Only four teams remain in the National Football League (NFL) playoffs and one of them is going to win it all in the Super Bowl 51 scheduled on February 5 at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
The Conference Championships is scheduled on January 22 and two humdingers of a football game are expected to happen.
Over at the National Football Conference, the Green Bay Packers will go up against the Atlanta Falcons. And over at the American Football Conference, the Pittsburg Steelers shall battle it out with the New England Patriots.
At the NFC, the Falcons won a close 33-32 regular season victory over the Packers on October 30.
The last time that the two teams crossed paths in the playoffs was on January 15, 2011, when the Green Bay Packers took a lopsided 48-21 victory.
Incidentally, the Falcons will be playing in the Georgia Dome for the final time on January 22 as next season, Atlanta’s home games will be played at the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
At the AFC, the Patriots beat Pittsburgh 27-16 in a regular-season game on October 23. The last time that the two teams met in the playoffs was on January 23, 2005, when the New England Patriots earned a 41-27 victory that sent them to Super Bowl XXXIX.
No Cinderella story this time around
The NFL playoff bracket did not leave any wiggle room for a Cinderella story this time around. There is no longer a Houston, Texas team shocking the world or a Derek Carr-less Oakland Raiders team hoisting a Lombardi Trophy.
But there is one of the best final fours fans have seen in a long time. The NFC side of the equation features a quarterback showdown worthy of the Super Bowl itself, while the AFC boasts two of the league’s most prestigious franchises hunting further legacies.
The NFL Conference Championships weekend such as the one coming on January 22 has not come around in a long time, so it is only right the games have a Super Bowl berth at stake.
After the Conference Championships, the Pro Bowl, the All-Star game of the NFL pitting the best players in the NFL against the brightest in the AFL will take the field one week later or on January 29.
Dissecting the team’s chances
Green Bay Packers tight end Jared Cook was a popular X-factor pick last week before his team escaped the Dallas Cowboys.
Cook remains a key factor, even if he doesn’t perform any crazy feats. He simply stretches defenses and forces units to account for him, creating room for other guys such as Randall Cobb to go to work.
Cook was not on the field for a Week 8 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, a 33-32 affair in which Rodgers still threw four scores.
It might not seem like Rodgers can improve on that line, but he might not have a choice with how great Atlanta looks. Holding onto the ball with extended drives might be the key for a road rematch.
On the other side, Atlanta’s Mohamed Sanu has caught fire in recent weeks. Sanu only had 59 catches for 653 yards and four touchdowns during the regular season, acting as a solid complement to Julio Jones.
Jones played his lowest percentage of snaps on the season against the Seattle Seahawks. It sounds like a recipe for disaster against Richard Sherman and a strong secondary, but Sanu helped pick up the slack with 44 yards and a score. Jones has talked up his teammate since.
At the AFL, Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Jesse James posted 83 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs a week ago on the road, his highest output of the year. With Ladarius Green hurt, Ben Roethlisberger did not have any problems turning to the 6’7″, 261-pound target.
But LeGarrette Blount quietly put up a monster season this year, rushing for 1,161 yards and 18 touchdowns.