It’s time for the Conference Championship games. I did pretty well last week as I accurately predicted the first three games and was nearly perfect. However, I fell short in the last game as the Chiefs beat the Bills in a close game after Bills kicker Tyler Bass kicked the field goal wild right. This sets up a star-studded matchup in the AFC Championship as Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs will travel to Baltimore to take on Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. Fun fact: In all of the five years Patrick Mahomes has been the starting QB for the Chiefs, they have at least the AFC Championship each time. On the NFC side, the Lions defeated the Bucs in a close back-and-forth game while the 49ers defeated the Packers in another close game. The Lions will travel to Santa Clara to play in their 2nd conference championship game in franchise history. They will play the 49ers, who will play in the NFC Championship for the fourth time in the past five years. Only two more games left until the Super Bowl! Without further do, let’s delve into my predictions in the Conference Championship round.

AFC Championship Game: Kansas City Chiefs (3) @ Baltimore Ravens (1): The Mahomes/Kelce combination, Isaiah Pacheco playing well, and the Chiefs defense (who have looked dominant all season) played a key role as well last week. Overall, the Chiefs looked more experienced in Mahomes’ first road game in the playoffs last weekend. However, the Chiefs will play their toughest opponent yet the Baltimore Ravens. Their game started a bit shacky as the game was close, but when Lamar Jackson started heating up and when the defense got after C.J. Stroud, the Ravens dominated the second half outscoring the Texans 24-0. This shut down all the narratives that Lamar Jackson is a chocker when it comes to playoff time. For most of the season, the Ravens have been the best team in the entirety of football, but you can never count out the Chiefs when they Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, similar to the Patriots with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. The Chiefs have all the momentum and if Travis Kelce plays well and the Chiefs rely on the run game, they have a chance. However, it is easier said than done as they have yet to play a team like the Ravens, who are playing like the best team on football on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. This will be an back-and-forth and high-scoring game, but at the end, the Ravens defense will come up big and slow down the Chiefs offense. They will beat the Chiefs and go back to the SuperBowl for the first time since 2013. (Winner Prediction: Baltimore Ravens)

NFC Championship: Detroit Lions (3) @ San Francisco 49ers (1): The Lions are back in the NFC Championship after 32 years after defeating Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers last week. The 49ers did not play their best football last week as they didn’t properly execute their game plan and it seemed as if Brock Purdy wasn’t himself as well. However, when it mattered the most, Purdy and Christian McCaffrey clutched up, leading a game-winning drive to the take the lead, and then the defense got an interception against Jordan Love, sending the 49ers to the championship game. 49ers WR Deebo Samuel did get injured, but still will suit up for action on Sunday. The Lions will need to rely on their run game, properly utilizing Gibbs and Montegomery against the dominant 49ers defense and secondary. They will also need help from their defense as they have to find a way to get to and pressure Brock Purdy. At the end, I feel like the gritty Lions will give their best effort, but will eventually fall short against the loaded 49ers. Hence, the 49ers will win a close game and head back to the Superbowl for the first time since 2020. (Winner Prediction: San Francisco 49ers)

Interestingly enough, there has been a conspiracy going around for the past couple of weeks that the Super Bowl matchups had already been determined/scripted beforehand. For the example, the colors for Super Bowl 56 was orange and yellow, which was similar to the colors of the logo for the Bengals and the Rams respectively. Adding on, the colors for Super Bowl 57 was green and reddish-purple, similar to the colors of the Eagles and Chiefs logos. This year, the colors are specific shades of red and purple, which are eerily similar to the colors of the 49ers and Ravens logos. Interesting, isn’t it? If trend continues, the 49ers and Ravens will clash in Las Vegas in a for the Lombardi Trophy in a rematch of Super Bowl 47! Let’s see what happens!