San Francisco 49ers (11-4-1) vs. Atlanta Falcons (13-3)

49ers – 11th

Falcons – 8th

49ers – 3rd

Falcons – 24th

What will we get with this years NFC Championship game?  What we got last year was a New York Giants team that couldn’t do anything wrong and a San Francisco 49ers team that hadn’t experienced that kind of a game before.  This year is kind of the same.  The 49ers know what to expect and the Atlanta Falcons haven’t been here for a long time.  Both of these teams have some history.  They used to be division rivals, but now they are looking to start something different.  Everyone will be watching to see if Matt Ryan can defeat one of the best defenses in the NFL.  But others will be watching if 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick can continue his success against another defense.  Whether the Falcons can contain the 49ers rushing attack will be their key to appearing in only their second Super Bowl game in franchise history.  And can the 49ers cover all of the Falcons weapons in their passing attack. Matchups are everything this time of year and this will be a dandy.

Matchup to watch for: 49ers offense vs. Falcons defense

Baltimore Ravens (10-6) vs. New England Patriots (12-4)

Ravens – 16th

Patriots – 1st

Defense 

Ravens – 17th

Patriots – 25th

Can the impossible happen?  Will the Baltimore Ravens get LB Ray Lewis another Super Bowl ring before he hangs up his cleats? There is another challenge in front of them with the New England Patriots.  After an emotional double overtime victory against the Denver Broncos, the Ravens believe anything is possible.  Patriots QB Tom Brady knows that he cannot make any mistakes against this team.  The Ravens aren’t afraid of the Patriots and New England knows the stakes.  Baltimore should try to make some big plays with Joe Flacco going deep a few times.  But if they want to win they will need to run the ball effectively with Ray Rice.  The Patriots will need to keep the Ravens defense on the field often as well and they need to run the ball even more than the Ravens do. New England’s defense is vulnerable to the pass as is the Ravens. Whichever team’s defense has more energy at the end of the game will be the victor.

Matchup to watch for: Ravens defense vs. Patriots offense