Cincinnati freeze out Bills, Cowboys clipped

The Bengals shrugged off driving snow to defeat the Buffalo Bills, while the 49ers beat Dallas on Monday.

Bengals players close in on Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen. Picture: Getty Images

The Cincinnati Bengals shrugged off driving snow to defeat the Buffalo Bills 27-10 and return to the AFC Championship game, while the San Francisco 49ers beat the Dallas Cowboys 19-12 on Monday to head to the NFC title contest.

The Bengals win sets up a repeat of last year’s AFC Championship clash with the Kansas City Chiefs, while the 49ers will face the Philadelphia Eagles for a place in the NFL’s Super Bowl.

While the Bengals will again be slight underdogs against Patrick Mahomes and company, they showed all their qualities of tough, no-nonsense football, with their offensive line giving outstanding protection to quarterback Joe Burrow.

Burrow completed 23 of 36 passes, throwing for 242 yards (221m) and two touchdowns, while running back Joe Mixon put up 105 yards and a touchdown.

“It was a complete game from everybody, offence, defence, special teams, domination from start to finish, that is what we expected,” Burrow said. “But the job is not finished, we have got another big one next week on the road. ”

Injured Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who suffered a cardiac arrest in the abandoned regular season game against the Bengals this month, watched from a suite and got a standing ovation when he was introduced to the crowd.

But despite the home field advantage, the Bills struggled to get their offence moving until quarterback Josh Allen got them on the scoreboard with a one-yard rush at the end of a 15-play drive in the second quarter.

The Bengals iced the game near the end of the third quarter when Mixon scored on a one-yard touchdown rush.

The Cowboys’ 27-year wait for a return to the Super Bowl continues after they once gain failed to get past the divisional round.

Dallas have lost on each of the last seven occasions they have reached the divisional round.

After San Francisco opened the scoring with a field goal, Dallas responded with a four-yard touchdown pass from Dak Prescott to Dalton Schultz.

But troubled kicker Brett Maher missed the extra-point conversion – the sixth miss in his last seven kicks – and two interceptions from Prescott before the half didn’t help.

Robbie Gould converted from 47 yards and 50 yards to give the 49ers a 9-6 lead at halftime.

San Francisco added a touchdown in the second half, while its stifling defence limited Dallas to two field goals in the same period.

Agencies