The Conference Championships are now set, with only one "Cinderella" team remaining in the New York Jets. Fresh off their second road victory, this time over the San Diego Chargers, the Jets' are imitating the Baltimore Ravens run last season with a rookie head coach and a rookie quarterback. However, beating Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts at home in the AFC Championship Game with the Colts playing their starters all game and actually trying will be a different challenge than it was in week 16 of the regular season.
Over in the NFC, the New Orleans Saints will host the Minnesota Vikings in the Championship Game, with the top two seeds fighting it out for a spot in the Super Bowl. This should be a great game with two of the top QB's in the league on both sides in Drew Brees and Brett Favre, as well as top offenses that are sure to provide a bunch of highlights.
But what about the losers from this weekend?
The Chargers looked to be the biggest disappointment of the weekend, as the AFC's #2 seed was on a long winning streak and led the game into the fourth quarter. However, Philip Rivers threw a poor timed interception and then sulked on the sidelines like a spoiled brat as the game wound down to a Jets victory. Any talk of him being considered the league's MVP over Peyton Manning was dispelled by that performance.
The Dallas Cowboys loss to the Vikings prove that they still have a tough time getting Tony Romo to be a consistent winner in the clutch and the look of frustration on owner Jerry Jones' face never seems to get old for those fans who believe the owners should be seldom seen, much less heard. The future of Arizona Cardinals QB Kurt Warner is undecided but despite the solid success he seems to always have, his body and especially his head has taken a lot of abuse and perhaps he should consider hanging up his cleats and settling for a great career.
Then of course, there are the Baltimore Ravens, who lost in disappointing fashion to the Indianapolis Colts Saturday night. Losing in a way that has plagued the team all season, the Ravens made way too many mistakes, too many inopportune penalties, had questionable play calling and above all, just did not execute the plays on both sides of the ball.
The losers form this weekend go back to the drawing board to prepare for their off season and beyond while four teams remain to face off next weekend to see who has to skip the Pro Bowl and settle for preparing for the Super Bowl. While I see the Colts winning to represent the AFC, either of the two NFC teams remaining would make a great Super Bowl matchup, although I'm rooting for the Saints to face the Colts in what would be a great final story of the NFL season.