KANSAS CITY, Mo. We can’t all be perfect.
It’s hard to imagine, but some people in metropolitan Kansas City are rooting for the Cincinnati Bengals, the team the Kansas City Chiefs will face in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game.
The same two teams met last January in the AFC title fight. The Bengals won and advanced to Super Bowl LVI.
Tom Allen, originally from Cincinnati, has lived in Cass County for more than 25 years. Whenever Allen watches his favorite team on television, he paints his hair and face Bengals orange.
Allen hasn’t lived in Queen City for a long time, but he can’t imagine giving up his Bengal bias.
“Chiefs fans are great. I love this place. We make fun of each other. We have fun. My wife is a huge Chiefs fan, so we’re a divided house, but she understands. I’m from Cincinnati. This is my team,” Allen said.
It’s not just old Bengals fans around Kansas City, 11-year-old CJ Robbins and his mother, Kim Bridges, live in Blue Springs. Bridges moved to Metro years ago from northern Kentucky and CJ inherited his mother’s love for Joe Burrow and the Bengals.
“Sometimes at school I have friends who make fun of me. I’m like – we’re going to beat you this weekend,” Robbins said confidently. “I say, let’s see how it goes.”
They are loyal supporters, but they say they don’t have tickets for Sunday’s game.
Game-time temperatures are expected to dip below 15 degrees and according to Tickets for Less, the cheapest seats in the house cost more than $300 each.
