With the Super Bowl just a game away, these sensible selections should boost your playoff profits...
Green Bay Packers @ Atlanta Falcons
This genuinely could be one of the highest-scoring NFC Championship games of all time.
The Falcons and Packers ranked first and fourth respectively in points per game during the regular season, and both have porous defences that have struggled to keep their opponents out of the endzone.
For that reason, over 60.5 total points at {ODDS:131261030:10/11} is a sensible bet.
Picking a winner is slightly more difficult.
Atlanta have won six of their last seven games, and thumped the experienced Seattle Seahawks last week to reach their first NFC Championship game since 2012.
But Green Bay have been unstoppable since the season’s midway point, winning eight consecutive games by an average margin of 12.6 points, while quarterback Aaron Rodgers has thrown for 24 touchdowns and just one interception in his last nine starts.
The Packers beat the NFC’s top seed, the Dallas Cowboys, on the road last week, and they are a generous {ODDS:131261027:9/5} to pull off another upset in Atlanta.
With Jordy Nelson almost certainly out injured, Packers receiver Davante Adams is a good bet to be the game’s first touchdown scorer – providing he recovers from his own ankle problem.
Green Bay have struck first in each of their last eight games, and they have tended to go to the air in search of early points all season, with 16 of their 18 opening touchdowns coming from Rodgers’ arm.
Adams has caught five of those – more than any Green Bay player other than Nelson – and is priced at {ODDS:131788008:10/1} to open the scoring this weekend.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ New England Patriots
Another year, another AFC Championship game for the Patriots.
The duo of coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady have now reached this round of the playoffs in six consecutive years, and are poised to make their seventh Super Bowl appearance since they united in 2001.
New England had the NFL’s best defence this season and also scored more points per game than all but two teams. They have no weaknesses.
And while Pittsburgh won nine consecutive games to reach this stage, the Patriots are on an eight-game streak of their own, and have only lost once all season with Brady starting.
New England are the favourites at {ODDS:131284825:5/13}, and they are the right choice here.
That is not to say that this will be a comfortable victory for Belichick’s team, though.
The Patriots won by 11 points when these teams met in week seven, but that was before Pittsburgh’s midseason revival.
The Steelers have conceded an average of just 16.5 points over their last nine games, and they have the offensive firepower to trouble New England.
They should be able to keep it relatively close, and there is certainly value in backing the Patriots to win by between one and six points at {ODDS:131380671:7/2}.
Under 50.5 total points at {ODDS:131284830:10/11} is a similarly wise choice, given that these teams have played a combined 17 games since week 11 and have only eclipsed that total on three occasions.
Both the Patriots and Steelers are so impressive defensively that it would be a huge surprise if this game is as high-scoring as the NFC match-up.
