NFL Playoff Picks 2012: Last Call on This Weekend's Winners and Losers

There are two games remaining until we know which teams will be facing off in this year's Super Bowl. The AFC and NFC championship games are traditionally two of the best contests of the year, and this Sunday's slate of games should be no different.

Here's a preview of the two matchups as well as predictions of which teams will be heading to Indianapolis in February.

AFC Championship: Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots

If defense wins championships, the Baltimore Ravens should have no trouble defeating the New England Patriots on Sunday. However, it's not as simple as that.

To say the Patriots offense is hot would be an understatement. Counting last week's playoff victory over the Denver Broncos, New England has won nine games in a row and have scored fewer than 30 points just once in that span.

They put up 45 points against the Broncos last week and 509 total offensive yards, and quarterback Tom Brady threw six touchdowns and one pick.

The Patriots' offensive success isn't Brady's alone. He's also surrounded by some serious playmakers in tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez and his always-reliable slot receiver Wes Welker. Stopping Brady is difficult for any defense, but to stop his receivers is an even more daunting task.

But that's what the Ravens will have to do to win. Thanks to the Ravens defense forcing a number of Texans turnovers (or recovering a fumbled punt return, in one instance), Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco scored two first-quarter touchdowns on a short field.

Without those turnovers, it's hard to imagine the Ravens winning that game. Flacco was held to just 176 passing yards on the day and the Texans defense allowed just 87 total Baltimore rushing yards, while their only other scores came from two field goals.

20 total points won't be enough for the Ravens to defeat the Patriots on Sunday. Unless their defense can put forth one of their best performances of the year this week, they're not likely to win.

Flacco's arm and Ray Rice's running game cannot match or best what the Patriots offense is going to accomplish. Though New England's defense has been shaky all year, they won't give up enough points for the Ravens to even make this a close game.

NFC Championship: New York Giants at San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers are just two-and-a-half-point favorites over the New York Giants, and it's quite possible they're getting the points because of home-field advantage, as this game is terribly difficult to predict.

Both the Giants and Niners are coming off of astounding divisional round wins in which they dispatched the NFC's heaviest of hitters, the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints.

They both did so by outscoring the highest-scoring offenses of the year, while also using their respective strong defenses to hold down quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees.

This week is sure to be a more defensively-minded matchup from start to finish, with the Giants and 49ers both boasting brutal pass rushes and San Francisco fielding the best run defense in the league.

The Niners are going to need to get to New York quarterback Eli Manning early and often. He's performed masterfully in his team's first two playoff games, throwing for a total of 607 yards, six touchdowns and one interception in the last two weeks.

San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith isn't worth dismissing, either. Last week, he threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns and ran 28 yards for a fourth score.

Though the Niners haven't been the highest-scoring team this year and have struggled in the red zone (resulting in kicker David Akers setting the NFL's all-time single-season field-goal record), the fact that they could put up 36 points last week should have the Giants concerned.

The key to stopping San Francisco is not just putting pressure on Smith, it's also keeping running back Frank Gore contained. Gore has been the most consistent and highest-performing member of the Niners offense this year; his big gains set the team up for red-zone possession after red-zone possession.

Keeping the Niners out of the red zone—and out of field-goal position—will be the primary goal of the Giants defense. Even allowing three points could be the difference between a victory or a loss.

When these teams met in Week 10, the 49ers won 27-20. Expect a similar score and the same outcome on Sunday.

What the 49ers lack on offense (in comparison to the Giants) they more than make up for on defense, and their ability to hold down Manning and prevent running backs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw from making big gains will be the reasons they win this game.