have gone in the Bengals' favour, although their last postseason meeting was in the 1988 season.

The Bengals reached this stage with a 24-17 victory against the Baltimore Ravens, which made this the first time they have had wins in back-to-back postseasons.

Even so, they have a knack for close playoff games, with their last six all decided by seven or fewer points.

To come out on top in another tight matchup, the Bengals will need to do a better job of protecting Joe Burrow, who was sacked four times against the Ravens and has been sacked 23 times in his five career playoff games, tied with Wade Wilson from 1987 to 1989 for the most through a QB's first five playoff starts since at least 1970.

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott revealed Damar Hamlin has returned to visiting the team's facility "almost daily", offering a major boost ahead of their AFC Divisional round game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.

Hamlin was discharged from hospital last week after being in a critical condition having suffered a cardiac arrest in the January 2 game against the Bengals in Cincinnati.

The Bills safety continues to progress on his road to recovery, which McDermott outlined ahead of their rematch against the Bengals for the first time since the incident.

"Damar is in the building now, almost starting daily," McDermott told reporters. "So that's good news. As he continues to improve, that certainly helps.

"That experience, we'll carry that with us. There's a challenge to that, but there's also a lot of good that comes with that. Right now, we need to focus on the positives that came out of that as opposed to the other piece of that."

McDermott said Hamlin's participation was still "limited", not partaking in team meetings or anything physical.

"He comes in and really just started today or yesterday and just trying to get back to a little bit of a routine and just get himself acclimated again and taking it one step, one baby step at a time here," he said.

"Kind of get himself dipping his toe back in here and you know, getting on the road to just getting back to himself."

It remains unclear if Hamlin will attend Sunday's game at Bills Stadium, having watched Sunday's 34-31 victory over the Miami Dolphins remotely.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen added that the players were boosted by Hamlin's return and the emotional trauma of the incident was easing to an extent.

"I think there's honestly not too much left over," he said. "Obviously with guys being able to see Damar, guys being able to see him and talk with him, that alleviates most of that.

"I'm not saying there's going to be none, I can't speak for everyone on the team, but we're extremely focused right now, having a good week of preparation. We'll try to go out there on Sunday and execute."

The Bengals enter the Divisional round game on a nine-game winning streak, seeking back-to-back AFC Championship Game appearances. Since Week 9, Cincinnati have the third best points per game and second best points per game differential in the NFL.

Despite that, the Bills are regarded as favourites for the game, given their emotional lift, home ground advantage and having finished as the AFC second seed, but Bengals head coach Zac Taylor does not view his side as underdogs.

"We know that we're the defending AFC champions," Taylor told reporters. "There's an edge to this team, we're not an underdog. That's been the feeling the whole season. We know we belong in the field with every team."