The Russell Street Report staff gives their Conference Championship predictions. Will the Patriots end up in another Super Bowl? Or will Peyton Manning get a chance to go out on top?
Tyler Lombardi
My heart is once again telling me to go with the Broncos. I’d love to see Peyton Manning end his career on top – or at least on top of the AFC. But I have a hard time believing that the Broncos will pull off another win with a quarterback who has thrown just as many touchdowns at home to Ravens defenders as he has to his own team (1).
– Tom Brady cries at least once to the referees, which leads to Tom Brady‘s two boyfriends in the booth defending him and scorning Antonio Smith for his Crybaby Brady comments this week.
– Phil Simms answers at least two questions with awkward silence.
– Peyton Manning’s frustration face lingers the entire game.
The Patriots win this one, 26-15.
On the NFC side of things, this is a tough call. These have been the best two teams in the NFL for much of the season. I’ll say…
– Cam Newton finds his way into the end zone on the ground and does his Superman pose. At least one Cardinals defender takes offense to it. A skirmish looks like it’s about to start, but nothing happens. After a 2-minute conversation, the officials decide not to throw a penalty flag. The crowd boos.
– The Panthers will take a lead two-score early, but the Cardinals will claw (or is it talon?) their way back into it, while the Carolina offense stagnates.
– Cam Newton makes a play with his legs late in the 4th quarter to put the Panthers in Graham Gano field goal range, and he makes it from 45+ yards out.
Panthers win, 23-21.
Brian Bower
The NFL got what it wanted on Conference Championship weekend and it starts right out of the gate with a national media slob fest between Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.
In one last showdown between the two, I’m hoping Manning is able to put together the best game of his career to take down Brady and company. Realistically though, I think the Pats will win, 24-17, ending the Manning era in Denver.
In what should be the better game of the day, the Panthers will have a tough time handling the high-powered offense of Carson Palmer‘s Cardinals. Carolina cannot afford to let their foot off the accelerator like they did last week against Seattle. I am riding with Cam and company, 30-24.
Mike Fast
AFC
Denver turns the ball over three times in the first half, but the score is tied at halftime, 14-14, due to their outstanding defense.
Brady throws for less than 250 yards, but throws three TDs, as New England wins, 24-21.
Peyton Manning will return in 2016.
NFC
Cam Newton throws two INTs, but runs and passes for a TD in the first half, putting Carolina ahead at the break, 20-12.
Carson Palmer throws for 50+ yards each to Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd, and John Brown in the second half, but it’s not enough, as he too throws a pair of picks.
Newton scores the game-winning TD on a QB-keeper with less than a minute remaining to send the Panthers to the Super Bowl.
Carolina 27, Arizona 22.
Ryan Jones
Roger Goodell must be downright giddy these days. The Concussion movie garnered less interest than a Jaguars vs Browns preseason game, and the NFL has some dream match-ups for their Conference Championship weekend. TV ratings will more than likely break some records on Sunday, and I’m sure the CBS cameras will get a shot of the five minutes that Goodell braves the elements in Denver sitting outside with the regular fans. What a joke!
In the AFC, I just don’t see anyway that Denver wins this game. Don’t get me wrong; I’ll be pulling for the Broncos. I live in Boston, and if I have to sit through another morning of local news where Patty O’Sullivan from Southie kisses Brady’s ass like he’s the next coming of Christ, I might jump off the Charles River bridge. I just don’t see it. Peyton Manning seems like he’s getting older and slower with each passing week, and the Patriots offense is finally as close to healthy as it can be this time of year. Denver’s defense is good and they’ll keep them in the game, but the Patriots will pull away in the fourth quarter
Patriots 28
Broncos 20
The NFC Championship should be a great game. Carolina and Arizona were the best two teams in football all season and whoever emerges as the winner will be the favorite to hoist the Lombardi. Carolina is probably the better team, but it’s somewhat concerning how they played in the second half of last week’s game. After being on fire in the first half they put up a goose egg in the final thirty minutes. This game will likely come down to the last couple minutes but I’m taking Arizona in a close one.
Cardinals 30
Panthers 27
Tony Lombardi
AFC
Hopefully today’s Championship Sunday opener will be the last time Tom Brady and Peyton Manning face off. The duels over the years have shaped an epic body of work but now one of the combatants has a body that doesn’t work.
If the Broncos win (they are 3-point home dogs), they will have to get it done with defense. Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips’ unit has been the NFL’s best this season but they are showing signs of fading. They weren’t all that sharp against an under-manned Steelers teams and if not for a Fitz Touissant fumble, Manning would have already played his last game.
Against the Chiefs the Brady-led Patriots offense was very one-dimensional with their running backs barely making cameo appearances, rushing a total of 8 times for 32 yards. That will change today as their rushing total triples in both attempts and yards and that will help set up some opportunities for Gronkowski, Edelman and Amendola with intermediate throws inside the numbers. Edelman will recover from a divisional game that was scarred by several drops. He’ll score twice and New England will score more than the hosts. Patriots 27, Broncos 19.
NFC
Which Panthers team will show up this evening? The one that dominated the Seahawks last week in the first half or the one that nearly backpedalled their way to a loss? The guess here is that it will be somewhere in between, but will it be enough?
The Cardinals are arguably the most balanced overall team still standing but last week against the Packers they couldn’t get their running game going, the offensive line struggled and both paved the way for a subpar game from Carson Palmer. That can’t happen again if the Cardinals plan on visiting the Bay Area for the second time this season two weeks from today. But it will.
Expect a low scoring game, sloppy game from both offenses that will end when Cam Newton answers a Cardinals go ahead field goal with an 80-yard drive culminating in a game clinching touchdown. The 80 yards will represent 25% of the Panthers total yardage for the game as they earn the right to prevent the Patriots from winning back-to-back world titles. Panthers 20, Cardinals 16
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