NFL Playoff Picture: Why Homefield Advantage Is Key for the New England Patriots

The New England Patriots prepare to host the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship game after earning home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

In fact, if the Patriots advance to the Super Bowl, home-field advantage could be the ultimate difference. Granted, it certainly helps having a quarterback such as Tom Brady on their side. However, the Patriots finally have a defense that is getting healthy and ultimately peaking at the perfect time.

Last week, the Patriots shut down Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos offense. Was that a fluke, or will it be the same performance against the Baltimore Ravens? Regardless, it seems the bye week did not hurt the Patriots in any way.

Though, just the idea of the Patriots playing in their home stadium has to be a sigh of relief. Unlike past seasons, there haven't been many teams that won consistently on the road this year.

The Patriots lost two of their three games on the road. They blew a double-digit lead against the Buffalo Bills and were dominated by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Two other elite teams were perfect at home throughout the playoffs and the regular season. However, they both struggled on the road, which included losses against the league's worst teams.

In the end, the New Orleans Saints were ousted last week after a sloppy performance in San Francisco. The Baltimore Ravens could be the next team that suffers the same fate.

In the playoffs, home-field advantage is crucial to any team, especially the Patriots. Bill Belichick does not have to change his timing of practice and meetings and can utilize the extra time of studying the upcoming opponent.

The players won't need to worry about the effect of different time zones. More importantly, the adrenaline is always up while playing in front of the home crowd.

Does that mean the Patriots are a shoe-in to win the AFC Championship game? Not by any means. In fact, this game will be decided within the final five minutes.

Ultimately, home field advantage can come into play. While the Patriots use it to their advantage, the Ravens can only realize the opportunity that was missed to an easy Super Bowl run.

Matt Miselis has appeared on ESPN.com, ESPN Radio, and CBS Sports. Follow him on twitter.