Conference Championship Recap: Winter Comes for Thee

I absolutely love Conference Championship Sunday; as I have said before, the final round before the championship round is always spectacular. The NBA and the NHL have the Conference Finals, MLB has the League Championship Series, and when it comes to the NFL, it's the Conference Championship, with both games taking place on the last Sunday in January. The stakes are simple: the winner of each Conference Championship will be in the big one, Super Bowl LX.

So with that, let's talk about what took place during the 56th edition of Conference Championship Sunday:

Patriots @ Broncos

The American Football Conference kicked things off, as their conference title game featured the Denver Broncos hosting the New England Patriots, with Denver being without star quarterback Bo Nix. Everyone had the Broncos being dead with Jarrett Stidham starting in Nix's place. Stidham managed to get a touchdown pass to give the Broncos a 7-0 lead, but that ended up being the only positive for the Broncos in this one. The game ended up being hit with a lot of snow, and I mean, a lot of it. I love snow-covered football. As a Southern Californian, I basically live vicariously through these types of football games and fellow Packers fans who actually live in Wisconsin.

New England picked up a key turnover that resulted in a quick touchdown, and at the half, it was 7-7. It was in the second half that the snow hit, and that's when things got messy, mainly for the home team. Turnovers, a missed field goal (the second one after a miss that ended the first half), and the only score was a Patriots field goal that came after a drive that took up half of the 3rd quarter. However, that score was all they needed.

They're back, folks! The New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. The Patriots Reboot's season finale is heading to Santa Clara! 10-7 was the final score, and it clinched the Patriots' twelfth Super Bowl appearance--and their first since 2018 (Super Bowl LIII). Oh, and here's something that should make Bills fans cry: Stefon Diggs got to a Super Bowl before Josh Allen did. This was a close game, mainly because of the conditions that hit in the second half. As for the Broncos, circumstances beyond their control brought an early end to their season, but this team should be back in the hunt again next season and even beyond that point.

Rams @ Seahawks

So with the Patriots' victory, Super Bowl LX would officially be a rematch, but which one would we get? For the second time in five years, the NFC Championship is an NFC West battle, but this time, it's the Los Angeles Rams facing the Seattle Seahawks. The two teams split the season series, with the home team winning each meeting. Seattle was up 10-3 after the first quarter, already coming close to matching the scoring from the AFC game. It was 17-13 Seattle at the half, and the third quarter saw a load of scoring, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba who truly showed out in that frame.

31-27 was the score, with Seattle having that lead entering the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter was close, and the Rams had a shot at the end zone, but Matthew Stafford's fourth down pass was nearly intercepted. Even so, Seattle regained possession at their own six yard line. Should be easy for LA's defense, right? Well, not so much. The only reason why Seattle couldn't score on that drive was because Sam Darnold was sacked out of range. Rams had it but had a long way to go, and the game ended with Puka Nacua being tackled just a hair inbounds.

The Seattle Seahawks won, 31-27, and are in the Super Bowl for the fourth time in franchise history. Sam Darnold is in the Super Bowl. He got there before Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen. Yikes. This continues a big stretch for the city, as their Mariners had their best season ever and nearly won their first pennant. As for the Rams, well, they were close. They started strong, but fizzled in the end. They'll be back, though; they are a strong force in the NFC.

And there it is, football fans! The 60th Super Bowl is locked in, and it will be the New England Patriots facing off against the Seattle Seahawks. It's a rematch of Super Bowl XLIX, which was won by the Patriots because Russell Wilson is incompetent. Just like the first meeting, this meeting will also air on NBC, with the network airing this game live from Santa Clara on February 8.

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