We just bore witness to the greatest weekend in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøplayoff history.
Remember a week ago, when most were lamenting the lopsided nature of Super Wild Card Weekend? The Wild Card Round suffered so we could get the most entertaining weekend in football history with four thrillers.
All four Divisional Round games were won with no time remaining in regulation or in overtime, the most such finishes in an entire postseason in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøhistory, according to ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷ÍøResearch.
The four Divisional Round games were decided by a combined total of 15 points, for an average margin of victory of 3.8 points per game, the lowest average margin of victory in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøplayoff history in a round with at least four games.
The weekend kicked off with the Cincinnati Bengals staving off a collapse against the Tennessee Titans with a late interception, another Joe Burrow-Ja'Marr Chase connection, and Evan McPherson nailing a 52-yard field goal.
Then the San Francisco 49ers rallied in Green Bay, using a blocked punt to tie a low-scoring bout, pummeling presumptive ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷ÍøMVP Aaron Rodgers and setting up a Robbie Gould 45-yarder to upset the Packers at Lambeau Field.
The Los Angeles Rams almost became Tom Brady's latest conquest, as L.A. gave up a 27-3 lead to the reigning Super Bowl champs with TB12 guiding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers into a tie game with 42 seconds remaining. But Matthew Stafford beat the Bucs blitz, and Cooper Kupp got wide open deep, setting up Matt Gay's revenge on a 30-yard winner. Gay's field goal marked the third game in which the winning points were scored with no time left in the fourth quarter, the most such finishes in an entire postseason -- let alone a single weekend -- in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøhistory.
The prelude set up the wildest, most entertaining game in a weekend of unforgettable memories.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills lit up the scoreboard late, with Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen proving every bit the superstars we expected them to be. The two QBs combined for 25 points in the final two minutes of regulation. After Allen threw his fourth TD of the night, Mahomes needed just 13 seconds to force overtime. From there, the Chiefs won the coin toss and marched down the field, ending the game on a Travis Kelce TD on the first possession of OT.
The Bills-Chiefs contest was the first playoff game in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøhistory with three go-ahead touchdowns scored in the final two minutes of regulation.
Road teams won three of the four Divisional Round games this weekend, tied for the most road wins in a Divisional Round in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøhistory (2008, 1971).
Each victor overcame tough odds to pull out their wins.
The Bengals won despite Burrow getting sacked nine times, just the second QB to do so, joining K.C.'s Len Dawson in the 1966 AFL Championship.
The 49ers didn't score an offensive touchdown (two FGs, one blocked punt TD), becoming just the third team to win a playoff game without an offensive TD in the last 20 postseasons.
The Rams lost four fumbles, becoming the fourth team to do so in a playoff game and still win in ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøhistory.
And the Chiefs became the first team in postseason history to allow a go-ahead TD in the final 15 seconds of regulation and still win the game.
The stage is now set for a hella entertaining Championship Sunday. The upstart Bengals head to Arrowhead to face a Chiefs team they beat 34-31 in Week 17, and the 49ers are going to L.A. to try to win their seventh straight game over the Rams.
