Key takeaways and analysis from the conference title games

Sunday Rundown recaps the most important developments from the day's action and examines their significance moving forward.

Eagles 55 - Commanders 23

Bully ball wins big

The run game is so back.

Offenses were always going to have a clear opportunity on the ground with defenses doing anything and everything they can to limit explosive passing plays. The Eagles have taken advantage of this better than anyone, and it's the primary reason they're playing in the Super Bowl for the second time in three years.

Saquon Barkley's historic season continued in Sunday's NFC title game as he got things started with a 60-yard score on Philly's first offensive play. That was his third run of at least 60 yards this postseason, a new single-season playoff record.

The fast start was a sign of things to come as Washington was simply overmatched in the run game. The Eagles finished the day at 229 rushing yards, with Barkley, Jalen Hurts, and backup running back Will Shipley combining for seven touchdowns on the ground - the most in a playoff game since 1940.

Philly's 55-point effort sets a new scoring record for a conference championship game. That kind of offensive firepower is difficult enough to match on its own. But it's only part of what makes this team so great.

Defense dominates, too

Complementing an unstoppable run game with perhaps the best defense in football should make the Eagles the team to beat in New Orleans.

Somehow flying under the radar amid an offensive explosion, Philly's defense finished the regular season ranked second in EPA, according to TruMedia. That mark is buoyed by a first-place standing against the run. The Commanders managed to move the ball with some consistency this week, but Philly's penchant for taking the ball away ensured that it didn't much matter.

A pair of early fumble recoveries put the offense in position for an extra 14 points. Just when it seemed like the Commanders might mount a late comeback, another punch-out sealed it.

That's now nine forced fumbles - five recoveries - in three playoff games. In total, the Eagles have taken the ball away 10 times while not giving up a single turnover of their own. Recipes for success don't get much better than that.

No shame in defeat

The Commanders are bound to be disappointed with their mistakes in their unlikely NFC title game appearance. Turning the ball over four times on the road against a team with an overwhelming talent advantage makes it pretty much impossible to win. But Washington's season was a smashing success nonetheless.

Remember, this team had zero expectations entering 2024. Some meaningful improvements over last season's 4-13 effort would've been more than enough for the first year of a full-scale rebuild. But nothing accelerates a timeline quite like hitting on a quarterback early in the draft.

The new Commanders regime also deserves plenty of credit for both changing the culture and quickly overhauling the roster with some savvy free-agent additions. But this season was all about the best rookie quarterback the NFL has ever seen.

Jayden Daniels took his game to yet another level in the playoffs and, despite the result, didn't look the least bit out of place in a conference championship game. The Commanders have a real opportunity to build something special around a star quarterback on a rookie contract. Look for Washington to make some big moves this offseason.

Refs can do what?

The NFC title game provided a viral moment of sorts when the Commanders committed three consecutive encroachment penalties while trying to stop Philly's goal-line Tush Push. Head referee Shawn Hochuli stopped play and explained that Washington had been warned that officials could "at some point" award a score in response to what they deemed continued intentional fouls.

If that's the first time you've heard of this rule, you aren't alone. But it's in the NFL's rule book.

The more you know. In fairness to the Commanders, jumping the snap may be the only chance teams have to combat the most unstoppable short-yardage play in football.

Chiefs 32 - Bills 29

All they do is win

For most of this season, it's felt like the Chiefs aren't quite as good as their record. Were it not for a few opponents giving the game away late, any number of those one-score victories could have gone the other way. At least that's what those hoping for some parity told themselves.

But here we are again. After coming out on top in a thrilling AFC title game against the Bills, Kansas City is heading back to the Super Bowl with a chance to complete the first-ever three-peat. They're simply unflappable.

The unmatched consistency, of course, starts with the quarterback. From a statistical perspective, this has been the most underwhelming season of Patrick Mahomes' career. His passing numbers are down significantly, and he's taken more sacks than ever. Yet there's no one you'd rather have leading your team in crunch time.

His ability to provide exactly what the Chiefs need, exactly when they need it, showed up again Sunday night. Mahomes set a season high in dropback success rate (64.7%) and dropback EPA (+21.5) against the Bills, according to Next Gen Stats. His timely scrambles were a key piece of the puzzle, as he picked up a career-best six first downs on the ground while recording his first-ever two-touchdown rushing day.

On paper, the Chiefs should probably be considered the underdog against a supremely talented Eagles team. Maybe Philly has what it takes to knock off the two-time defending champs. But we should all have a "believe it when we see it" mindset at this point. The Chiefs remain inevitable.

Spags does it again

Don't overlook the defense's role in Kansas City's sustained success. The Bills did manage 29 points on the day, but it could have been a whole lot more were it not for Steve Spagnuolo creating chaos with his pressure schemes up front.

Josh Allen was under pressure on 45.9% of dropbacks against the Chiefs and completed only 5 of 14 passes for 66 yards on those opportunities, according to Next Gen Stats. Instant pressure on the decisive fourth down seemed to cause Allen to turn away from a perfectly schemed-up throw to Khalil Shakir and left him no choice but to launch a prayer downfield.

Spagnuolo regularly gets overlooked for head coaching opportunities this time of year. Perhaps some of that is because his team is always busy playing until February. But anyone looking for a new leader would be wise to give the veteran coordinator another chance.

The Chiefs' offense will continue to get most of the credit for coming through in big moments, but Spagnuolo's defense is every bit as much of a nightmare to go up against.

The refs

Officiating is unfortunately going to be a point of discussion after this one. Josh Allen was deemed short of the line to gain on a fourth-and-1 sneak early in the fourth quarter, and a review upheld the call on the field. At least one angle appears to suggest Allen had enough for a first down, and CBS rules analyst Gene Steratore seemed to agree. Either way, it was as close as it gets.

The Chiefs promptly marched down the field for a touchdown and two-point conversion that put them up by seven. The Bills responded, tying things up with a touchdown drive of their own, but it's fair to assume the game could have ended differently if the controversial call had gone the other way.

While the internet is certain to run wild with conspiracy theories about some sort of Chiefs bias, that's obviously not a real thing. The real issue is officials making mistakes in a difficult job and the NFL not using all technological resources to help them out.

How is the league still counting on two officials running in from the sideline to spot the ball and then measuring with sticks and chains in the year 2025? Replay is there to correct mistakes, but that's only helpful if the ball isn't hidden in a mass of bodies at the line. That's often the case in these situations.

A tracking system was tested in the preseason, so perhaps a solution is just around the corner. But it's still inexcusable that it's taken this long.

Heartbreak for Buffalo

The Bills weren't supposed to be here this year.

Most of the football world saw this season as something of a reset for Buffalo after cap issues led to key departures. But hope quickly returned.

Josh Allen took another major step, and the foundation provided by the coaching staff and front office proved more than capable of masking any perceived deficiencies on the roster. And then there was the Week 11 win over the Chiefs.

Playoff football is always a different animal, but it seemed like the Bills might finally have what it takes to bring down Kansas City on the big stage. The offense had coughed up just eight turnovers in the regular season and none in the first two games of the playoffs. They simply weren't making mistakes.

That turnover-less streak continued against the Chiefs, but it still wasn't enough. This team just can't get over the hump.

Falling to 0-4 against the Chiefs in the playoffs is a difficult pill to swallow. The pressure to earn a different result the next time around will be monumental. But this team is always going to have a chance with Allen leading the way.

They've got to break through at some point, right?