By: Jamal Smith Sports Editor
And now there are four: four teams remain in the hunt for the Vince Lombardi Trophy, the most prestigious prize in the National Football League (NFL). The NFL Divisional rounds concluded on Sunday, Jan. 17 with no surprises or upsets.
In the AFC and the NFC, both top seeds, who earned a first-round bye, outclassed the lower seeds to advance to the NFL Conference Championships.
The AFC Conference Championship game will pit the No. 1 Denver Broncos against the No. 2 New England Patriots. Kickoff is set for 12:05 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 24.
Last week, in the AFC Divisional round, New England knocked off the Kansas City Chiefs 27-20, and Denver defeated the Pittsburg Steelers 23-16.
The most intriguing storyline for the AFC Conference Championship is the heated rivalry of New England quarterback Tom Brady and Denver’s quarterback Paton Manning, whom many consider to be two of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the NFL.
These two future Hall of Famers have battled each other 16 times in their illustrious careers. Of their 16 meetings, Brady has won 11 compared to Manning’s five. Brady also holds almost every statistical advantage over Manning, including four Super Bowl rings compared to Manning’s one.
While both quarterbacks are nearing the end of their carriers, Manning is having by far his worst year statistically of his career. Old age, injury troubles, and an inability to throw the deep ball, have many sports analysts thinking this could be Manning’s final year.
Another key storyline going into the AFC Conference Championship is Denver’s No. 1 ranked defense going up against New England’s prolific offense. Denver’s defense, which has come up big throughout the regular season and into the playoffs, created a huge turnover in the fourth quarter against the Steelers, which all but sealed Denver’s victory.
New England’s offense is loaded with weapons that provide Brady multiple viable options. Tight end Rob Gronkowski leads all of New England’s receivers with 1,176 yards for the season, despite having missed multiple games due to injury.
The NFC Conference Championship game will see the No. 1 Carolina Panthers host the No. 2 Arizona Cardinals. Kickoff is at 3:40 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 24.
In the NFC Divisional round, Arizona knocked off the Green Bay Packers 26-20 in overtime and Carolina squeezed by the Seattle Seahawks 31-24.
This Carolina-Arizona NFC matchup has many interesting ties. Both teams’ quarterbacks – Panther’s Cam Newton and Arizona’s Carson Palmer – are former Heisman Trophy winners.
Also, according to ESPN, the matchup is the first time in the current Super Bowl era that two teams will face each other that each have averaged 30+ points a game in the regular season. Carolina had the No. 1 ranked offense in the NFL and Arizona the No. 2 ranked offense.
Newton, who led the Panther’s to a league-best 15-1 regular season record, was just awarded the 2015 NFL Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year by the Professional Football Writers of America.
Now in his fifth season in the NFL, the Conference Championship is easily the biggest moment of Newton’s promising career.
“I don’t get nervous,” said Newton, Wednesday in an interview with ESPN. “I’ve been playing football for too long for me to get nervous. I used to dream of being in this type of position.”
Carolina’s defense will see its biggest test of the year, matching up against Palmer and Arizona’s powerhouse offense. The Panthers face a difficult test in containing Arizona’s receivers Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd, John Brown, and others.
The AFC and NFC Conference Championships pit the best two teams of the regular season and the playoff against one another. When the dust settles after the game plays itself out the two remaining teams with have their shot at Super Bowl immortality.
