This was a new year in the NFL with a different schedule and more teams in the playoffs. On Wild Card weekend, we did not see that many good games. Well, things certainly changed into the divisional round as we had four amazing games, arguably the best game on Sunday night. Let’s take a look at our NFL Playoffs Betting analysis for the upcoming games of the Conference Championship round.
Conference Round Straight-Up Picks for the 2021-22 Season | NFL Betting
Divisional Round Quick Recap
We are only hoping for another good week of football in the conference championships.
In the divisional round, three of four home teams lost. The Cincinnati Bengals won on a last-second field goal against the Tennessee Titans. The San Francisco 49ers won on a last-second field goal against the Green Bay Packers.
The trend continued in the first matchup Sunday, with the Los Angeles Rams beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a last-second field goal. The Buffalo Bills were 13 seconds away from beating the Kansas City Chiefs, but the rest is history.
This week in our conference championships, we have four teams looking to make yet another appearance in the Super Bowl. From the AFC, we have the Cincinnati Bengals traveling to take on the Kansas City Chiefs. From the NFC, the San Francisco 49ers are traveling to take on the Los Angeles Rams.
AFC Championship
This is the fourth straight year of the Kansas City Chiefs playing in the AFC Championship game. They have won the last two and have one Super Bowl Championship to show for it.
The first game of this run ended in an overtime loss to the New England Patriots. Last year they lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The last time the Cincinnati Bengals were in the AFC Championship was in 1989. That season they beat the Buffalo Bills and advanced to the Super Bowl.
Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase have led the Bengals through an incredible season this year. The Bengals also have a 1,000+ yard rusher with Joe Mixon.
The lines are open on the conference championship games, and the Kansas City Chiefs open up at seven-point favorites. With the way last week ended, a seven-point spread is very tough for the Cincinnati Bengals to cover. Looking at this game straight up, it will be hard to bet against the Chiefs based on their success in the last few years and this season.
NFC Championship
The second game of the day on Sunday is the NFC Championship game. It is a Week 18 rematch between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams.
The 49ers came back to beat the Rams in overtime in Week 18 to get into the playoffs. What a turnaround that would be for the 49ers.
In Week 18, what was actually a road game seemed like a home game for San Francisco. SoFi Stadium was filled with red and 49ers fans. They are hoping for more of the same this week.
The 49ers have played spoiler two weeks in a row, knocking off the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers at home. They are looking to make it a perfect 3-0 road trip in the playoffs this week against their division rivals.
The Los Angeles Rams are looking to host the Super Bowl in a few weeks when the game is kicked off at SoFi Stadium. They would have the chance to make it back-to-back years where the host team won a Super Bowl in their own stadium. The Rams are a totally different team with Matthew Stafford at quarterback.
The Rams are 3.5 point favorites in the spread for this game. In a straight-up pick, Los Angeles is the team to pick. Jimmy Garappolo has made too many mistakes this postseason, ones that could have had the 49ers eliminated. If he makes mistakes this week, the Rams will put them away and be headed to the Super Bowl.