The Cincinnati Bengals stunned the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game Sunday, and it didn’t take long for the things to spill over on social media.
The Chiefs were ahead 21-10 when Eli Apple was flagged for defensive pass interference in the end zone, placing the ball at the Bengals’ one-yard line with nine seconds remaining in the second quarter. An incompletion by Patrick Mahomes on the next play left only five seconds on the clock, and instead of adding to their lead, the Chiefs went for it and were stopped just short of the goal line as time expired.
Heading into the locker room, Mahomes appeared to be in cruise control with 220 passing yards and three touchdown passes. The Chiefs looked to be in the driver’s seat until the Bengals roared back, outscoring Kansas City, 17-3, in the second half and overtime to complete the come-from-behind win to punch their ticket to Super Bowl LVI.
As the Chiefs begin to search for answers as to what went wrong, one could immediately point to their suddenly stagnant offense that could only muster 55 passing yards for the rest of the game. Or, as one Twitter user pointed out, Apple’s open-field tackle on Hill before halftime may have altered the course of the game.
Apple, who recently embraced something of a Twitter villain persona, responded to the tweet and called Hill a “baby.”
Hill then seemingly reassured his followers that he and Apple talked it out, and there’s nothing more to read from his tweet.
Apple then seemed to jokingly offer Hill and Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman Super Bowl tickets.
However, NFL fans are reading plenty into Cincy’s comeback win, including what it means now that the Chiefs are out of the playoff picture, and the Bengals’ Cinderella run has taken them to the Super Bowl for the third time in franchise history.
