Page 35 - Florida Sentinel 1-17-20

Sports
Titans Vs Chiefs - AFC Championship Game Sunday At 3:05 p.m.
Packers Vs. 49ers - Both
The Tennessee Titans (11-7) travel to Kansas City this week to play the Chiefs (13-4) in the AFC championship game. Kick- off at Arrowhead Stadium (ca- pacity 76,416) is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. CST on Sunday, Jan. 19.
The winner will represent the AFC in Super Bowl LIV, which is scheduled for Feb. 2 in Miami Gardens, Fla. The AFC champion will face the winner of Sunday's NFC championship matchup in San Francisco be- tween the 49ers and the Green Bay Packers (5:40 p.m. CST).
This week marks the second playoff game between the Ti- tans and Chiefs in a three-year span. The Titans defeated the Chiefs 22-21 in a wild card game at Kansas City following the 2017 campaign. However, in three all-time playoff meet- ings between the two charter American Football League clubs, the Chiefs own a 2-1 ad- vantage.
In the last two playoff games, the Titans have faced and defeated NFL's top-ranked scoring defense in the New England Patriots (14.1 points allowed per game in 2019) and the league's top ranked scoring offense in the Ravens (33.2 points per game).
The Titans defense recorded three takeaways—two interceptions and one fumble recovery—and added four sacks at Baltimore. They also denied the Ravens on four fourth-
NFC Championship Game
RYAN TANNEHILL AND PATRICK MAHOMES
The Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers were in- volved in one of the most lop- sided meetings of playoff qualifiers in the regular season.
In Week 12, the 49ers rocked the Packers 37-8 in a prime-time showdown that helped the NFC West side earn one of the edges that handed it home-field advan- tage.
Kyle Shanahan's team de- feated three of the five other playoff sides in the NFC, and it is considered the conference fa- vorite to advance to Super Bowl LIV in Miami.
That trend could help the Packers remain competitive in the NFC Championship Game, but the 49ers are also capable of opening up a double-digit gap, similar to what they did versus the Minnesota Vikings in the di- visional round.
Preview: San Francisco controlled every aspect of its ini- tial showdown with the Packers this season.
The 49ers earned 339 total yards compared to 198 from the Packers, and it held the NFC North side to 2-of-18 on third and fourth downs.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo produced 253 pass- ing yards, which was 149 more than Aaron Rodgers racked up.
In the divisional-round win over Minnesota, the NFC West winner produced nine quarter- back hits and six take downs against Kirk Cousins.
AARON RODGERS AND JIMMY GAROPPOLO
Nick Bosa was the lead en- forcer with three quarterback hits, two sacks and two tackles for loss.
By getting into the backfield, the 49ers contained the Min- nesota running backs to 21 yards on 10 carries.
The goal on Sunday will be to take out Aaron Jones and Ja- maal Williams and create more pressure on Aaron Rodgers.
Prediction: San Francisco 27, Green Bay 14
As it was in Week 12, the di- visional round and most of the regular season, the 49ers defense should be the difference-maker in the NFC Championship Game.
By keeping Rodgers and Co. off the field with an effective rushing attack, the 49ers could pull away while holding their fifth opponent under 20 points at home.
Packers vs. 49ers Betting Odds: The 49ers opened as 7- point favorites, but they’re now sitting at -7.5 at FanDuel. The over/under, meanwhile, sits at 45 as of Tuesday.
down attempts, including a pair of fourth-and-one stops.
Running back Derrick Henry rushed for 195 yards against the Baltimore Ravens and added a touchdown pass to wide receiverCorey Davis. Henry became the first player in the Super Bowl era (1966– present) to rush for 180 or more yards in three consecu- tive regular season and/or postseason games. Addition- ally, his 561 career playoff rush- ing yards set a record for the largest total in the Super Bowl era in a player's first four post- season games.
As the AFC's second seed in the playoffs, the Chiefs had a bye in the wild card round. They hosted the Houston Tex- ans in the divisional round and won 51-31 after trailing 24-0 in the first half. It was the biggest
comeback in Chiefs history, and it tied for fourth-largest comeback by any NFL team in postseason history.
Under Andy Reid, who is in his seventh season as Kansas City's head coach, the Chiefs have clinched six postseason berths, including the last four AFC West titles (2016-19). They hosted the conference championship game last season as well, falling in overtime to the eventual Super Bowl cham- pion New England Patriots.
In his third NFL season, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes appeared in 14 games and passed for 4,031 yards and 26 touchdowns with only five interceptions (105.3 passer rating). The reigning NFL MVP leads the league over the past two seasons with 75 touchdown passes.
Teams Healthy Heading Into
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