When the host city for this year’s Super Bowl was announced in December 2021, it aroused widespread excitement.
One of the most significant annual athletic events? Staged in what many consider to be the world’s entertainment capital?
That’s right, the NFL Championship Game will be place in Las Vegas for the first time on February 11th.
And this Sunday, during the Conference Championships, the NFL’s best stars will compete for the opportunity to shine on the Strip.
Only four teams left on the path to Super Bowl 58, with the defending champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, hoping to solidify an NFL dynasty after winning two crowns in the previous four years.
The Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers hope to return to the big game after being among the NFL’s top teams in recent years, while the Detroit Lions are the underdogs looking to make history.
Jackson’sees a heavyweight match-up’ with Mahomes
After winning an exciting Super Bowl last year, the Kansas City Chiefs have advanced to the AFC Championship game for the sixth consecutive season, but this is the first time they have had to play on the road in the playoffs.
They went to Buffalo last week and defeated the Bills to earn a trip to Baltimore, which won the top spot in the AFC Conference with the NFL’s best regular season record (13-4).
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, 27, is the frontrunner to win Most Valuable Player for the second time and will play Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the reigning MVP.
They, along with Aaron Rodgers, are the only current MVP winners in the NFL. Mahomes, 28, has won three of his past four matchups against Jackson.
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“I don’t like competing against him at all,” Jackson joked this week. “I believe it’s two rising stars going head-to-head, like a heavyweight fight. “That is what I see.”
While Jackson and the Ravens have typically been dominant during the regular season, they have struggled to maintain that form in the playoffs.
Jackson’s win over Houston last week was only his second in five postseason games, but he is now one win away from a Super Bowl appearance, which many believe he deserves.
If the Ravens make it to the big game, it will be the first time since they defeated San Francisco to win their second Super Bowl in 2013.
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Will the Chiefs’ famed new fans steal the show again?
This season, interest in Kansas City has increased, but it has been due to events off the pitch. Travis Kelce’s relationship with Taylor Swift has prompted a slew of new followers, including the music superstar herself, to join ‘Chiefs Kingdom’.
When not performing on her Eras tour, the singer-songwriter has attended as many games as possible, with TV cameras frequently catching her celebrating in a suite with Kelce’s family and friends, including Mahomes’ wife Brittany.
However, Travis’ 36-year-old brother Jason, who played on the opposing team in last year’s Super Bowl, stole the show last Sunday.
alongside his Philadelphia Eagles team eliminated from the playoffs the week before, Jason Kelce joined Swift in a chilly Buffalo to celebrate his younger brother’s first touchdown in eight games by removing his shirt, diving into the throng, and sipping a beer alongside Bills fans.
Travis Kelce’s second score propelled him and Mahomes beyond Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski for the most touchdown connections in playoff history (16). Although Kansas City’s offence has been far from its best this season, the Chiefs used their postseason experience to defeat the Bills.
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