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The defense wins the playoffs.

The San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals advanced to the conference championship game on Sunday with excellent defensive performances.

The Philadelphia Eagles also put in an outstanding defensive effort on Saturday night.

While the high-flying offense led by the star quarterback gets the most attention, so does the defense.

That was evident in the NFL Divisional Rounds this weekend.

Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnolo’s aggressive unit forced two turnovers in the fourth quarter and helped Kansas City defeat Jacksonville 27–20 in the first game.

Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton said, “We’ve been focused all week, especially in the off week. Maybe punch the ball a little more, or jump on the ball, or what they gave us. “I was just focused on catching things,” he said. I understand that it counts.”

Jalen Hurts and the Eagles’ offense was unstoppable, notably dominating the Giants on the ground with a 268-yard rush. But Philadelphia’s defense, which was second in the league this season, was downright terrible in their 38-7 win over New York.

Daniel Jones finished an impressive 301-yard passing game in a 13-win Minnesota upset, finishing with Herson Reddick and Philly’s ferocious D.

Jones was sacked five times, threw a pick, and seemed lost as he completed only 55.6% of his passes. The Eagles held the Giants to 227 total yards.

“Jonathan Gannon puts them in a great position,” Eagles coach Nick Siriani said of his defensive coordinator. “Of course we have great players….but this guy is a hell of a coordinator….because of his job he’s head of the National Football League he’s going to be a football coach. This guy. is a stud, he is a stud

Cincinnati’s defense had the most impressive all-around game considering their opponents.The Bengals won 27-10 against a dynamic offense from Josh Allen and Buffalo. The Bills went 12-for-4 on third down, making three-and-outs he made three times and making just one field goal in the second half.

Defensive coordinator Lou Arrumo positioned the Bengals to constantly put pressure on Allen and break the rhythm. Allen had only one turnover in the late game, but he misfired on several throws and didn’t click at the receiver. Allen put his head down and didn’t look up when wide receiver Stefon Diggs approached him on the bench and yelled in his direction several times midway through the fourth quarter.

“He wants the ball,” Allen said of Diggs. “And whatever it was that didn’t get him the ball tonight, we’re going to have to learn from that.”

The Bengals face the Chiefs again in a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship Game, which Cincinnati won. Burrow is 3-0 against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

In the final game of the weekend, the 49ers’ top-ranked defense upset Dak Prescott in a 19–12 win, forcing two interceptions and holding the Cowboys to 282 total yards. San Francisco had some turnover chances but couldn’t stick to a few picks.

A candidate for several head coach vacancies, Niners defensive coordinator Demeko Lyons improved his case with another excellent game plan.

“I’m pretty confident that Demeko will have the head coaching job after this year,” Niners defensive back Jimmy Ward said. We closed the playoff team and one of the best teams in the league this year.

Next up for the 49ers is a trip to Philadelphia to face one of the league’s most balanced offenses in the NFC Championship Game.

“Get the popcorn ready,” said Ward. “Heavyweight fight right around the corner. Get ready. It’s going to be a good show.”

Follow Rob Murdy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/robmaaddi.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL

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