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Patriots vs. Chiefs: Picks, odds for AFC championship game in Kansas City
January 20, 2019 9:22am ESTJanuary 20, 2019 8:30am ESTKansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, NFLOur picks and predictions for Patriots vs. Chiefs in the AFC championship game are here. Who will win Sunday in Kansas City?
Oddsmakers are not dishing out any favors to those who are tired of seeing the Patriots in the Super Bowl. New England's status as underdog for the AFC championship game in Kansas City plays right into Tom Brady's nonsensical claim that "everyone thinks (the Patriots) suck and can't win any games."
Of course, there is a minuscule fragment of truth to the New England quarterback's words. The Patriots reaching an eighth consecutive conference title game on the strength of a 41-year-old passer is a mind-boggling accomplishment. And there's a reason the Chiefs are the favorites to reach the Super Bowl; his name is Patrick Mahomes.
MORE: Picks, odds for NFC championship game
The Kansas City QB, likely the NFL MVP for 2018 after throwing 50 touchdowns in the regular season, is the kind of player who can give the Patriots problems. New England under coach Bill Belichick is known for its uncanny preparation habits, but Mahomes is capable of plays for which an opponent simply can't prepare.
Then again, Brady remains the leader on the other side. And the Patriots' offense, now an established threat in the power running game to compliment Brady's precision in the passing game, can attack the Chiefs in multiple ways. If there are weaknesses in the Kansas City defense — and there are — New England will identify and exploit them.
It all sets up what should be another AFC title-game classic. Below are Sporting News' picks and predictions.
Patriots vs. Chiefs: Picks, odds for AFC championship game
Date, time: Sun., Jan 20, 6:40 p.m. ET
Location: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
TV: CBS
Odds: Chiefs -3; Total: 57.5
Tadd Haislop: The Patriots and Chiefs won their divisional playoff games against the Chargers and Colts, respectively, in a similar fashion. Even though New England blew out its opponent on the scoreboard, the domination was rooted in the power running game with Sony Michel. Surprisingly, that's how Kansas City managed its win, too, with Damien Williams.
Presumably, New England will use a similar game plan in the conference title game against a Kansas City defense that has been vulnerable to the run at times in 2018. The Patriots have an advantage on the ground, and keeping pressure away from Brady will be vital.
The tried-and-true formula to beating New England is getting to Brady, but few teams can actually do it. Kansas City pass-rushers Dee Ford and Justin Houston gave Indianapolis offensive tackles fits in the divisional round, and Chris Jones completes one of the league's best pass-rushing trios. So, yeah, the Chiefs can do it.
With that said, the Patriots have the edge in overall defense, if anything because they'll be prepared with a game plan to contain the likes of Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce. So picking against New England, the team with the edges in defense and in the running game, would go against everything we know about postseason NFL football.
Los Angeles Rams Vs New Orleans Saints
Rams vs. Saints 2019 live stream: Time, TV schedule, and how to watch NFC Championship online
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The top two seeds in either conference will meet in the AFC and NFC Championship games on Sunday, beginning with the latter, a showdown between the top-seeded New Orleans Saints and second-seeded Los Angeles Rams at the Superdome. The game is set to begin at 3:05 p.m. ET on FOX (live streaming via FuboTV, FOX Sports GO).
The Rams finished the regular season at 13-3, with one of their few losses coming to the Saints in an offensive showdown in New Orleans. The Saints won that meeting, 45-35, handing the Rams their first loss of the season. Jared Goff threw for three touchdowns and nearly 400 yards, but also had an interception, while Todd Gurley was limited to 68 yards rushing.
New Orleans managed 141 yards of rushing as a team, while Drew Brees threw for 346 yards and four touchdowns. Neither quarterback was sacked in the outing. Saints receiver Michael Thomasdominated the game, with 12 receptions for 211 yards and a touchdown.
Both teams had a bye in the wild card round, and handled their opponents in the divisional round, though both games were close in their own way. The Saints only put up 20 points against the Eagles, and had to come from behind to get the victory as the Eagles fell apart in the second half.
The Cowboys kept it close with a late rally against the Rams, but Los Angeles managed a touchdown in the fourth quarter to keep the game out of reach as Dallas scored late and tried to make something happen. But the Rams got out of there with a 30-22 win.
Both games were quite a bit closer than most predicted, and the week of rest from the wild card round shouldn't play too much of a factor here after such a hard-fought divisional round.
Below, you can find all you need to know to watch the action on Sunday.
Time, TV, and streaming info
Time: 3:05 p.m. ET
Location: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, La.
TV: FOX
Streaming: FuboTV, FOX Sports GO
Odds: The Saints opened as 3-point favorites, making the Rams the underdog, but just barely, according to OddsShark.
Rams vs. Saints news
The Rams are as healthy as can be going into the NFC Championship, as they listed no players on their final injury report for Sunday's game.
The Saints, on the other hand, will be without Benjamin Watson and Keith Kirkwood, and listed three others on their injury report, all of whom are offensive linemen.
For Los Angeles, it won't be about riding one or two players to the Super Bowl. They're fully into the "we, not me" attitude.
Michael Thomas is, more than anything, in the zone. He's playing the best football of his career by far and will be extremely difficult to stop for the Rams.
Be sure to peep the Turf Show Times Q&A with the folks at Canal Street Chronicles, and of course, the reverse post on the latter blog.
Speaking of Turf Show Times, they have five Saints players to watch, win-loss predictions by their staff and bold predictions by their staff.
And speaking of Canal Street Chronicles, be sure to peep their latest preview podcast, a preview of the Saints offense vs. the Rams defense, some conference championship picksand their own bold predictions.
Saints fans should be worried about the offensive struggles they faced in the divisional round. Rams fans are the only ones who should be worried about the Saints offense.
Drew Brees will make you pay. This is just a fact of life.
Rams vs. Saints prediction
Of the six SB Nation NFL experts picking the conference championships, only two think the Rams can come out on top. That leaves four picking New Orleans, and they're joined by the OddsShark computer. The coin flip landed on Los Angeles.
NFC Championship 2019
NFC Championship 2019 : The NFC Title Game between the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Rams is set to kick off on Sunday afternoon.Kickoff is set for 3:05 p.m. ET from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
The Los Angeles Rams spent most of the season as the odds-on 2019 Super Bowl favorite. They gave way to the Saints late in the year, in part because of a loss to New Orleans in one of the most entertaining games of the season. Their rematch on Sunday in the NFC Championship will send the winner to Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta.
NFC Championship 2019 Live Stream : Watch NFC Title Game Free Online Tv
The Saints beat the Rams 45-35 in a Week 9 classic that ended Los Angeles' undefeated start, but both clubs went on to dominate their divisions. New Orleans has held steady as a three-point favorite in the latest Rams vs. Saints odds. The over-under for total points scored has dipped slightly to 56.5. With so much on the line, check out what SportsLine's Projection Model just locked in before making any Rams vs. Saints picks and NFL Playoff predictions of your own.
SportsLine's proprietary computer model went 176-80 straight up last season and beat more than 95 percent of CBS Sports Office Pool players in 2016 and '17. It also performed better than 98 percent of experts tracked by NFLPickWatch.com during that span. Additionally, it went 48-34 on A-rated picks against the spread last season, and $100 bettors who have followed it the past two seasons are up nearly $4,000.
The model has continued to nail its top-rated picks in 2018-19, entering the championship round on a blistering 16-6 run. For the season, it is now 30-15 on all top-rated picks, extending its two-year run to a strong 78-49. It also went 170-84 on straight-up NFL picks during the regular season, ranking inside the top 10 on NFLPickWatch.com. Additionally, it is 7-1 on all against-the-spread 2019 NFL playoff picks. Anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now, it has crunched the numbers for Rams vs. Saints (stream live on fuboTV) and simulated the entire NFC Championship Game 10,000 times. We can tell you it's leaning over, but it has also generated a point-spread pick that hits more than 50 percent of the time. You can only see that one at SportsLine.
The model knows that the last time the Saints hosted the NFC Championship, nine years ago, Brees threw for three touchdowns in a thrilling win over the Vikings. The future Hall of Famer hasn't lost a home playoff game as signal-caller for New Orleans. In his post season career, Brees is completing 66.4 percent of his passes for 4,510 yards, 31 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. During the regular season, he was sixth in touchdowns with 32 and No. 1 in the entire league in QB rating with 115.7, almost two points higher than the Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes.
The home team has covered the spread in seven straight meetings in this series. The Saints are on a 25-7 run against the number at home versus opponents with winning records. They also have a 5-2 spread record in their last seven January games.
But just because the Saints are at home and have already handled L.A. doesn't mean they'll cover the Saints vs. Rams spread.
The model also knows the Rams have a dynamic one-two punch they can throw at each of the skill positions. When running back Todd Gurley missed the final two weeks of the regular season with a knee injury, C.J. Anderson filled in admirably, rushing for 299 yards and two touchdowns in the final two weeks. Even after Gurley returned last week, Anderson went for 123 yards and two touchdowns, while Gurley added 116 rushing yards and a score of his own.
At wide receiver, the Rams have two 1,200-yard options in Brandin Cooks and Robert Woods. Cooks is the big-play threat who takes the top off secondaries, while Woods works the intermediate routes and forces defenses to work at every level.
The Rams also have two capable receiving tight ends in Gerald Everett and Tyler Higbee. The pair combined for 57 catches, 612 yards and five touchdowns during the regular season.
Saints vs Rams
Rams vs Saints : NFC Championship Game, The two best teams in the NFC collide when the New Orleans Saints host the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday afternoon as field-goal betting favorites at the sportsbooks.
The New Orleans Saints are a perfect 7-0 straight up in their last seven postseason home games and are 3-4 against the spread over that stretch. The Saints will try to earn an eighth straight playoff home win this Sunday when they host the Los Angeles Rams.
New Orleans is a 3-point home favorite on the NFL odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. The last 10 games between these two teams have been split with both teams going 5-5 SU, though the Rams hold a slight advantage of 6-4 ATS.
Rams vs Saints Live Stream : Watch NFC Championship Game 2019 Free On TV
The Saints and their home fans were left shell-shocked last Sunday when the team dropped into an immediate 14-0 hole in the first quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles wouldn't score another point however, and New Orleans eventually erased the deficit and survived with a 20-14 win.
Since going 5-0 SU and ATS with five straight wins by 10 points or more, the Saints are 1-5 ATS over their last six games with two losses and only one win by more than six points.In their last 17 games at home, the Saints, the +175 favorites on the updated Super Bowl odds, are 15-2 SU and 8-9 ATS per the OddsShark NFL Database.
C.J. Anderson was signed by Los Angeles with just two games left in the regular season as an insurance policy for Todd Gurley. But Anderson has been a lot more than that for the Rams with 422 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns through three games including a 123 yard and two touchdown effort in last Saturday's 30-22 win over Dallas.
Gurley also had 115 yards in the win, and the Rams are on a roll with a 3-0 SU and ATS record over their last three games.Sunday's total is set at 56.5 points at sports betting sites. The UNDER is 6-2 in New Orleans' last eight games.
New Orleans defeated Los Angeles 45-35 at home earlier this season in an impressive blowout victory. Over their last six games, however, the Saints are averaging only 19.2 points per game. It will be interesting to see if the New Orleans offense finds its groove for another shootout in this one or if it ends up being a more physical and low-scoring affair than many are expecting it to be.For more odds information, betting picks and a breakdown of this week's top sports betting news check out the OddsShark podcast with Jon Campbell and Andrew Avery. Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify or listen to it at
Rams vs Saints
Saints vs Rams :The Los Angeles Rams have a difficult task ahead of them in Sunday's NFC title game with the New Orleans Saints.They have a chance to win the NFC earn a spot in Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta February 3
New Orleans dropped its season opener to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and rested most of its key players in the regular-season finale defeat to the Carolina Panthers. The Saints won 13 of 14 games in between those two losses and proved their dominance nearly every week.
Saints vs Rams Live Stream : Watch NFC Championship game 2019 Free Online TV
The Rams will depend on head coach Sean McVay to force the New Orleans defense into a guessing game with his play-calling. That's an area that McVay has excelled in during the past two seasons."There's certain moments in games where being a good play caller—you can't teach it—but there's certain moments where you have to go for that dagger or you have to pull back a little bit," Rams quarterback Jared Goff said Friday, per Brett Martel of the Associated Press (h/t the Boston Globe). "There's just different ebbs and flows in games. I think he's got a great feel for that."
McVay refused to take credit for his skills in that area, deferring to Saints head coach Sean Payton because of his experience and long-term success in the game."He's been doing it at really high level for a lot longer than I have," McVay said. "He's an outstanding coach—clearly referenced by the way that his team is playing this year, how they've played over the course of his career when he's been leading the Saints. So, I don't think we're in that category yet."
The Rams are going to have to play better defense than they did in their earlier loss to the Saints. Wideout Michael Thomas had a brilliant season with 125 receptions, and he had 211 receiving yards in the win over the Rams.Los Angeles cornerback Aqib Talib explained why Thomas is so tough to defend, per Clarence Dennis of TheRams.com: "He's got a Hall of Fame quarterback (in Drew Brees). Anytime you're a receiver and you got a Hall of Fame quarterback, that's going to take you to the next level, man. Then he's big, he's fast, he's got great hands, great body control."When the Rams have the ball, they are going to need the 24-year-old Goff to stay calm and not get overwhelmed by the moment. It seems fairly obvious that the 40-year-old Brees can handle himself in a championship game, but Goff has to demonstrate that he can perform at a peak level when it matters most. He is clearly excited by his opportunity.
"It's always something you dream about growing up is being able to play in the Super Bowl," Goff said. "Even playing in the NFC championship is a dream come true. We're excited for it. It's an opportunity you work for and I think we see it as something that we've earned."Payton said that the Saints will be depending on their fans to fill the Superdome with noise and disrupt the Rams offense.
"What's important for our fan base is understanding when that crowd noise needs to begin differently this week than normal weeks," Payton said, per the Associated Press (h/t Yahoo Sports). "That crowd noise needs to begin just as that last play finished. You get 65, 70 snaps of that crowd noise earlier than normal and louder than normal, it's difficult."
One of Payton's great strengths is his ability to use all of his roster to gain an advantage over his opponents. "It's a chess match," New Orleans wideout Austin Carr said, per Luke Johnson of NOLA.com. "You hear that said a lot, but I actually see the strategy in the different moving pieces that he has every week."