What happened? The Kansas City Chiefs were on a roll and they had just stunned the Buffalo Bills the prior weekend in one of the most thrilling playoff finishes in memory. Patrick Mahomes was on a roll after an early season slump. He was taking what the defense gave him and letting his playmakers do the rest. The Chiefs seemed unstoppable and they were a touchdown favorite against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Chiefs were in command of the game. They were up 21-3 at one point in the first half. The Bengals cut the lead to 28-3, but then Mahomes worked his magic at the end of the half to set up the Chiefs in the red zone, poised to at least get a field goal before the half. But they got cocky. Mahomes wanted to take another shot with 5 seconds left in the half, and Andy Reid let him do it. But Reid didn’t stress the obvious . . . take your shot but don’t let the clock run out. This play needed a quick read and immediate throw. If it wasn’t there then Mahomes needed to throw it out of bounds. But instead Mahomes threw a flair pass in the flat to Tyreek Hill, but the elusive Hill got tackled in the field of play. Time ran out, and the Chiefs squandered an easy three points.

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Despite being one of the most talented quarterbacks to ever play the game, the legacy of Aaron Rodgers keeps taking more hit with each playoff loss. How many times can he and the Packers come up short in critical playoff games?

The conditions yesterday were atrocious, and both offensive lines had a lot of trouble in pass protection. Still, Rodgers and the Packer offense couldn’t muster much production after their opening touchdown drive. And of course, the Packer special teams unit lived up to its horrible reputation and basically handed the game to the 49ers, but there’s not excuse for Rodgers and this high-octane offense to lay an egg in this game. The Packers entered the game as solid favorites over the Niners and were the clear favorite to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. Jimmy Garopollo was also battling injuries to his throwing hand and shoulder. The Packer defense held up strong, but the offense behind Rodgers didn’t hold up its end of the bargain.

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The NFL continues to cash in, now adding a Monday night playoff game to its annual bundle of playoff goodies.

The game wasn’t very competitive, however, as the Los Angeles Rams bullied Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals. I suggested laying the points in this one and it was pretty much over in the first half.

Murray was a mess the entire game, making one wonder the extent to which he’s still feeling the effects of his ankle injury. We didn’t see the explosive running, but being banged up is reality in the NFL, particularly for quarterbacks who run around. Murray has been playing hero ball all season, and it caught up to him big time last night. The low point was an embarrassing interception where Murray just flung the ball to avoid a sack, leading to an easy pick-six for the Rams.

Meanwhile, Matthew Stafford earned his first playoff victory and Cam Akers returned to spark the Rams running game. The Rams travel to Tampa for a date with Tom Brady and the reigning Super Bowl champs. That one should be fun . . .

The Dallas Cowboy find ways to lose. It’s been a staple of this organization for a while, and Mike McCarthy has kept this tradition going. His clock management has been a disaster all year long, and now his incompetence has helped to lose a playoff game. The quarterback draw with Dak Prescott at the end of the game was inexcusable.

Meanwhile, Kyle Shanahan did his best to keep the Cowboys in the game, dialing up some strange play calls when all he had to do was run out the clock with a lead. Jimmy Garappolo contributed with a brutal interception that gave the Cowboys life. Then Shanahan was afraid to go for it on fourth and inches, giving Dallas another shot.

This game was very entertaining and featured two good teams, but the fourth quarter was a complete mess. Dak Prescott didn’t live up to his enormous contract, and Jimmy G threw one of his signature interceptions to stain what otherwise was a solid performance.

Jerry Jones has put together a decent roster in Dallas, and some of their coaching moves have panned out like the Dan Quinn hire. But Jones needs to take a hard look at his team and probably move on from Mike McCarthy.

The Pittsburgh Steelers somehow snuck into the NFL playoffs after beating two depleted and injured division rivals. But everyone knew this team didn’t belong in the playoffs. And a matchup against the Chiefs was al almost certain blowout in the making. I said on Saturday that the Chiefs -13 was my favorite bet of the day, and they and the Steelers didn’t disappoint.

Ben Roethlisberger has very little left in the tank, and he showed that repeatedly last night. The Steelers defense made some plays early in the game to keep things interesting, but then Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense asserted itself. Travis Kelce had quite a night with receiving and passing TDs to contribute to the laugher.

The Chiefs get the Bills next in what could be one of the best matchups in the playoffs.