Championship Game Look Ahead

We're two days away from Sunday and thus two days away from the NFC & AFC Championship games.

Patriots vs. Broncos

Starting up first is Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning in the AFC Championship game. The Patriots took care of business against the Colts and showed that they are capable of winning playoff games even if Tom Brady does not do the heavy lifting. The Broncos beat the Chargers on Sunday but didn't look that great doing it. One could argue that the CBS pregame show was more entertaining than parts of the Broncos-Chargers game.

I was watching the Panthers-49ers game with Heather and Zeplen. We switched over to CBS immediately after that game ended and we got treated to a couple of unintentional comedy moments. The first one was in studio where they were debating Peyton Manning's legacy due to his lack of playoff success. Shannon Sharpe eventually starts going on a rant about how quarterbacks need to win multiple Super Bowls to help their reputation. Meanwhile, Dan Marino is just sitting there getting angrier by the minute and appears to be holding back everything not to scream on national television.

Then, they go to Denver where Phil Simms is calling the game and they continue the discussion regarding Peyton Manning. About 15 seconds later, a gust of wind blows up and knocks what appears to be a toupee out of place. Before the game started, they were showing Phil Simms and Jim Nantz and Nantz talks about how the wind is "already a story" and Simms was sitting there looking very uncomfortable.

I'm picking the Patriots to win this one. Quite frankly, they look like more of a complete team and when in doubt in a playoff game, i've gotta go with Tom Brady over Peyton Manning. Like the last couple weeks, I did a one-off simulation of the remaining teams on whatifsports.com. The computers disagree with me heavily as they picked the Broncos to win in a landslide (37-12).

My Pick: Patriots
What If Pick: Broncos

49ers vs. Seahawks

The 49ers may not be blowing away their playoff opposition. However, they've won on the road twice which has got to count for something. In the Packers game, they made enough plays at the right time to win and the Panthers game they were helped immensely by several dumb penalties that extended 49ers drives and allowed them to put additional points on the board.

The Seahawks got the win as expected over the Saints but they didn't dominate them they way they did back in December. Still, they have one of the strongest (if not the strongest) home field advantage in the NFL. The 49ers have already gotten blown out once in Seattle but I don't think Jim Harbaugh lets them get completely embarrassed again. While I think this game will be closer & VERY hard fought, I still think the Seahawks make it to the Super Bowl.

With this pick, the what if simulation I did agrees with my prediction. We'll be talking about this game for a long time if this game is even half as good as what if sports is leading me to believe (and would immensely help Russel Wilson's legacy).

In the whatifsports.com simulation, Boldin scores a 7 yd touchdown to give the 49ers a 24-20 lead with 6:54 left. Things are at a standstill until the Seahawks get the ball at their own 13 with 1:40 left. At that point, Wilson leads the Seahawks down the field and throws a game winning touchdown to Doug Baldwin as time expires.

My Pick: Seahawks
What If Pick: Seahawks

Super Bowl:

My Pick: Patriots over Seahawks
What If Pick: Broncos 26 Seahawks 10
Superbowl MVP: Knowshon Moreno

Divisional Playoff Round Man vs. Machine

With the first weekend of playoff action behind us (and with it, the yearly playoff meltdowns of Marvin Lewis, Andy Dalton, Mike McCarthy, Dom Capers and Andy Reid). Like, last week, I will give my take and supplement it with a one-off simulation that I did on whatifsports.com

NFC:

Saints vs. Seahawks

When these two teams played on Monday night football during the season, it looked like it would be one of the more contested and interesting match ups of the season. Instead, the Saints no-showed and the Seahawks won the game in a blowout. The Saints did quell some of their road critics by gutting out a tough win over the Eagles. With that said, I think the Seahawks win this rematch.

My Pick: Seahawks
What If Pick: Saints 30 Seahawks 6

49ers vs. Panthers

The Packers spent all summer fixated on trying to stop Colin Kaepernick and 49ers and FAILED MISERABLY in their attempt to do so. Now they are off to play the Carolina Panthers who have not been in the playoffs since 2008 but are looking to make some noise with Cam Newton. I've gone back and forth on this game but sadly I think the Niners score themselves another playoff win.

Pick: 49ers
What If Pick: 49ers 21 Panthers 13 (Hunter w/go ahead 1 yd td with :54 left)

AFC:

Chargers vs. Broncos

The Chargers defense gutted out a good playoff victory over the Bengals upping Mike McCoy's playoff record to 1-0. While the Chargers did score themselves a nice road playoff win, one concern I have with them was their conservative play calling in the 4th quarter that theoretically could have let the Bengals back into the game (which Ronnie Brown put a stop to). The Broncos have put up some gaudy offensive numbers but Peyton Manning doesn't exactly have the strongest playoff track record. I think the Chargers come in playing like they have nothing to lose and come away with a win.

Pick: Chargers
What If Pick: Chargers 23 Broncos 17

Colts vs. Patriots

Andrew Luck may have not been perfect but he led the Colts from 28 points down in the second half in the first every playoff game I watched with Zeplen. Tom Brady and the Patriots haven't looked dominating at times this year but still found a way to win games. I think the Patriots win this in a game that's an instant classic.

Pick: Patriots
What If Pick: Colts 30 Patriots 17

The What If Simulations I ran predicted the following for the rest of the playoffs:

49ers over Saints (In what would take over the slot for last game ever at Candlestick)
Chargers over Colts

49ers over Chargers

I think the Championship games would go as follows:

Seahawks over 49ers
Chargers over Patriots

Seahawks over Chargers