NFL Playoff Schedule 2016: AFC, NFC Championship Dates, Times and Preview

No one said it would be easy for the Carolina Panthers, but someone should've told them to score at least one point in the second half.

Nevertheless, the Panthers survived the Seattle Seahawks and will meet the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC title game next Sunday. Speaking of no one saying it would be easy, the Cardinals would like an opportunity to retort as of Saturday.

Meanwhile, the world will get at least one more Peyton Manning vs. Tom Brady matchup, with the winner heading to the Super Bowl. 

Here are your early previews for the conference title games.

Conference Championship Info 

NFC Championship Preview: Cardinals at Panthers

This is how it should be. 

The Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals have been the best teams in the NFC all year long. They have the top two records in the conference and now will battle it out for a spot in Super Bowl 50.

Cardinals coach Bruce Arians won't get his wish of the playing the Seahawks a third time. While that answer got a wild reaction from the Fox halftime crew, it had to be because he didn't want to leave the confines of University of Phoenix Stadium and travel to the brisk, cold conditions of Charlotte.

Both teams took an unusual approach to get within one win of a trip to Santa Clara. The Cardinals had to survive one of the most absurd comebacks in NFL history from Aaron Rodgers, only to have Larry Fitzgerald break the Green Bay Packers' hearts in a 26-20 win in overtime.

Fitzgerald has shined in his new role as Arizona's slot receiver, and Saturday's divisional-round matchup against the Packers proved it. When Arizona needed him most, the future Hall of Famer made the play of the year on a 75-yard catch-and-run that set up the winning touchdown.

"I know my team feeds off my energy and feeds off my play, and I just try to make sure I'm making plays to kind of build the energy and build the confidence of the group because we were a little flat," Fitzgerald said, per ESPN.com's Josh Weinfuss.

The key for Carolina will be to contain Fitzgerald, who caught 109 passes this year. That could mean the Panthers may have no choice but to move star cornerback Josh Norman inside and force Carson Palmer to target John Brown and Michael Floyd more.

As the Panthers showed against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, it will take more than an offense that outgains Carolina to beat them, as CBS Sports' Will Brinson noted:

Yet if Carolina wants any shot at making a Super Bowl for the first time in 12 years, it's going to have to come from their MVP candidate quarterback for a whole four quarters. Cam Newton played a stellar first half against Seattle, leading the Panthers to a 31-0 halftime lead. They didn't score another point the rest of the way.

NBC Sports analyst Tony Dungy thinks Newton is the X-factor against Arizona:

These two teams faced off last year in the playoffs, and it was a much different situation. The Cardinals didn't have Palmer. The Panthers were a below-.500 NFC South winner. 

Unlike last year, the best team out of these two will have earned a spot in the Super Bowl.

AFC Championship Preview: Patriots at Broncos

Even when they turn 80 years old, Manning and Brady will be rivals in competitive chess.

They are linked together between now and the end of time. For the 17th such occurrence, these two Hall of Fame quarterbacks will play each other. For the fifth time, Brady and Manning will meet in the playoffs and the fourth time in the AFC Championship Game.

The Broncos have, somehow, found a way to win a crucial playoff game with the banged-up Manning at quarterback against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Thanks to Manning, he will play a home game against Brady at Mile High with Super Bowl implications for the third time.

Call it divine intervention or just dumb luck, but ESPN’s Jonathan Coachman believes a higher power is at work for this:

Barring any setbacks or change of heart from head coach Gary Kubiak, Manning will start for the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. But unlike years past, it won’t be Manning who decides if Denver goes to the Super Bowl. The defense that has carried Denver almost all year will be called upon to contain Brady and Co. once again, just like they did on Nov. 29.

Brock Osweiler did his part, throwing for 270 yards and a touchdown in that 30-24 thrilling overtime win. The case can be made that Osweiler gives Denver the best chance to win, but Kubiak may continue with the hot hand after back-to-back wins by Manning.

Should the Broncos go with Manning, though, the comparison between this current state of Peyton and Brady is not close. Brady played some of his best football all year Saturday, carving the Kansas City Chiefs defense for 27 points. Kansas City’s defense has been no slouch over their 11-game winning streak.

Some could say it’s better than Denver’s, and Brady made easy work of Andy Reid’s club.

"It's pretty cool. It's hard to do," Brady said, per ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss. "You've got to grind throughout the entire year. There are only four teams playing next week, and we're one of them. And that game means a lot."

The Patriots reaped the rewards of having wide receiver Julian Edelman back in the lineup for the first time in two months. Brady’s favorite receiver caught 10 passes for 100 yards in his return, while he also threw both of his touchdowns to tight end Rob Gronkowski.

New England’s offense is healthy, and that proved to be a difference-maker for the Patriots. Now it’s a matter of getting revenge in Denver. With the Broncos narrowly escaping on Sunday night, that’s all New England needed to see.