NEW FACES ON CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND: The NFL will have a new Super Bowl Champion for a 15th consecutive
season as four teams vie to secure their place in Super Bowl LIV. In the AFC
Championship Game, presented by Intuit TurboTax, the TENNESSEE
TITANS (11-7) take on the KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (13-4),
while the GREEN BAY PACKERS (14-3) travel to Levi’s Stadium to
take on the SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (14-3) in the NFC Championship
Game, presented by Intuit TurboTax.
Of
the teams appearing on Championship Sunday, three teams – Green Bay, San
Francisco and Tennessee – missed the postseason in 2018, marking the sixth
time that at least three teams have advanced to the Championship games after
failing to make the postseason the previous year since the NFL instituted the
12-team playoff format in 1990 and the second time in the past three seasons.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: With a 28-12 victory over the
No. 1 seed Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Divisional Playoffs, the TENNESSEE
TITANS (11-7) became the sixth No. 6 seed to advance to a
Conference Championship since the NFL instituted the current 12-team playoff
format in 1990 and first since the GREEN BAY PACKERS and NEW
YORK JETS in 2010.
With
a win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday (3:05 PM ET, CBS), Tennessee
would join the 2010 GREEN BAY PACKERS and the
2005 PITTSBURGH STEELERS as the only No. 6 seeds to appear in
the Super Bowl since 1990 when the NFL instituted the current 12-team playoff
format. Both the Packers and Steelers would go on to win the Super Bowl in
those seasons.
The No. 6 seeds to reach the Super Bowl since the NFL instituted
the current 12-team playoff format in 1990:
|
SEASON
|
TEAM
|
CONFERENCE
|
ADVANCED
TO
|
|
2010
|
Green Bay
|
NFC
|
Won
Super Bowl XLV
|
|
2005
|
Pittsburgh
|
AFC
|
Won
Super Bowl XL
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2019
|
Tennessee
|
AFC
|
??
|
Additionally,
Tennessee could also join the 2010 Green Bay Packers and 2005
Pittsburgh Steelers as the only teams to defeat each of the top three seeds in
their conference in a single postseason since 1990.
KING HENRY CONTINUES HIS REIGN: Tennessee running back DERRICK
HENRY rushed for a postseason franchise-record 195 yards in the
Titans’ Divisional Playoff win last week. After rushing for 182 yards and a
touchdown on Wild Card Weekend against New England, Henry became the first
player with at least 180 rushing yards in consecutive postseason games in NFL
history.
With
at least 150 rushing yards on Sunday, Henry would join Pro Football
Hall of Famer TERRELL DAVIS (1998-99) as the only players with
at least 150 rushing yards in three consecutive postseason games in NFL history.
With
at least 123 rushing yards on Sunday against Kansas City (3:05 PM ET, CBS),
Henry would join Pro Football Hall of Famers JOHN RIGGINS (610
rushing yards in 1982) and TERRELL DAVIS (581 in 1997) as
the only players with at least 500 rushing yards in a single postseason in NFL
history.
The players with the most rushing yards in a single postseason in
NFL history:
|
PLAYER
|
TEAM
|
SEASON
|
RUSHING
YARDS
|
|
John RigginsHOF
|
Washington
|
1982
|
610
|
|
Terrell DavisHOF
|
Denver
|
1997
|
581
|
|
Terrell DavisHOF
|
Denver
|
1998
|
468
|
|
Marcus AllenHOF
|
LA Raiders
|
1983
|
466
|
|
Eddie George
|
Tennessee
|
1999
|
449
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Derrick Henry
|
Tennessee
|
2019
|
377*
|
|
*Entering Sunday
|
|||
Henry
has 561 rushing yards in four career postseason games. With at least 112
rushing yards on Sunday, he would surpass Pro Football Hall of
Famer TERRELL DAVIS (672 yards) for the most rushing yards
through a player’s first five career postseason games in NFL history.
Henry
led the NFL with 1,540 rushing yards in the regular season in 2019. With a win
on Sunday, Henry would join Pro Football Hall of Famers TERRELL
DAVIS (1998) and EMMITT SMITH (1992-93, 1995), as
well as SHAUN ALEXANDER (2005) as the only single-season
rushing leaders to reach the Super Bowl in the same season.
The single-season rushing leaders to reach the Super Bowl in the
same season:
|
PLAYER
|
TEAM
|
SEASON
|
RUSHING
YARDS
|
SUPER
BOWL
|
|
Shaun Alexander
|
Seattle
|
2005
|
1,880
|
XL
|
|
Terrell DavisHOF
|
Denver
|
1998
|
2,008
|
XXXIII
|
|
Emmitt SmithHOF
|
Dallas
|
1995
|
1,773
|
XXX
|
|
Emmitt SmithHOF
|
Dallas
|
1993
|
1,486
|
XXVIII
|
|
Emmitt SmithHOF
|
Dallas
|
1992
|
1,713
|
XXVII
|
AFC GOES THROUGH CHIEFS KINGDOM: The KANSAS CITY CHIEFS advanced to their second
consecutive AFC Championship Game for the first time in franchise history with
a 51-31 win over Houston in the Divisional Playoffs. In the victory, Kansas
City became the first team to win a game by at least 20 points after
trailing by at least 20 points in the same game in NFL history.
Kansas
City’s comeback in the Divisional Playoffs marked the second comeback of at
least 16 points in the postseason this year after the HOUSTON
TEXANS erased a 16-point deficit in an overtime win over Buffalo on
Wild Card Weekend. This marks the second time in which there have been
two comebacks of at least 16 points in a single postseason in NFL history
(2002).
Kansas
City quarterback PATRICK MAHOMES led the comeback with 321
passing yards and five touchdowns without an interception for a 134.6 passer
rating and added 53 yards on the ground, becoming the first player with
at least 300 passing yards, five touchdown passes, and 50 rushing yards in a
single postseason game in NFL history.
If
Mahomes, who has eight touchdown passes in three career postseason games, has
at least three touchdown passes on Sunday against Tennessee (3:05 PM ET, CBS),
he would tie Pro Football Hall of Famer KURT WARNER (11)
for the most touchdown passes through a player’s first four career postseason
games in NFL history.
The quarterbacks with the most touchdown passes in their first
four postseason games in NFL history:
|
PLAYER
|
TEAM
|
TOUCHDOWN
PASSES
|
|
|
Kurt WarnerHOF
|
St. Louis Rams
|
11
|
|
|
Dan MarinoHOF
|
Miami
|
10
|
|
|
Aaron Rodgers
|
Green Bay
|
10
|
|
|
Alex Smith
|
San Francisco, Kansas City
|
10
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Patrick Mahomes
|
Kansas City
|
8*
|
|
|
*In three games
|
|||
Additionally,
with at least four touchdown passes, Mahomes would become the first
player with at least four touchdown passes in consecutive postseason games in
NFL history.
Chiefs
tight end TRAVIS KELCE recorded postseason career-highs in
receptions (10), receiving yards (134) and receiving touchdowns (three) last
week, becoming the third tight end with at least three touchdown
receptions in a single postseason game in the Super Bowl era.
If
Kelce, who has three career postseason games with at least 100 receiving yards,
has at least 100 receiving yards against Tennessee (3:05 PM ET, CBS), he
would tie for the most such career postseason games by a tight end in
NFL history.
The tight ends with the most career postseason games with at least
100 receiving yards in NFL history:
|
PLAYER
|
TEAM
|
GAMES
WITH 100+ RECEIVING YARDS
|
|
Vernon Davis
|
San Francisco
|
4
|
|
Rob Gronkowski
|
New England
|
4
|
|
Keith Jackson
|
Philadelphia, Miami, Green
Bay
|
4
|
|
Dallas Clark
|
Indianapolis
|
3
|
|
Travis Kelce
|
Kansas City
|
3*
|
|
Greg Olsen
|
Chicago, Carolina
|
3
|
|
*Entering Sunday
|
||
HUNTING MORE TITLES IN TITLETOWN: The GREEN BAY PACKERS advanced to their
first Conference Championship since 2016 with a 28-23 victory over Seattle in
the Divisional Playoffs. With the victory, Green Bay tied the DALLAS
COWBOYS (35 wins) for the third-most postseason victories in NFL
history.
With
a win against the 49ers, who rank fifth on the all-time list with 31 postseason
wins, on Sunday (6:40 PM ET, FOX), the Packers would tie the PITTSBURGH
STEELERS (36 wins) for the second-most postseason victories in NFL
history.
The teams with the most postseason wins in NFL history:
|
TEAM
|
WINS
|
SUPER
BOWL WINS
|
|
New England
|
37
|
6
|
|
Pittsburgh
|
36
|
6
|
|
Dallas
|
35
|
5
|
|
Green Bay
|
35
|
4
|
|
San Francisco
|
31
|
5
|
Green Bay head coach MATT LAFLEUR became the first head coach to reach a Conference Championship in his first season since JIM HARBAUGH led San Francisco to the NFC Championship Game in 2011.
With
a win on Sunday, LaFleur would become the sixth rookie head coach to
appear in the Super Bowl.
The rookie head coaches to appear in the Super Bowl:
|
HEAD COACH
|
TEAM
|
SEASON
|
RESULT
|
|
Don McCafferty
|
Baltimore Colts
|
1970
|
W
16-13, Super Bowl V
|
|
Red Miller
|
Denver
|
1977
|
L
27-10, Super Bowl XII
|
|
George Seifert
|
San Francisco
|
1989
|
W
55-10, Super Bowl XXIV
|
|
Bill Callahan
|
Oakland
|
2002
|
L
48-21, Super Bowl XXXVII
|
|
Jim Caldwell
|
Indianapolis
|
2009
|
L
31-17, Super Bowl XLIV
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Matt LaFleur
|
Green Bay
|
2019
|
??
|
With LaFleur (40 years, 66 days old) and San Francisco head coach KYLE SHANAHAN (40 years, 36 days old), Sunday’s NFC Championship Game will be the first Conference Championship Game featuring two head coaches under the age of 41 since 1970.
Green
Bay quarterback AARON RODGERS passed for 243 yards and two
touchdowns without an interception for a 113.7 passer rating last week, marking
Rodgers’ sixth consecutive postseason game with at least two touchdown passes.
With
at least two touchdown passes on Sunday, Rodgers would tie Pro Football
Hall of Famers TERRY BRADSHAW (seven games) and JOE
MONTANA (seven), as well as DREW BREES (seven), for
the second-longest streak of postseason games with at least two touchdown
passes in NFL history. Only JOE FLACCO (eight games) had a
longer such streak in league history.
Additionally,
with two touchdown passes, Rodgers would tie PEYTON MANNING (40)
for the fourth-most career postseason touchdown passes in NFL history.
The players with the most career postseason touchdown passes in
NFL history:
|
PLAYER
|
TEAM(S)
|
TOUCHDOWN
PASSES
|
|
Tom Brady
|
New England
|
73
|
|
Joe MontanaHOF
|
San Francisco, Kansas City
|
45
|
|
Brett FavreHOF
|
Green Bay, Minnesota
|
44
|
|
Peyton Manning
|
Indianapolis, Denver
|
40
|
|
Aaron Rodgers
|
Green Bay
|
38*
|
|
*Entering Sunday
|
|
|
Rodgers,
who has 4,700 passing yards in 17 career postseason starts, needs at least 300
passing yards on Sunday to become the sixth player with at least 5,000
career postseason passing yards in NFL history, joining TOM BRADY (11,388), PEYTON
MANNING (7,339), Pro Football Hall of Famers BRETT FAVRE (5,855)
and JOE MONTANA (5,772), and BEN ROETHLISBERGER (5,256).
NEW GOLDEN ERA: With a 27-10 win over
Minnesota in the Divisional Playoffs, the SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS became
the fifth team since 1990 to advance to a Championship Game after
winning four-or-fewer games the previous season, and the second team in three
years, joining the JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS in 2017.
With
a victory on Sunday against Green Bay (6:40 PM ET, FOX), San Francisco head
coach KYLE SHANAHAN, whose father – MIKE SHANAHAN – won
Super Bowl XXXII and XXXIII as head coach of the DENVER BRONCOS,
would become the first father-son duo to each appear in a Super Bowl as a head
coach in NFL history.
In
their Divisional Playoff victory, the 49ers defense tallied six team sacks,
tied for the second-most in a single postseason game in franchise history.
With
at least six sacks on Sunday against Green Bay, the 2019 San Francisco 49ers
would join the 1984 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS as the only
teams with at least six sacks in two consecutive postseason games in the Super
Bowl era.
49ers
rookie defensive lineman NICK BOSA recorded two sacks in his
postseason debut last week. With at least two sacks on Sunday, Bosa would join LAMARR
WOODLEY as the only players with at least two sacks in each of their
first two postseason games since 1982, when the individual sack became an
official statistic. Bosa would also become the first rookie to
accomplish the feat since 1982.
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