Cincinnati upbeat for AFC rematch

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs have lost three consecutive games to the Cincinnati Bengals, including last year’s AFC title game, when they blew an early 21-3 lead in an overtime defeat before a sea of stunned fans inside Arrowhead Stadium.

Patrick Mahomes, who expects to lead the Chiefs against the Bengals on a sprained right ankle in tonight’s rematch, is likewise winless against Bengals counterpart Joe Burrow, the only quarterback to have beaten him three consecutive times.

In other words, there’s a reason the AFC North champions are imbued with a certain degree of confidence as they return to Kansas City, where the burgeoning rivals will once again determine who represents the AFC in the Super Bowl.

“Your preparation leads to confidence. That’s just what you see from Joe and all of our players,” explained the evenkeeled Bengals Coach Zac Taylor, who has somehow outschemed, out-coached and gotten his team to out-execute Andy Reid and his Chiefs over the past 13 months. “So when they walk on the field on Sunday, they’re relaxed.”

In fact, the Bengals are so confident that some have taken to calling the Chiefs’ home “Burrowhead Stadium.”

Which, as you can imagine, doesn’t sit well with the AFC West champs.

“I’m sure a lot of guys are aware of the comments they’re making,” Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster admitted. “The Bengals have always been the rah-rah team, and they back it up. And they’re doing so again in the postseason.”

Yet it’s not as if the Bengals, who roared past the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round, have dominated the Chiefs, who took care of the Jacksonville Jaguars despite losing Mahomes for most of a quarter following his injury.

All three of their meetings have been decided by just three points each.

“We know what team we’re playing, a team that has been to this game the last five seasons, and they’ve all been in that stadium,” Burrow said. “So to me, they’re still the team to beat and we’re coming for them, but we know it’s going to be tough. We know it’s going to be hard-fought, and we know the kind of players they have on that side.”

Their matchup in last year’s title game was a classic. Mahomes threw three first-half touchdown passes, then Burrow led a dramatic comeback for Cincinnati. And when the Chiefs’ Harrison Butker kicked a 41-yard field goal with no time left to send the game to overtime, the Bengals quickly picked off Mahomes to set up Evan McPherson’s winning kick.

“Listen, they probably should be confident. They’ve won three games,” said Reid, who is trying to guide Kansas City back to the Super Bowl for the third time in four seasons. “That’s OK. We’re still going to play the game.”

Besides, the Chiefs have a quiet confidence about them, too.

“I would say they know us. We know them. And we’re all searching for that little extra that you can throw at them,” Reid said. “We’ve played each other enough that I’m sure both sides feel the same way.”

The Chiefs’ All-Pro quarterback practiced as usual this week, and Mahomes’ ailing right ankle did not appear more heavily taped than the left. His ability to scramble is a big part of his game, though, particularly when it comes to finding time to make off-schedule throws, and any hesitation could be costly for Kansas City’s offense.

“It’s about being a competitor,” Mahomes said this week. “You want to be out there, especially in these games.”