Ranking the 5 Best NFL Conference Championship Games Since 2000

Sunday's excellent matchups could give fans some of the best playoff football in recent memory. Tom Brady and Peyton Manning go head-to-head for the 15th time in their illustrious careers and for the third time in an AFC Championship Game.

Meanwhile, the NFC side of the bracket features two young gunslingers in Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick. Both of them hope to add their names next to Brady and Manning's in NFL lore.

But before the madness begins on Sunday, let's take a look at the best conference championship games of this millennium.

5. 2012: New England Patriots 23, Baltimore Ravens 20

A hard-fought battle came down to the final minute of the fourth quarter. The Ravens first had a chance to win the game and then had a chance to tie it.

They could execute neither.

The game's final score came on a fourth-down, goal-line plunge by Patriots quarterback Tom Brady that put his squad up 23-20 with 11 minutes remaining. The Ravens would threaten on their next drives, but a Joe Flacco interception and a turnover on downs would keep them from scoring.

Yet they still received the ball with under two minutes left with a chance to either tie the game at 23 or score a winning touchdown. Several completions, including a 29-yard pass from Flacco to Anquan Boldin, put the Ravens in the red zone.

Baltimore appeared to have scored the clinching touchdown on a pass to receiver Lee Evans, but Evans was unable to break into the end zone, The Ravens had to settle for a field-goal attempt.

Many assumed the Ravens would convert the short, 32-yard attempt and looked forward to overtime. But Billy Cundiff's kick was wide left, shocking the heartbroken Ravens bench and sending the Patriots into euphoria as their Super Bowl ticket was punched.

4. 2000: St. Louis Rams 11, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 6

It took only one play from scrimmage for the Rams' dynamic offense, known as the Greatest Show on Turf, to realize they wouldn't be having their way against a stingy Tampa Bay defense. Kurt Warner's first pass was tipped and intercepted, setting up a Bucs field goal.

That play would epitomize what would become a defensive struggle, as neither team scored a touchdown until the fourth quarter.

Trailing 6-5 with under 10 minutes left in the game, the Rams offense finally woke up. After driving down to the Tampa Bay 30-yard line, Warner launched a long pass toward the corner of the end zone. Receiver Ricky Proehl hauled in the pass for the decisive touchdown.

The Rams would fail to convert the two-point attempt, leaving the door open for a Tampa Bay winning drive. Rookie Shaun King's Hail Mary pass, however, was batted down, which sealed the Rams victory. They would go on to win their first Super Bowl.

3. 2010: New Orleans Saints 31, Minnesota Vikings 28

In a battle between two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks, the two potent offenses of the Vikings and Saints traded touchdowns for four quarters. With several minutes remaining, the two teams were knotted at 28.

The Vikings had the opportunity to win the contest with a game-ending field goal in the final minute, but a series of blunders cost them that chance and ultimately the game. Set up on the Saints' 33-yard line with 19 seconds remaining, Minnesota first erred by having 12 men in the huddle and were penalized five yards.

Then, seeking to pick up extra yardage for an easier field-goal attempt, Brett Favre threw an ill-advised pass that was intercepted, which forced overtime. Replays show Favre could have easily run for several yards.

The Saints received the ball first in overtime and took advantage, driving down the field and converting a 40-yard field goal to win the game.

Once again, Favre had faltered in the NFC Championship Game. But the contest was significant for other reasons as well. Following the season, the NFL adopted a new rule that allows teams that lose the coin flip in overtime to have one drive to respond if the opponents start the extra period with a field goal.

Moreover, the rough style of play in the game was later to revealed as part of New Orleans' defensive bounty system, which earned head coach Sean Payton a one-year suspension.

2. 2008: New York Giants 23, Green Bay Packers 20

Not even subzero conditions at frigid Lambeau Field could stop Eli Manning from following in his older brother's Super footsteps. The Giants, coming off consecutive road victories, were again the underdog against Brett Favre and the Packers, especially given Green Bay's historical home-field advantage.

Early on, however, the Giants proved that their recent playoff success was no fluke. They trailed by only four points at halftime and scored two third-quarter touchdowns to take a 20-17 lead into the final period. 

From there, the contest became a battle of field-goal kicking. Packers kicker Mason Crosby nailed a 37-yarder to tie the score at 20.

Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes was given two opportunities to kick the game-winner but faltered twice. He first missed a 43-yard field goal, and then, with time expiring in the fourth quarter, his 36-yard attempt sailed wide left, which kept the Packers' hopes alive.

The jubilation in Green Bay was short-lived. On the second play from scrimmage in overtime, Favre threw an interception on his last play as a Packer, setting up the Giants. This time, Tynes converted a 47-yard field goal (longer than either of his misses), sending New York to the Super Bowl.

1. 2007: Indianapolis Colts 38, New England Patriots 34

When Asante Samuel picked off a Peyton Manning pass and returned it 39 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter, giving the Patriots a 21-3 lead, this game appeared headed along a familiar narrative. Brady would best Manning on the way to another Super Bowl.

But Manning was having none of it. He orchestrated a trio of scoring drives, complete with a two-point conversion, which tied the game at 21. The two teams would trade scoring drives deep into the second half before Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski booted a 43-yard field goal to give New England a 34-31 lead.

The Patriots were unable to keep the ball out of Manning's hands in the waning minutes, however, and he made them pay. He methodically drove the Colts down to the New England goal line, before Joseph Addai ran untouched into the end zone to give Indianapolis a 38-34 lead.

The Patriots' ensuing drive was cut short by a Brady interception, which sealed a much-needed victory for Manning over his rival. The Colts would go on to win the Super Bowl.