NFL Conference Championships to Feature Saints, Bears, Colts, Patriots

The New England Patriots just defeated the San Diego Chargers in a 24 - 21 game played in San Diego, California. The Patriots drew first blood with a field goal early in the first quarter, but couldn't upend the Chargers until late in the fourth, when they were able to score a field goal to bring the game to 24 - 21 with only 1:10 left.

The game seemed over for New England when, trailing by 8, Tom Brady threw what appeared to be an interception late in the fourth. The Patriots were able to force a fumble on the play and recover the ball, which led to their bringing the score to 21 - 19 on subsequent plays with less than five minutes left to play. They went for the two-point conversion and got it to tie the game. They were able to hold off the Chargers, and managed a field goal to lead the game. With the play clock down to 8 seconds, San Diego tried for a 54-yard field goal attempt, but failed, allowing the Patriots to secure their place in the American Football Conference (AFC) Championship game.

The team will line up against the Indianapolis Colts at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, January 21 in the conference championships. Indianapolis, who defeated the Ravens at home yesterday in a 15 - 6 game, relied exclusively on their kicker Adam Vinatieri for offensive points, and will have home field advantage next week. Both teams were unable to score touchdowns, as Baltimore managed only to score two field goals. Bob Sanders, safety for the Colts, commented, "We knew we had to get them stopped on third down and, for the most part, we did that." The Colts ultimately came out on top, and will next travel to San Diego where they will attempt to overcome the Chargers and win their way to Super Bowl XLI.

Whoever wins this upcoming game will square off against either the New Orleans Saints or the Chicago Bears, who will play in the National Football Conference (NFC) Championship game on Sunday, January 21 at 3:00 p.m. EST.

Today at 1:00 p.m., the Seattle Seahawks traveled to Chicago for what would be their final playoff game of the season. The tight game traveled into overtime with a score of 24 - 24. Chicago kicker Robbie Gould of Penn State University kicked a 49-yard field goal with 10:02 left in OT to bring the Bears on top 27 - 24 and ultimately secure their place in the NFC Championship. "It's my biggest kick of my career," Gould said. "As soon as it left my foot, I knew it was good."

The Bears will host the New Orleans Saints, who beat out the Philadelphia Eagles yesterday in a 27 - 24 game. The Eagles, who punted the ball away on 4^th and 10 with 2 minutes left to play in the game, were ultimately unable to get the ball back and score in those final minutes. The Saints thereby earned their ticket to Chicago next week, vying against the Bears to ultimately get a spot in Super Bowl XLI. The game will be shown on FOX.

The winners of both of these games will advance to the Super Bowl to be played on February 4, 2007, covered by CBS.