NFL Playoffs 2016: AFC and NFC Championship schedule

This will be a rare occasion where both the AFC and NFC will see their top two seeds facing off in their conference championships. Julian Edelman (broken foot) returned to the lineup, and the offense opened up for Tom Brady.

The Patriots beat the Kansas City Chiefs 27-20 on Saturday, covering a 4.5-point spread.

Tight end Rob Gronkowski was injured in the loss, leaving the game in the fourth quarter after taking a helmet to the knee.

The New England Patriots and the Arizona Cardinals lived up to expectations, winning their NFL divisional playoff games and advancing to the American Football Conference and National Football Conference championship games, respectively.

The Patriots’ only AFC Championship Game loss in such a Saturday/Sunday scenario came after the 2013 season when they lost to Denver in the AFC title game. If they had run the ball and kept the clock moving, it would have been even more hard for Aaron Rodgers to throw the Hail Mary pass that eventually tied the game on the final play of regulation.

The Broncos are coming off a 23-16 home win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday afternoon, with Manning returning to the starting role for the team while throwing for just 222 yards with no touchdown strikes.

Kickoff for the Cardinals at Panthers game on Sunday is set for 6:40pm ET. The Patriots already went to Denver once this year.

The divisional round of the playoffs provided plenty of excitement for fans across the country and around the globe, and four teams are left standing with the hopes of reaching the greatest single game in all of professional sports.

Las Vegas is banking on the New England Patriots meeting the Carolina Panthers in the Super Bowl. Arizona failed to cover as a 7-point favorite. “It’s not the sexy matchup like we have in the AFC, but this should be one heck of a game”, Lester said. The Cardinals finished it off with a shovel pass touchdown.

Carolina head coach Ron Rivera would have a chance to match wits with Belichick, and that battle could be a classic with Riverboat Ron going up against The Genius.

1 seed in the AFC playoffs, with the home-field advantage conferred by that status.

If the Cardinals upset the Panthers and the Patriots also win, that might lead to the most competitive of the possible matchups in the Super Bowl.