Tom Cruise reminds you Top Gun: Maverick is actually coming soon with AFC Championship commercial

It's been two and a half years since the first trailer for Top Gun: Maverick, the long-awaited sequel to the 1986 flyboy classic, but four delays later — we're almost feeling that need, the need for ... you know, speed and what not.

The NFL dropped, I guess, what one would call a trailer for a football game — the epic showdown between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Kansas City Chiefs for today's AFC Championship. The organization recruited none other than Tom Cruise to set the stage, as it were, for the big showdown, as well as to treat pigskin lovers to a few high-flying clips from the definitely upcoming Top Gun.

"Two teams coming off heart-pounding wins, two organizations on the edge of history, both committed to being the best of the best," says Cruise, with a wink or two to his cinematic aviation roots.

The trailer weaved in footage from Top Gun: Maverick, peppered in between shots of the AFC teams in full play mode. "The stage is set," says Cruise, "it's the Kansas City Chiefs against the Cincinnati Bengals and a dogfight for the AFC Championship. So, let's kick the tires and light the fires, because the time is now."

One fire was certainly lit, as the Cincinnati Bengals defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, and are heading to Super Bowl LVI to face off against the Los Angeles Rams on Feb. 13. Meanwhile, Top Gun: Maverick will soar into theaters May 27 to take our breath away, again.

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

Related content:

• Top Gun: Maverick becomes first tentpole to eject from 2021 amid Delta surge
• Every Tom Cruise performance, ranked
• Top Gun: Maverick new footage shows Tom Cruise pushed to physical limit