Madden NFL 20: Conference Championship Simulations

After finishing Wild Card Weekend a putrid 1-3, our Madden simulation was able to turn things around in the divisional round, going a spicy 3-1. Which means we are now 4-4 heading into this weekend’s Madden conference championship simulation. In the AFC, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs host Derrick Henry and the Tennessee Titans. The NFC matchup is even better, consisting of the two best teams in the conference facing off for a chance at the Super Bowl.

Let’s take a look at how Madden sees the conference championship round playing out.

Settings:

• Time: 15 Minutes, Accelerated Clock
• Difficulty: All-Madden
• Gameplay: Simulation

Sunday, January 19

#6 Tennessee Titans @ #2 Kansas City Chiefs, CBS – Madden Conference Championship Simulation

Over the first two weeks of our simulations, Madden has not believed in Ryan Tannehill and the Titans. So, how would they play against arguably the most talented team in Madden?

Tennessee won the toss and elected to receive. Their first drive was extraordinarily ordinary, as Henry carried the ball two straight times and they failed to convert on third down. Kansas City would return the kick 32 yards and set the offense up in favorable position.

After that, it took Mahomes two passes for the Chiefs to score. The first was a 22-yard gain on a swing pass to RB Damien Williams. His next pass went to Travis Kelce on a deep post for a 28-yard touchdown.

7-0 Chiefs.

On Tennessee’s next possession, the Titans were able to string together a couple of first downs. However, they would eventually be forced to punt. Tennessee’s defense looked much improved from their first outing and held Kansas City to a three and out.

Fast forwarding to later in the half, the Titans would finally put together an extended drive. It would end up stalling out, but Tennessee would kick a field goal to cut the lead to four. Kansas City would answer with a field goal of their own to make the score 10-3.

As Tennessee was driving late the half, a Chris Jones sack-fumble changed the game and set the Chiefs up to take a commanding lead. Four plays later, Mahomes hit Tyreek Hill in the back of the end zone for the touchdown.

17-3 Chiefs at the half.

Tennessee answered immediately after the half and scored on a deep ball from Tannehill to A.J. Brown, cutting the lead to 7. It was the last time they would be within striking distance as the Chiefs began to move the ball at will after this.

Damien Williams would begin to wear on the Titans’ defense, and as soon as the Titans stacked the box, Mahomes would beat them through the air. Mahomes would finish the game going a staggering 16-21 for 258 yards and four touchdowns.

Final Score: 31-17

Player of the Game: Patrick Mahomes – 16/21, 258 yards, 4 touchdowns

#2 Green Bay Packers @ #1 San Francisco 49ers, FOX – Madden Conference Championship Simulation

The first game of championship weekend showed us a lot of promise, but a second-half surge from the Kansas City Chiefs appeared to be too much for the Titans. In comparison, let’s take a look at the matchup between the two best teams in the NFC, the San Francisco 49ers versus the Green Bay Packers.

Green Bay won the toss and elected to receive. This turned out to be a bad decision as they were quickly forced to punt. On the 49ers’ first possession, they were able to move the ball but stalled out just shy of the Packers’ 40-yard line.

These two teams exchanged punts for the better half of the first quarter until San Francisco was able to get on the board. Jimmy Garoppolo found Deebo Samuel on a WR screen that he took to the house from 18 yards out.

At this point, the Packers leaned on Aaron Jones to help get them going. Jones would break off a nice 42-yard gain to put Green Bay in scoring position. Two plays later, Davante Adams tied the game up with an impressive TD grab over Richard Sherman, 7-7.

Kyle Shanahan’s offense would get the ball back with just under 8 minutes to play in the second quarter, and via the legs of Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman, would work the clock. This time the drive would end with a George Kittle TD that gave the 49ers the lead with under two minutes to go in the second quarter.

Not to be outdone, Green Bay would drive downfield, orchestrating an excellent two-minute drill that would end with a 45-yard Mason Crosby field goal as time expired. 14-10 Niners as we head to halftime.

The third quarter was all defense as both teams exchanged punts for the better part of the quarter. The only points came off of another Mason Crosby field goal to cut the 49ers lead to one. We would go to the fourth quarter, 49ers up 14-13.

Little did we know the next drive the Niners would embark on would completely shift the momentum and put the game nearly out of reach for Rodgers and the Packers.

The drive occupied almost half of the fourth quarter, and the 49ers moved the ball methodically while picking up one first down after another. It was exactly what the 49ers needed to regain control of this game. The biggest play of the drive came on a third and one from the Packers’ 33-yard line. Tevin Coleman was able to shake loose to pick up 22 yards. A few plays later he was able to find the end zone to put the Niners up by eight with under half a quarter to play.

San Francisco’s defense would lock things down and force the Packers to punt after what looked to be a promising drive. So with under four minutes left in the game, the 49ers were simply trying to put the game out of reach. Unfortunately, an ill-advised throw from Jimmy G shifted momentum and allowed the Packers to get one last shot at tying things up.

Rodgers would do Rodgers things, and with under two minutes to go he would find Jimmy Graham in the corner of the end zone for the touchdown. However, the Packers would need to convert the two-point conversion to tie the game. On the two-point attempt, Rodgers faked the handoff and tried to dump it off to the FB in the flats. At the same time, Arik Armstead flew into the backfield and was able to get his hands on Rodgers to force the incompletion.

The Packers would attempt an onside kick as a final desperation move, but the 49ers would recover and punch their ticket to the Super Bowl.

Final Score: 21-19

MVP: Jimmy Garoppolo – 15/20, 225 yards, 2 touchdowns