NFL Conference Championship Picks

Last week's record: 2-2 (Correct: Cardinals, Broncos Incorrect: Chiefs, Seahawks)
Overall record: 5-3

New England Patriots over Denver Broncos: The potential final installment of Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning is without question the least intriguing matchup out of the 17 times these future Hall-of-Famers have squared off since 2001. In case you've been living under a rock for the past year, Tom Terrific is still playing at a very high level at age 37 while Manning continues to look more decrepit and frail by the week. Manning's physical limitations have turned this once potent Broncos offense into one of the most ineffective units in the NFL and that inability to generate much offense will more than likely cost them another trip to the Super Bowl. The fact that Denver is one of the few places in the NFL where struggles (he's 0-2 in the playoffs and 2-6 overall at Mile High Stadium) is a completely legitimate cause for concern for the Patriots, but he won't need to be great to take out this Broncos squad. If Brady can generate two or three drives where the Patriots get the ball into the endzone, it will be enough to sink the Broncos and their porous offense. Any hope of the Broncos winning this game will lie completely on the shoulders of their top-ranked defense. The Broncos ability to get to the quarterback and force turnovers was the primary reason they were able to win 12 games this year and they're going to need step up yet again if they want to deify the odds and get to Super Bowl 50. Brady's absurdly fast release and their reluctance to run the ball/throw deep downfield makes the Patriots one of the most turnover-averse offenses in the NFL, but if anyone is capable of forcing Brady to get off his game, it's this defense. The skill of the Broncos defense should be enough to keep it close, but their inability to match the absurd offensive production of the Patriots will prevent them from making their second Super Bowl in three years.

Carolina Panthers over Arizona Cardinals: All week long I had the Cardinals locked in as my pick. I believed their more weapon-packed offense and substantially better health would push them over the edge in an almost dead-even matchup with the Panthers. However, with the massive amounts of snow that just hit the Charlotte-area and projected game-time temperature just above freezing, I believe the balance has shifted into the Panthers favor. The Cardinals have almost zero experience playing in the cold and the Panthers rush-heavy offense is much better suited for extreme weather conditions than the Cardinals field-spreading, aerial-driven attack. Their abundance of talent at just about every position on the field and the brilliance of their head Bruce Arians t-who has proven time and time again how well he handles adversity-gives the Cardinals a serious shot of going into Charlotte and winning, I just don't have enough faith in their ability to play in bad weather to give them the nod in this game.