For the Kansas City Chiefs, Tennessee Titans, San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers, the Conference Championships loom ominous and large.
Two of these teams will triumph on Sunday, come away as the AFC or NFC champions and graduate to the NFL’ biggest game of 2020, Super Bowl LIV’
The other two will drop by the wayside and limp home to lick their wounds and think about what went wrong.
Andy Reid’s Chiefs had to do that last year, but this week they have high hopes of going one step further in the AFC Championship Game.
Winning won’t be easy, though. The Chiefs host a rampant Titans team that in the past two weeks has stunned the US football World.
Chiefs are favourites, but beware the Titans
Playing away they’ve beaten both the reigning Super Bowl champions New England Patriots and this seasons red-hot favourites, Baltimore Ravens. And there is more. Earlier this season they also beat the Chiefs.
They are the New Jersey sportsbooks’ underdogs again, but don’t be too surprised if they make this game a magical three-time lucky ride to the final.
In the NFC Championship Game, the 49ers host the Packers in a contest between two offensive-minded head coaches, Kyle Shanahan and Matt LaFleur. The 49ers are favoured to win what could be a high-scoring game.
Before going any further we should perhaps take a glimpse of what the New Jersey sports betting industry thinks about the two games.
What stands out is that they clearly see the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers as this Sunday’s most likely conference championship winners.
These were Unibet NJ’s Friday odds on the Chiefs beating Tennessee and the 49ers defeating Green Bay. They pretty much reflected those of all 18 New Jersey sportsbooks.
This week’s NFL odds
Money-line:
Chiefs: -375; Titans +280
49ers: -335; Packers +265
Spread:
Chiefs: -103 (-175); Titans -120 (+7.5)
49ers: -110 (-7.5): Packer -110 (+75)
Totals:
Titans@Chiefs -110 (over 52.); -110 (under 52.5)
Packers@49ers -110 (over 46.5); -110 (under 46.5)
Fanatical fans might not agree with them, especially those of the Titans.
Yes, the first two weekends of the NFL playoffs did feature five one-score games, three huge upsets and one historic, come-from-behind victory. However the general feeling out there right now is that things could get back to normal this week.
There is a belief that the season’s stats and the general form of the four contestants right now will see both home-team favourites prevail this time.
Mahomes could spice up the weekend
That’s not to say the football will be dull or of poor quality. That’s most unlikely. Not when the games are featuring the likes of super star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the Chiefs’ high-flying offense.
Then there is that Titans one-man wrecking crew Derrick Henry, the dominant 49ers’ defence, and a first ballot Hall of Famer in Aaron Rodgers. That’s an extremely attractive group of headliners.
The 49ers and Packers went a combined 26-6 in the regular season with both teams contributing equally to those totals. The Chiefs won three more games (12-4) than the Titans (9-7) in the regular season, but one of their four losses was to the Titans.
The Titans, in fact, have won each of their last four clashes with Chiefs, including the 2017 Wild Card Game at Arrowhead Stadium.
In all their other three encounters, including the recent one in Week 10, Tennessee have managed to shrug away a fourth-quarter deficit to win.
Something else Chiefs might bear in mind. Tennessee had 418 yards combined on the ground but totalling only 154 passing yards when beating New England and Baltimore. In the post season, their defence produced five takeaways and had as many fourth-down stops.
Henry has amassed record rushing yards
The Red-hot Titans running back Derrick Henry has amassed 812 rushing yards in the third quarters of his games this season. The last player to rush for at least 800 yards across quarters was Terrell Davis in 1998 (824 yards, first quarters).
Henry is also the first player in the Super Bowl era with 1250+ rushing yards and 10+ rushing touchdowns in any 8-game span.
Meanwhile it could be pertinent that Kansas City beat the Houston Texans the hard way in the Divisional Round. They overturned a 24-point deficit – the largest in franchise history – to win 51-31.
Now they are looking to reach the Super Bowl for the first time in 50 years when they won Super Bowl IV.
Only the Dallas Cowboys and St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams (nine) have met more frequently in the playoffs than the Packers and 49ers. On Sunday they’ll be facing each other for the eighth time.
Should Green Bay beat the 49ers and win Super Bowl LIV, they would equal the Patriots NFL record for the most postseason wins (37)
San Francisco bidding for two play-off wins for 5th time
San Francisco, meantime, are bidding to win at least two home playoff games for the fifth time in their history.
On the previous four occasions when the 49ers did it (1981, 1984, 1989 and 1994) they went on to win the Super Bowl.
A cause for some concern on their part; quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo had a season-low 131 passing yards in their win over the Minnesota Vikings last weekend.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers didn’t do too much better in Packer’s Divisional Round win over the Seattle Seahawks. He completed just 16 passes – his fewest in a postseason start.
The home team’s major concern, however, may be the threat posed by Davante Adams.
He took 17 catches for 175 receiving yards and three touchdowns against the 49ers. He also set a franchise playoff record with 160 receiving yards in the win over Seattle.
Sunday’s Conference Finals Schedule
3.05pm (ET): AFC Championship: Titans (9-7) @ Chiefs (12-4).
6.40pm (ET): NFC Championship: Packers (13-3) @ 49ers (13-3).