2012 NFL Playoffs - Road to Super Bowl XLVII - Conference Championships

WOW!! Now that was some "good football"!!!! Last weekend's exciting Divisional Round more than made up for the boring slate of Wild Card Weekend games. High drama in the Seahawks vs. Falcons game kept us on our seats until the very last second. And the Ravens vs. Broncos game had so many twists and turns that it took two overtimes to settle. We are now down to the Final Four: Conference Championship Weekend. Three of the four teams return to the conference finals from last year (Patriots, Ravens, 49ers).  The winners will head to New Orleans to play for the coveted Lombardi trophy.

AFC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP

 

 

Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots (- 8)

The AFC Conference Championship game is a rematch from last year's matchup. The Ravens return to the scene of where their season came to a very disappointing end last year, Gillette Stadium in Foxboro. On their final drive in that game, Baltimore had a chance to beat, and then at the very least, tie the Patriots but a dropped TD pass and a missed chippy field goal sent them home. The Ravens did beat the Patriots earlier this season 31 - 30 at home, but this is definitely the game that they want as their "revenge game". The Patriots are cruising into this matchup after soundly defeating the Texans last week. Although they lost their dynamic TE Rob Gronkowski early in the game (and for the rest of the playoffs), the Pats offense still clicked pretty well. With a good balance of run and pass it is expected that New England will take advantage of a "tired" Ravens defense. I've been hearing all week about how many snaps the Ravens' defense has taken, particularly in the double OT game that they won over the Broncos last week. Baltimore showed a lot of heart in that game and although their defense wasn't stellar, they made plays when they had to. The Ravens' D only gave up 3 of the 5 touchdowns scored by the Broncos (2 of them were made on special teams). The defense also intercepted Peyton Manning twice: one for a "Pick 6" in the first half and one in double OT that set up the game winning field goal. One thing that Denver did offensively that was positive against the Ravens was the "no huddle" offense. For some reason the Broncos went away from it late in the game after having a lot of success with it. I expect QB Tom Brady and the Patriots to do a lot of "no huddle" and even without Gronkowski, they still have a lot of other weapons who can execute. Baltimore's offense must be feeling pretty confident too after having success on the ground and in the air last week. I think another game plan of feeding Ray Rice the ball and Joe Flacco going deep to Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin on play action will serve Baltimore well. They certainly can take advantage of the Pats defense. I think this game is going to be high scoring and close. The Ravens exact AFC Championship revenge on the Patriots and take the Mr. Ray Lewis retirement tour to the Super Bowl. They will obviously cover the points with the win.

NFC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP

 

 

San Francisco 49ers vs. Atlanta Falcons (+4)

The Falcons finally "got the monkey off of their back" when they defeated the Seahawks in the Divisional Round. They were a determined unit and I think it showed by their play on the field. Despite that, they still almost lost the game and they probably would have if it were not for some rare coaching errors by Seattle. As a matter of fact, the Seahawks took the lead with less than a minute to go in the game. But the Falcons did an excellent job led by QB Matt Ryan to get the ball, drive down the field and get into field goal range. K Matt Bryant connected on a 49 yard FG to seal the comeback victory for Atlanta and save them from what would have been increased media scrutiny about their playoff failures. The 49ers had a little drama of their own in the Divisional Round but it was early in the game. A "Pick 6" thrown by QB Colin Kaepernick on the team's opening drive made some folks wonder whether he would be able to handle the playoff pressure. Kaepernick quickly responded by taking the 49ers on their following possession straight down the field on a drive that was capped by a 20 yd touchdown run by the QB. Though Aaron Rodgers and the Packers tangled with San Fran through the first two quarters (they were only down 3 at halftime), Kaepernick and the 49ers imposed their will on them in the second half. The Niners pulled away by scoring 21 unanswered points. Even though the Packers scored a late TD to make it a little close, the game was essentially a blow out. Kaepernick was outstanding, passing for 263 yards (2 TDs) and rushing for 181 yards (2 TDs). When he travels east to face the Falcons, he'll need to bring a little of that great balance with him. Atlanta's defense is good and opportunistic but I feel the 49ers will have the ability to move the ball on them. The Falcons must really feel disrespected being that they are the number 1 seed in the NFC, hosting this championship game but are still underdogs. Ryan & the offense I think will be able to make some plays but not enough against the 49ers stingy D. I don't think Atlanta will be able to run the ball on the 49ers the way they did against Seattle last week. I think the 49ers pass rush will be more effective as well. San Francisco, like Baltimore, had the conference championship slip through their hands last year. This year they will not let that happen. Niners beat the Falcons for the right to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl and they will cover the points.

Well the way I see it, Super Bowl XLVII will be a "family affair". Brothers John Harbaugh (Head Coach of the Ravens) and Jim Harbaugh (Head Coach of the 49ers) will bring pride to their family name and garner a ton of attention on the fact that they are siblings. It should make for a great Super Bowl matchup - but the Patriots and Falcons will be in no mood to help facilitate a Harbaugh family reunion in New Orleans.