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Which teams will play in Super Bowl 59? Conference championship X-factors

Jim Reineking   Paste BN

This is the Paste BN Sports NFL newsletter, 4th and Monday. If this newsletter isn't already getting conveniently delivered to your inbox, click here to subscribe.

The road to Super Bowl 59 has hit its penultimate stop, the conference championships, a playoff round that has produced some of the most memorable moments in league history. Check it out ...

"The Catch," "The Drive," "The Fumble," "The Ice Bowl," "The Freezer Bowl," that time Richard Sherman called Michael Crabtree a "sorry receiver," that time Brett Favre threw an ill-advised interception, that other time Brett Favre threw an ill-advised interception, that time the Falcons pulled off a stunning upset of the Vikings, that time the Cowboys defeated the 49ers to signal a changing of the guard, that time Peyton Manning finally beat Tom Brady and the Patriots in an AFC title game, that time the Seahawks had a big comeback against the Packers, that time Brady beat the Chiefs in overtime ... you get the idea!

To prepare for the playoff action, we've provided your Friday must-reads 📜:

✔️ Which teams will reach Super Bowl 59? Paste BN Sports experts make their picks.

📈 Which team is biggest Super Bowl threat? Power rankings of the NFL's final four.

And, here, we've carefully selected an X-factor for the NFL conference championship games:

✖️ Washington Commanders at Philadelphia Eagles (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET on FOX) — DT Jalen Carter: Getting to, and stopping, the Commanders' dynamic rookie quarterback, Jayden Daniels, will be paramount for Philadelphia if it hopes to avoid an upset at home and return to the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons. Carter, as well as his defensive line teammate Nolan Smith, will be tasked with keeping Daniels from doing Daniels things, something the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers were unsuccessful in doing during the divisional and wild-card playoff games, respectively.

✖️ Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs (Sunday, 6:30 p.m. ET on CBS) — QB Josh Allen: The Bills' MVP candidate will have to be near-perfect at raucous Arrowhead Stadium if Buffalo is to pull off the upset and prevent a potential Chiefs Super Bowl three-peat. This is the second time that the Bills and Chiefs have met recently in the AFC title game, with Kansas City prevailing four years ago. After that, the Chiefs defeated the Bills twice in the divisional round (including in an all-time classic three years ago). On top of that shared history, the Chiefs are riding an eight-game playoff win streak. The Bills are going to have to be on the top of their game, starting with Allen, if they hope to reach the franchise's first Super Bowl in 31 years.

NFL news, notes and analysis

➤ Ranking top 25 free agents for 2025: With the league down to its final four, it's not too early to start thinking about the offseason and the free-agent frenzy that is to come in March.

➤ Head coach vacancy musical chairs: The open positions with the Bears, Jets and (seemingly) Jaguars have been filled, leaving the Cowboys, Raiders and Saints still looking for their leading men. Many would think the Bears won big with their hire, but Jarrett Bell is here to remind us that Ben Johnson is a total unknown as a head coach.

➤ Team reverses course after two weeks, splits with GM: Trent Baalke won't be leading the Jaguars into the team's next era after all.

➤ Mock draft: The latest first-round projection is filled with players from the recently crowned national champions, Ohio State.

NFL playoff schedule

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sunday, Jan. 26

SUPER BOWL 59

Sunday, Feb. 9

  • AFC champion vs. NFC champion (in New Orleans), 6:30 p.m. ET (FOX)

DIVISIONAL ROUND RESULTS

WILD CARD WEEKEND RESULTS

🏆 All-time Super Bowl winners

NFL classic: Straight from the YouTube algorithm 🏈🎞️

This is where we reprise some NFL lore and recall a classic, memorable game from yesteryear.

The Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders have been squaring off regularly since the 1934 NFL season. Yet, only once have these two franchises faced off in the postseason.

The playoff game itself is largely forgettable … Washington prevailed rather easily, 20-6, in a 1990 NFC wild-card playoff game. A week later, Washington was defeated by the San Francisco 49ers in the divisional round.

What wasn't forgettable was the regular-season meeting before the playoff matchup between Philadelphia and Washington. In what has gone down in NFL lore as the "Body Bag Game," Eagles coach Buddy Ryan had boasted ahead of the game with Washington that "they’ll have to be carted off in body bags." Washington suffered a series of key injuries, including to two quarterbacks (running back/return specialist Brian Mitchell had to fill in behind center), in a 28-14 loss. Less than two months later, Washington got the last laugh at Veterans Stadium by delivering yet another disappointing playoff defeat to the Eagles.

Washington had to wait another year to achieve Super Bowl glory, winning Super Bowl 26 against the Bills. That 1991 season represented the last NFC title game appearance for Washington until this season, and the franchise's last Super Bowl triumph.

But, wait, there's more ...

Yes, that epic divisional playoff game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills three years ago is too obvious … and too recent. Again, yours truly enjoys an NFL classic in grainy non-HD, preferably from the pre-score bug era.

Three times before this season the Bills and Chiefs squared off for a spot in the Super Bowl, most recently in 2020. During the 1993 season, a Joe Montana vs. Jim Kelly quarterback matchup didn't exactly produce the offensive fireworks some had expected (Dave Krieg actually was the game's passing leader after Montana had to leave with a concussion). The Bills, of course, won and went on to a fourth consecutive Super Bowl appearance.

The two teams also met in the 1966 AFL championship game, with the winner getting to go up against Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers in the first Super Bowl (then called the first AFL–NFL World Championship Game ... they were probably smart to change the name!). The Chiefs rolled to a 31-7 win at Buffalo's War Memorial Stadium.

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