The AFC and NFC championship games give us two exciting match-ups with four of the NFL’s elite quarterbacks.
With the exception of the Dallas Cowboys, I believe the right teams have made it to the conference championships. Last week’s game between the Packers and the Cowboys probably should have been the NFC championship game, in my opinion. Nevertheless, we have two very intriguing match-ups with three of the four starting quarterbacks remaining being previous Super Bowl winners – Tom Brady (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, and XLIX), Ben Roethlisberger (XL and XLIII), and Aaron Rodgers (XLV). Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons has yet to appear in a Super Bowl.
Both of these games are rematches from this season. In the previous match-ups, New England and Atlanta came away with wins, but injuries to key players could change the outcomes this time around.
Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons
Sunday, January 22nd at 3:05pm ET
Georgia Dome
What can you say about Aaron Rodgers that hasn’t been said already? The man has willed his team to victories, winning eight straight, including a road win last week against the NFC’s top-seeded team – the Dallas Cowboys. In two playoff games this postseason, Rodgers is 53 of 83 for 717 yards and six touchdowns with only one interception. And he has been able to do that without his top receiver, Jordy Nelson, who was injured in the wild card game against the Giants and was sitting on the sidelines for the entire game last week.
Falcons receiver, Julio Jones, re-aggravated a toe injury and hasn’t been practicing this week. Against Seattle, he only managed 67 receiving yards – however, he did score a touchdown. Matt Ryan has proven that he isn’t entirely dependent on Jones, so even if Jones isn’t 100% for this game, the Falcons should be able to move the ball against the Packers defense, which has been riddled with injuries all season long. Mohamed Sanu and Taylor Gabriel are more than adequate secondary receivers for Ryan and Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman have contributed greatly to the success of the passing game coming out of the backfield.
The Falcons defense will be getting after Aaron Rodgers, who has already been sacked eight times in the postseason. Vic Beasley will surely want to add several more to that total – but catching Rodgers is no guarantee, and if they miss, he can make them pay dearly for it. Rodgers rushed for nearly 370 yards this season with an average of 5.5 yards per attempt. And his big-play ability outside of the pocket is almost legendary, following in the footsteps of his predecessor, Brett Favre.
The Packers will likewise try to disrupt Matt Ryan. Julius Peppers, Nick Perry, and Clay Matthews should be able to give him a fit or two and Ryan isn’t exactly the most mobile of quarterbacks. But with a slew of receiving options for Ryan, he’ll have plenty of opportunities to get the ball out of his hands quickly and avoid big losses from sacks. This is a game where we will likely see both quarterbacks throwing for well over 300 yards. Betting that this game will be a shoot-out is probably one of the safest bets to make in this year’s playoffs.
Green Bay was 4-4 on the road during the regular season, including a loss in Atlanta in week eight. The Falcons were 6-2 at the Georgia Dome and just dominated the Seattle Seahawks in last week’s divisional playoff match-up. This, however, is the playoffs and Aaron Rodgers appears to be on a mission. With both team’s top receivers banged up, the game may be decided by the pure will of these quarterbacks to make a star of the next man up.
Pittsburgh Steelers at New England Patriots
Sunday, January 22nd at 6:40pm ET
Gillette Stadium
Six Super Bowl rings.
That’s how many are shared between the two starting quarterbacks for this game – Tom Brady (4) and Ben Roethlisberger (2). With Brady’s career winding down, this may be his last chance to win the AFC and try to pick up “one for the thumb.”
Despite turning 39 years old before the start of the 2016 season and missing the first four games due to suspension, Brady was able to put together one of his best seasons. In just twelve games, he threw for over 3500 yards and 28 touchdowns, completing over 67% of his passes and finishing the regular season with a passer rating of 112.2 – both of the latter statistics are second best in his career. Before last week’s divisional playoff game against the Texans, he threw only two interceptions all season long.
Last week’s game proved to be a little more difficult than Patriots fans anticipated for Brady. He completed less than 50% of his passes and threw two picks. This week won’t get much easier against an improving Steelers defense. Since Bud Dupree has returned to the lineup, he has shown why the Steelers were so high on him when they drafted him a couple of years ago. He has the potential to disrupt Brady’s timing and get hits and sacks on the quarterback. With the other linebackers, Lawrence Timmons and Ryan Shazier, and the ageless wonder, James Harrison, the New England offensive line will likely have their hands full.
On the other side of the ball, the Steelers’ Le’Veon Bell has been putting up big numbers in the running game. In two postseason games, he already has 337 yards, with a 5.7 yards per attempt average, and two touchdowns. In the passing game, Ben Roethlisberger has completed over 67% of his passes and has only been sacked twice, but he has thrown three interceptions in the last two games. Antonio Brown has caught 11 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns, but most of that came in the wild card round against the Miami Dolphins.
Last week, the Steelers were unable to get into the end zone and needed six field goals from their kicker, Chris Boswell, to win the game. It’s rare for the Steelers to not score a touchdown, so I wouldn’t expect that to happen in back-to-back weeks. Bell should have another very productive game which will give Roethlisberger chances to find Brown downfield. Like the Green Bay and Atlanta game, this one could also be a shoot-out between two very likely Hall of Fame quarterbacks.
However, these defenses are no slouches, so it could easily become a battle of wits with the defensive coordinators and the very experienced playoff quarterbacks. With Rob Gronkowski missing, Brady may need to rely on Martellus Bennett. In their previous meeting this season, Gronkowski had 93 receiving yards and a touchdown. If the Patriots can’t make up for that loss, Brady might see what could be his last chance at a fifth Super Bowl title slip away.
Comments and game predictions are welcomed! Which teams do you think will make it to the Super Bowl?
Free-For-All Contest
Statistical Categories for the Conference Championships
There will be five statistical categories for the two games this weekend. They are listed below, with current stats for each selection. Some numbers have been rounded for game accuracy.
1. Green Bay Packers, QB Aaron Rodgers, Rushing Yards: This postseason’s average per game is 8.
2. Atlanta Falcons, RB Devonta Freeman, Total Offensive Yards: Last week’s total was 125.
3. Pittsburgh Steelers, Team Rushing Attempts: This postseason’s average per game is 35.
4. New England Patriots, Total First Downs: Last week’s total was 20.
5. Total Punts by All Teams: Last week’s total for all four teams was 13.
How to Play and Win
In a comment on this post, submit your predicted results in the order that they appear above. You can number your selections (1–5) as they are above or not, but if not, I will assume that they are in the correct order and the results will be checked in that order. ONLY ONE COMMENT SUBMISSION PER USER, PER CONTEST.
Once your comment is submitted, I will confirm it after the deadline for entering the contest. The deadline for submission this week is 11:00AM NEW YORK TIME (UTC -5) ON SUNDAY MORNING. After submissions are confirmed by me, any new entries or edits to comments will automatically disqualify you from the contest. So make sure that you have accurately submitted your numbers before the deadline.
There will be one winner for each statistic. The winner will be the contestant closest to the actual final statistics from the game. There is no limit to the number of stat categories that you can win. Contestants can potentially win one or all of the categories.
The contest is funded with a minimum pot of 100 STEEM. The total pot distribution will be divided evenly between the five statistical categories. Each category winner will receive 20% of the total pot. In the event of a tie, the pot will be split between the tying contestants for that category.
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