Recognize people. There will be no blow outs in these games. We expect them to be hotly-contested, see-saw battles with fantastic finishes. This may be the final Brady-Manning matchup so the AFC Championship game will be an emotionally charged one for the fans. The NFC Championship matches two of the young, dual-threat terrors to recently infiltrate the NFL and throwback defenses with malicious intent on every play.
Phife Dawg: (Follow PhifedaPHANalyst on Twitter @IamthePHIFER)
San Francisco 49ers 24, Seahawks 20: Seattle has been invincible at home, but if any squad can beat Richard Sherman's mouth and that stellar defensive unit, it'll be future Hall of Famer Anquan Boldin, King Kaepernick and arguably a better defensive 49er crew.
New England Patriots 33, Denver Broncos 29: I'm pulling for Peyton Manning to make it to another Super Bowl. It just doesnt seem right that Lil Brother Eli has two rings and Peyton – the far superior QB – has just one. Peyton still has something to prove. Unfortunately, he doesn't play defense, which is the Broncos' Achilles heel.
Da Gambler: Follow on Twitter @fanalyst1)
Seahawks 22, 49ers 20: I tried to be cute last week and go against the guy I picked for league MVP months ago. This week I'm sticking with my guns and expecting the Seahawks to deal wit da' dirty, smash-and-trash mouth business. I'm still waiting on that stinker of a game by Kaepernick, who is getting more sweat than a 400-pound man in a sauna. Expect at least four concussions in this one. It won't be pretty.
Could be a QB that takes an L. Backups Tavaris Jackson and Colt McCoy need to stay warm and ready to take crucial snaps. While both Kaep and Russ have dual capabilities, Wilson's uncanny elusiveness in the clutch will be the difference. The Ivy League of the West Thug AKA Richard Sherman keeps Boldin quiet, plus Beast Mode tops Frank Gore in this battle of rough-riding rushers.
Broncos 30, Pats 21: LeGarrette Blount is not Toni, Toni, Toni so he doesn't do it again.
His Timmy Smith Super Bowl moment was last week in the AFC Divisional Game. Maybe Monte Ball has one of those Blount come-up games. I have a hunch Manning will have one of his finest playoff performances ever.
Masta Ace (Follow Masta Ace on Twitter @mastaace)
Seattle 30, San Fran 28: The red-hot 49ers can give it up. Harbaugh and Kaep get close but come up empty again.
The leg of Seahawks kicker Steven Hauschka, who set a Seahawks record for points in a season by a kicker with 143, is the difference in this nail biter.
Pats 31, Denver 28: The playoff befuddlement continues for Manning fans as the Broncos get derailed by the Pats and Tom Brady does it again.
DJ Dunson (Follow @cerebralsportex)
49ers 23, Seahawks16
The Niners don't have defensive backs that can match Seattle's tenacious Legion of Boom but Seattle is going to miss Percy Harvin and Sidney Rice. Seahawks have no receivers while third time is the charm for Kaepernick in Seattle.
Broncos 33, Patriots 27
Peyton is a manning on a mission. The Pats defense has been riddled with injuries, and it's Wes Welker who paints his revenge masterpiece by having his best game of the season, then waiting until the fourth quarter to insert the dagger and cackles all the way to the Super Bowl
Michael Tillery (Follow Michael Tillery on Twitter @michaeltillery)
Seahawks 24, San Francisco 18: Gore and Lynch both have classic games, but a Richard Sherman pick six of Colin Kaepernick wins it for Seattle in OT.
Patriots 42, Broncos 40: Tom Brady and Peyton Manning both throw for 400 plus yards and remind us all of Dan Fouts and Don Strock in 1982, but it is Stephen Gostkowski stamping his name on history — kicking a long range bomb in the closing seconds of regulation to send New England into yet another Super Bowl.
