By Nick Grunewald, WC Sports Editor
BALTIMORE (Western Courier) – Conference championship weekend is finally upon us as four teams remain in the chase for a Lombardi Trophy.
The Baltimore Ravens will play host to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game followed by the Detroit Lions traveling to San Francisco to take on the 49ers.
AFC Championship
Ravens vs. Chiefs
It’s easy to say this is a battle of heavyweights as Patrick Mahomes is set to start in his sixth conference championship game in as many postseason appearances – though it will be the first time not in Arrowhead – and the Ravens are making their 11th postseason appearance in John Harbaugh’s 16th season.
When you think of teams who historically have performed well in the postseason, it’s been built off great quarterback play and top-notch defenses. Insert these two teams.
For the Ravens – they’ve become just the fourth team since the 1970 merger to have a first-team All-Pro quarterback and the league’s No. 1 scoring defense. The 1972 Dolphins, 1978 Steelers and 1996 Packers – the previous three teams to do so – all went on to win the Super Bowl their respective years.
Lamar Jackson throws a pass through two Chiefs defenders. (Photo by: Kyle Rivas/UPI)
The Chiefs are no slouchers though. They still field the game’s best quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, add in the physical ball-carrier Isiah Pacheco, Mahomes’ ever reliable safety valve Travis Kelce and the emergence of rookie wideout Rashee Rice, this offense is clicking. Not to mention the likes of Chris Jones and L’Jarius Sneed headlining the best defense the Chiefs have had in the Andy Reid era.
Baltimore enters Sunday’s matchup as 3.5 point favorites. Plenty of fans will be cheering for a Ravens win in hopes of seeing someone other than the Chiefs compete for the Lombardi Trophy – it’d be Kansas City’s fourth appearance in the big game in the last six years – which they certainly have the tools to do on both sides of the ball.
Lamar Jackson has been outstanding this year and is likely headed towards his second MVP season – but like Tom Brady in his prime, Patrick Mahomes can’t be dismissed. Pick: Chiefs 24, Ravens 20
NFC Championship
49ers vs. Lions
It’s David vs. Goliath, at least historically speaking.
Since Kyle Shanohan took over as head coach five years ago the 49ers have been an NFC heavyweight with the offensive mastermind leading the team to their fourth conference championship game appearance.
49ers Brock Purdy Left; Lions Aidan Hutchinson Right (Photo by: Getty Images)
The Lions, meanwhile, are appearing in just their first conference title game since 1991 – only their second in franchise history – and are looking to punch their ticket to their first ever Super Bowl appearance.
All eyes will be on the health of Deebo Samuel heading into Sunday night’s matchup after a shoulder injury forced him to exit the game in the first quarter only to return to the sidelines later in street clothes, meaning his day was done.
The Niners were a completely different group from that moment on – specifically the play of Brock Purdy. The former last overall pick in 2022 – missed open receivers and sailed passes, if not for the likes of superstars Chhristian McCaffrey – who scored his second touchdown of the game to give the Niners a late lead – George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk making spectacular plays, this Niners team would’ve been bounced in the divisional round.
Deebo missed time earlier in the season with a similar shoulder injury and was forced to exit the week six matchup against the Browns. San Francisco would fall to Cleveland and then drop their next two games before Samuel returned in week nine and they went on a six game win streak.
This has been the story all year for San Francisco – when the Avengers are fully healthy and intact, Purdy looks like he belongs. But, if they miss even one of their superstars, we see why he was Mr. Irrelevant.
Detroit is the feel-good story that everyone wants to see succeed. After laughing Dan Campbell out of the building following his opening press conference where he infamously said they’d be biting off kneecaps, he’s built a team that embodies the same intensity and DAWG that Campbell does.
Jared Goff has put together quite a nice season orchestrating the league’s third ranked offense. Play makers such as Amon-Ra St. Brown and rookie Jahmyr Gibbs have made life easy for Goff all year with OC Ben Johnson drawing up designs to scheme them open.
The X-factor for this matchup is the health of Deebo Samuel. If he’s fully healthy, you can pencil the Niners in for the franchise’s sixth Lombardi trophy. But after missing two weeks early in the season with a similar injury, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be at 100% come Sunday night and we’ve seen the Niners health be their downfall before, why wouldn’t it flare up again? Kyle Shannahon also has a history of becoming a conservative play caller in big games and Dan Campbell has proven to operate in the exact opposite way. Ride the hot group and the team everyone’s rooting for. Pick: Lions 30, 49ers 24.
