Conference Championship Preview

By Peyton Schultze

With a Super Bowl trip on the line, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs face a ton of pressure at home and as the clear favorite in the conference (via DraftKings Nation).

It all comes down to this to decide this year’s participants in Super Bowl LIV in Miami.

In two very interesting conference championship matchups between the Titans/Chiefs and Packers/49ers, expect plenty of sputtering chaos, spectacular highlights, and big time moments that have a chance to go down in infamy in NFL history. With so much on the line this weekend, it could all come down to one or two plays to decide who will head down to South Beach for a trip to this year’s Super Bowl.

With that being said, anything could happen this weekend among the league;’s last four remaining teams. Can the Titans ride their wave of momentum to a trip down in Miami in two weeks? Will Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs get back to the Super Bowl for the first time since the ‘70s? Can Aaron Rodgers lead the Packers to the second Super Bowl appearance of his career? Or will the 49ers return to golden glory by making their seventh appearance in the big game?

With less than 24 hours to go before kickoff, here are some of the most important questions with key answers regarding conference championship weekend in the NFL.

Which Quarterback Has the Most at Stake This Weekend?

As heavy underdogs on the road this Sunday, Aaron Rodgers looks to take the Packers to the Super Bowl for the second time in his prolific career (via UpNewsInfo).

There can certainly be a case for any quarterback this weekend, especially with so much obviously on the line. Patrick Mahomes has a chance to reach some elite status in NFL history as a young quarterback to make the Super Bowl, Ryan Tannehill has a chance to cap off a ridiculous run with a Super Bowl appearance, and Jimmy Garoppolo has a chance to finally escape from the shadow of Tom Brady with a win on Sunday.

But Aaron Rodgers certainly has the most to lose this weekend, and even more so to gain.

With a win on the road in San Francisco on Sunday, the future Hall of Famer would advance to the second Super Bowl of his career, and first since the 2010 season, despite years of phenomenal play. To add to that, a win in this year’s NFC Championship Game would be a great sight around the league for one of the faces of the NFL, giving Rodgers only the second chance of his career to capture another title and add just another superb accomplishment to his already great resume. In addition, Rodgers would have a chance to prove that he is still one of the game’s great players, especially after a “down season” in terms of his statistical line, and would only rise in the ranks of the game’s greatest quarterbacks of all-time. Meanwhile, another loss in the NFC Championship Game would even add more struggle to the quarterback’s complicated legacy, therefore bringing up the question if we will ever see Rodgers back in the Super Bowl with his career clearly closer to the end than the beginning.

Mahomes, Tannehill, and Garoppolo all have a lot at stake this weekend, but #12 for the Green Bay Packers has a chance for a career moment on Sunday if he can come through in the clutch and get his team back into the sport’s biggest game. Especially against the team that infamously passed over Rodgers in favor of Alex Smith in the 2005 NFL Draft, it will be fascinating to see if the Packers’ quarterback can have his own shining moment in the biggest game in years for Green Bay.

Do the Titans Have Enough Offensive Firepower to Keep Up with the Chiefs?

Derrick Henry is in the midst of one of the greatest postseason runs by a running back in NFL history, which could be capped off with a stunning appearance in Super Bowl LIV with a win on Sunday (via Baltimore Ravens).

To put it simply, the Titans certainly have enough firepower on offense to keep up with the Chiefs on Sunday if they are firing on all cylinders. Luckily for them, Tennessee is red-hot on offense right now behind a nasty offensive line that is dominating at the line of scrimmage and a running back that has been purely fearless all postseason long. If running back Derrick Henry can continue his insane momentum right now with another awesome performance, the Titans should be able to not only score plenty of points, but also keep Patrick Mahomes and the lethal Chiefs’ offense off of the field by controlling the clock. This may be the single most important matchup all weekend long, as the battle between the Chiefs and Titans could simply come down to which team can win at the point of attack and deep down in the physical trenches on Sunday.

In addition to this, although Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill may not be able to match Patrick Mahomes in the box score, he has certainly played exceptional all season long since taking over as the starter in Tennessee. With a sudden career resurgence that may have given the Titans some true stability at the quarterback position for the first time in years, Tannehill has all of the tools in his arsenal right now that can put up plenty of points for the Titans’ offense on any given Sunday. With the Chiefs likely to put together another solid game offensively, expect to see the Titans open up the playbook for Tannehill a little more so that he can air it out and attempt to cap off one of the most shocking quarterback seasons in recent memory.

An interesting narrative has formed this week in saying that the Titans would not be as exciting to watch in the Super Bowl as the Chiefs would be. But after two major upsets against AFC favorites in the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens, it is clear that the Titans would be one of the best stories in NFL history if they are able to win on Sunday against the Chiefs. With plenty of confidence and explosiveness on both sides of the ball, Tennessee has a great shot of putting together another spectacular performance on Sunday that would secure their second Super Bowl appearance in franchise history.

Can Green Bay Bounce Back From Their Last Abysmal Performance Against San Francisco?

After an embarrassing performance in their last game against San Francisco, expect Aaron Rodgers to bounce back and stay in the fight all night long (via 49ersWebZone).

Among the remaining playoff teams still alive, Green Bay may be the most unpredictable.

Even though they finished with a 13-3 record and as the second seed in the NFC, many have doubted just how good this Packers’ team really is due to a relatively weak schedule, some tight games against weaker opponents, and mostly nonexplosive offensive playmaking for most of the season. However, what makes so Green Bay dangerous heading into the matchup on Sunday is just how much these factors may have brought their group together as a whole; after all, they have still reached the NFC Championship with a chance to go the Super Bowl now on the line.

But the biggest concern wrapped around this Packers’ team is how poorly they played in their last crucial matchup against San Francisco, which unintentionally ended up deciding the top seed in the conference. Now, as Rodgers and the Packers prepare to head back to Northern California for the second time this season, it will be interesting to see what kind of adjustments they make to their gameplan this time around. One key thing that has a chance to have a major impact in this game is the play of running back Aaron Jones. If Jones can continue his exceptional rate of play as he did in the second half of the year, Green Bay at least has somewhat of a chance to escape on Sunday with a shocking win.

It is certainly going to be an uphill climb to the top against what may very well be the best team in football, but Green Bay certainly has shown enough in recent weeks that should help inspire some confidence that they’ll bounce back this weekend against the Niners. While that may not necessarily mean a win on the road, expect a tight one that could come down to the 4th quarter.

Would a Win on Sunday Solidify Patrick Mahomes’ Status as the Best Quarterback in the League Right Now?

The Chiefs may the Super Bowl favorite for years to come as long as quarterback Patrick Mahomes can continue to stay healthy (via UpNewsInfo).

This one may the best easiest of the questions thus far. Patrick Mahomes is simply an unreal talent whose skills have really never been matched by anyone in NFL history, which makes him the most dangerous player still remaining in the playoffs. After all, who else can make some of the casually mind-blowing plays that he has made so far in his short career? Regardless, Sunday presents an glaring opportunity for Mahomes to erase any sort of doubt that he is the league’s best quarterback on the league’s best offense under a creative genius in head coach Andy Reid.

A week ago, Mahomes and the Chiefs trailed the Texans trailing 24-0 early on in the second quarter. By the end of the second quarter, the Chiefs were up 28-24. By the end of the game, the Chiefs were on top 51-31. That’s how lethal this Mahomes-led offenses can be when at their very best. Flipping the switch in a matter of seconds, Mahomes ended up throwing five touchdown passes (three of which to tight end Travis Kelce) during the game and put together one of the most prolific offensive displays in recent history with the win. Now, as the Chiefs begin to head into a matchup with the league’s hottest team, there are plenty of questions relating to if Mahomes can really do it again. After all, this kind of play has to stop at some point eventually, right?

The Titans actually present a very tough matchup for Kansas City on both sides of the ball, but there is really nothing that seems to be able to stop Mahomes right now. Even though this game is nearly a tossup based on the recent play from both squads, it is tough to imagine the Chiefs’ quarterback putting up anything short of an impressive performance on Sunday. While it will be tough for the Chiefs to drop a soaring point total again this weekend, expect the Chiefs’ offense to move the ball at a high level against the Tennessee defense on Sunday afternoon.

Mahomes has plenty of help around him on both sides of the ball, but it is clear that the team will go just as far as he can take them. And while Lamar Jackson and Russell Wilson stole headlines with ridiculous play all season long, there will not be much of a debate for who ranks at the very top of the totem pole of the league’s best quarterbacks with a Chiefs’ win on Sunday that would send Kansas City back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1970.

Can Jimmy Garoppolo Lead the 49ers Back to the Super Bowl?

Jimmy Garoppolo played well in the 49ers’ win over the Packers earlier in the regular season, and they’ll need solid play from him once again if they want to walk out on Sunday with a Super Bowl appearance (via Sporting News).

Jimmy Garoppolo has had a very nice season for the San Francisco 49ers, helping lead the team to a 13-3 regular season and the top seed in the conference in one of the league’s best offenses. Now, after a throttling of the Packers earlier this season, the 49ers enter Sunday as the clear favorites to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, which adds some immense pressure to Garoppolo and the rest of the 49ers as the prepare to go to battle against Aaron Rodgers and the Packers.

While it has been noted that the 49ers’ offense is one of the best in the league, it is key to notice that Garoppolo has not really had to legitimately carry the Niners in a game all season long other than possibly their win over New Orleans during the regular season. This makes this matchup against Green Bay especially interesting, as the league’s hottest defense rolls into town riding high on a six game winning streak. The Packers haven’t lost since their last game against the Niners, and their ferocious pass rush should prove to be an extremely hard test for San Francisco on Sunday. With that being said, San Francisco will need a big game from a key contributor on Sunday if they want to survive, and their franchise quarterback seems like a perfect candidate for that role despite the concerns about his recent play (he only totaled 131 passing yards in the win over Minnesota).

Nevertheless, the young 49ers’ quarterback has shown enough potential in big moments all season long to inspire some confidence that he can get it done when it matters most. Growing up under Tom Brady and the Patriots has seemed to reap its benefits all season long for the stud signal caller, as Garoppolo has played very well during crunch time in the 4th quarter of games all season long. However, this is still the biggest moment of the quarterback’s career to date, and it will be interesting to see how he fares early on in the game with so much pressure on his shoulders. Look for Garoppolo to be the key to the game on Sunday as the Packers prepare to stop San Francisco’s lethal running game, leaving the door open for the 49ers’ quarterback to have one of the best games of his short career.

Who is the Biggest X-Factor on Sunday?

If he can return to the lineup on Sunday, defensive tackle Chris Jones could be a major weapon in slowing down the Titans’ great rushing attack (via Heavy.com).

You can certainly make a case that Derrick Henry of the Titans, Nick Bosa of the 49ers, or Davante Adams of the Packers is the biggest x-factor on Sunday, but defensive tackle Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs has a chance for a career game on Sunday if he can find a way to suit up.

After missing last weekend’s divisional matchup against the Houston Texans, Jones is currently listed as questionable heading into tomorrow’s game against Tennessee. If Kansas City wants to win and advance to the Super Bowl, they’ll need Jones to be active and play a significant role on Sunday, especially against the Titans’ running game. With Henry performing at such a high level right now and with the Titans’ offensive line getting better and better every week, the Chiefs will need their best defensive lineman to have a monster performance on Sunday behind a raucous Arrowhead crowd. Jones has a unique ability to quickly get past defensive linemen with a great blend of size, strength, and agility, which makes him one of the best all-around defensive tackles in the league. This makes his play so important on Sunday, as he remains one of the most capable defensive weapons remaining in the playoffs when it comes down to stopping the Titans’ attack as led by Henry.

With his status still up in the air, the Chiefs’ x-factor could easily have to miss the game, which would be a major disadvantage for Kansas City. However, if he does suit up and participate in this year’s AFC Championship Game, Jones could have a huge physical impact and set the Chiefs’ on a collision course with Super Bowl LIV.

Who Wins on Sunday?

The times could easily get tough on Sunday, but the Chiefs and Packers have a great shot of advancing to Super Bowl LIV (via Acme Packing Company).

It’s easy to envision any of these teams in the Super Bowl right now based off how well they are playing, which makes these predictions especially tough.

In the Titans/Chiefs game, expect plenty of high scoring and enough timely plays from the Titans to keep this game close until the end. With the Titans likely gashing the Chiefs on the ground with Derrick Henry once again on Sunday, Tennessee should be able to limit the effectiveness of the Kansas City offense by keeping them off of the field and on the sideline. However, the lack of an elite passing game from Tennessee could cause some issues if they get into several third and long situations, especially based off hoe well the Chiefs’ defense performed at the end of the regular season. In the end, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense will prove to be too much to handle for the scrappy Titans with two key touchdowns from wide receiver Tyreek Hill, and head coach Andy Reid will finally get another shot at capturing Super Bowl glory.

In the Packers/49ers game, expect a much closer game than the last time these two teams played. The 49ers are clearly favored at home and own most key advantages in this game, especially in the secondary and on their defensive line, but the Packers have the best player in the matchup in quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Outside of two or three games this season, Rodgers has been almost a shell of himself, but has always seemed like he was on the verge of a vintage game. Sunday will be that day for Rodgers, especially in the second time seeing this defense and the franchise that famously passed over him in the draft, and a huge day passing (and maybe even scrambling) will guide this Packers’ team all day long. One of the most important things to watch in this game actually isn’t the play of either offense or defense, but how well both team’s kickers perform on the biggest stage in the NFC. Watch for Packers’ kicker Mason Crosby, an experienced and longtime veteran, to be the key contributor in the end in what could be the Packers’ first Super Bowl appearance since their title winning year in the 2010 season.