NFL Playoff Predictions: How Will Home-Field Advantage Affect Conference Games?

One of the main reasons that NFL teams lay it all on the line every Sunday is the chance to not only make the playoffs, but to achieve the always coveted home-field advantage on the road to the Super Bowl.

This weekend the San Francisco 49ers and New England Patriots are able to play their respective conference championships in their own backyard, giving each a crowd advantage, at the very least.

The Patriots at one point this season had won 20 straight games at Gillette Stadium before the New York Giants came to town. New England is one of the most difficult teams to defeat at home historically over the past few seasons, but the Baltimore Ravens were able to do so just two postseasons ago.

The 20 straight wins at home speak for themselves, the Patriots fan base is loud and in your face all day long. Trust me, I've lived it. The Pats have a certain comfort level at home as many NFL teams do, but when the Ravens are on the other side of the field, I'm not sure how much of the Gillette mystique will frighten them.

Given, both teams were different than their current versions, but Baltimore came to Foxboro, Massachusetts back in 2009, and took down New England on the road. That fact has to make the Ravens feel confident that they can do it once again so there won't be too much worry in the opposing locker room about the Patriots' knack for winning at home.

For the Ravens, this is a case of "been there, done that" because they have defeated the Patriots in their home stadium in recent years with many of the same faces on offense and the same key players on defense.

Albeit the Patriots were banged up on offense that year and didn't nearly have the weapons they do now, but there's a certain confidence a team gets when they've been able to beat you in your own backyard and seen others like the Giants do it as well.

On the NFC side, the 49ers are deep in the playoffs for the first time since Terrell Owens and coach Steve Mariucci were donning the gold and red of San Francisco. The team is coming off their first playoff win in a decade, defeating the New Orleans Saints in the most thrilling game of this postseason so far.

The 49ers have an advantage because they are a young and hungry team that will feed off the crowd during the game against the Giants and be able to play like an experienced playoff team, despite that such is not the case in reality.

This Giants team has made a name for itself by continuously winning difficult road games, whether it was against the Pats at Gillette or last weekend when they took out the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. I don't think playing at Candlestick Park will necessarily hurt the Giants psyche going into the game or during the game itself, but rather it will give the 49ers an extra boost of adrenaline when the second half rolls around.

Candlestick is going to be sold out, and for as young as this team is, coach Jim Harbaugh has them playing at a level that would make you think they've had as much playoff experience as his brother's Ravens team.

It's true that the G-Men are a phenomenal road team and have a degree of mental toughness a team needs to be truly great, but the 49ers they've studied on tape won't be the same 49ers they see take the field this weekend.

One could make the argument that the Giants will have a "been there, done that" feeling with so many quality road victories under their belt this year, but I think San Fran will feed off their home crowd much more than the Patriots will. New England has tasted success plenty over the past decade or two, so there isn't that same fire that there was back in 2001 when they first came into the limelight. That's how I see the 2011 49ers, as this year's 2001 Pats.

They don't have an offense that makes defenses afraid of giving up 30 plus points, but their defense will have the opposing offense wondering if they can put up 20. The 49ers thrive when they're in close games around the 20 point range, but they have the ability to win the shootouts like they showed last weekend.

There will be a degree of advantage for both home teams in the conference championship rounds, but it will affect the NFC Championship game to a greater degree.