Conference Championship Predictions

Added on Jan 21, 2011 by Scott in

NFL

And then there were four. Months of blood, sweat and broken body parts has come down to two games to decide which NFL teams will participate in Super Bowl XLV. In the AFC, the Jets look to complete an improbable trifecta by knocking off the Colts, Pats, and Steelers — winners of six of the last nine titles — in consecutive weeks. In the NFC, it will be a black and blue division classic between a pair of the league’s most storied franchises — Chicago and Green Bay. Who wins, who loses? Let’s take a look.

(6) Packers @ (2) Bears – Ring the bell for round three. The Bears and Packers split their two regular season meetings with the home team coming away victorious each time. A late fumble by James Jones led to the game-winning field goal in Chicago, while a Nick Collins interception of Jay Cutler stalled a fourth quarter drive in the Week 17 finale. Don’t expect a scoring bonanza: the two combined to rack only 50 points in eight quarters.

The Bears will look to run Matt Forte and then strategically pick their spots with downfield throws. The Packers secondary is skilled and opportunistic. If Cutler is erratic, Woodson, Williams and Collins will be ready to pounce. Aaron Rodgers has been hot and there’s no reason to believe he won’t stay that way versus a defense he knows all too well. In a low scoring game, difference-making plays will be at a premium. Green Bay must avoid Devin Hester at all costs. Chicago has to challenge wide receivers and make secure tackles. Home field advantage can be huge, but wins in Philly and Atlanta means the Pack is battle-tested. As long as Green Bay prevents Chicago from jumping on top early, they should be okay. Rodgers gets it done once again. Packers 23, Bears 17

(6) Jets @ (2) Steelers – It’s deja vu for the Jets. They came up short in this exact spot a season ago. Since then they have dedicated themselves to ensuring the same thing doesn’t happen again. Rex Ryan designed defenses to confuse and disrupt Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. He’ll need to pull another rabbit from his magical hat to take down arguably the best big game quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger, who is 8-2 in his postseason career.

The Jets must exploit a thin and wounded Steelers offensive line. Shaun Ellis and Calvin Pace terrorized Brady a week ago. If they can do the same to Big Ben and force him into committing sloppy mistakes, New York will stamp their ticket to Dallas. Nobody runs on Pittsburgh, which means Mark Sanchez will have to be sharp. Troy Polamalu missed the Week 15 matchup, but he’ll be prowling the secondary on Sunday waiting for Sanchez to falter. The Jets O-line has to protect young Mark and give him time to hit Braylon Edwards and Santonio Holmes. I love what Ryan’s gang has accomplished, but the Steelers have been lurking all season. Roethlisberger beat the Jets in the ’04 playoffs. It’ll be deja vu again. Steelers 17, Jets 13