NFL conference championships preview
These games will both take place on Sunday, January 24.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11-5) vs Green Bay Packers(13-3) - 3:05 PM ET, Fox
Brady vs. Rodgers for a trip to the Super Bowl. Is this Brady's last chance to get there? It remains to seen be seen what he will do after the season, but the recent retirement of Philip Rivers and rumors for Drew Brees certainly raise that question. These teams met in October in a game in which Tampa steamrolled Green Bay 38-10. The Tampa defense was fantastic in that game, fueling a big second quarter with two interceptions and holding the Packers to just 201 total yards of offense. With the way both teams are playing right now, the rematch should be a closer game. Tampa's defense is not playing quite at that same level, and Green Bay's offense is on a roll--having scored 32 points on the league's number one defense last week. The defenses will have their hands full with the opposing offenses clicking so well. For that reason, this should be a much different game than the previous meeting.
Buffalo Bills (13-3) vs Kansas City Chiefs (14-2) - 6:40 PM ET, CBS
The Bills have a chance to go to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1994- the final of four straight Super Bowl losses. Standing in their way are the defending champs. These teams met earlier in the season, and the game was close until Kansas City pulled away late. That game was a rough one for Buffalo QB Josh Allen, who threw for just 122 yards on 14 of 27 passing. The Buffalo offense has been clicking much better recently and should give the Bills a chance with a better performance from Allen. On the Kansas City side, QB Patrick Mahomes still needs to clear concussion protocol. There was a clear difference in the offense with backup Chad Henne in the game last week, and Buffalo has the defense to exploit that if Henne has to lead the offense for a longer duration. If Henne is the starter, Kansas City will need a great effort from its defense, as the offense is built better for big plays than a ball-control-based strategy.