National Football League

Top seven matchups in the NFL conference championships

Published Jan. 20, 2016 2:52 p.m. ET

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Championship Sunday is nearly upon us. It boasts another battle between two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks with yet another spot in the Super Bowl up for grabs.

In the NFC, the up-and-coming Carolina Panthers take on an Arizona Cardinals squad that's been building for this moment over the past several years. Over in the AFC, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady take center stage as the Denver Broncos battle the New England Patriots.

While the focus will undoubtedly be on the quarterbacks, there are many other things that must be taken into account this weekend.

Here are some of the top matchups to watch for during Sunday's Conference Championship games.

1. Larry Fitzgerald vs. Josh Norman

Fitzgerald has to be riding high after an absolutely stunning performance against the Green Bay Packers last Saturday in the Divisional Round. Including an overtime reception that went for 75 yards, the future Hall of Famer caught eight passes for 176 yards and the game-clinching touchdown.

Saturday's performance represents the fourth time this season that Fitzgerald has gone for 100-plus yards and the first time since Week 10.

He's going to face much more difficult competition come this weekend. While Norman did allow four catches and a touchdown on four targets against Seattle last weekend, he was the best cover corner in the NFL during the regular season.

The soon-to-be free agent is allowing a 60.1 quarterback rating when targeted this season. He's also yielding less than 40 receiving yards per game -- a ridiculous mark considering he has been targeted 100 times in 17 games.

This is the one big matchup to watch in the NFC Championship Game. If Fitzgerald is shut down by Norman, it will force Carson Palmer to hit his secondary reads. Based on what we saw last week against Green Bay, that could be a recipe for disaster for Arizona. After all, Palmer was about as mistake-prone as we have seen him since his Oakland Raiders days.

2. Julian Edelman vs. Aqib Talib

Seeing his first action since breaking a bone in his foot back in Week 10, Edelman recorded 10 receptions for 100 yards against Marcus Peters and the Kansas City Chiefs last week.

That was a bit of a surprise considering Peters had been performing at an elite level heading into the game.

With Chris Harris Jr. expected to be limited in the AFC Championship game, Bradley Roby will see more action for the Broncos. Considering Roby will almost certainly play exclusively on the outside and knowing Talib's willingness to follow the opposing team's top receiver, it's highly likely the latter will be lined up against Edelman throughout the game.

Talk about a matchup of epic proportions. Talib did have his worst season in recent history in 2015, allowing a 63 percent catch rate and three touchdowns. He's now taking on a receiver in Edelman who caught nearly 70 percent of the passes thrown in his direction during the regular season.

If Edelman is able to perform at a high level here, it will take some of the Broncos' focus off Rob Gronkowski. As we saw last week against Kansas City, this isn't necessarily a recipe for success.

3. Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning

These two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks will meet for the 17th time in their careers when the Broncos host New England in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday. It's also the fifth time they have met in the postseason and the fourth time they have played for an appearance in the Super Bowl.

Interestingly, Manning has defeated Brady in two of those three AFC Championship games -- the most recent coming in January 2014.

But unlike previous matchups, the parameters of this meeting are completely different.

While Brady is being tasked with upping the level of his entire team —something we have seen throughout his career — Manning is simply being ask to show the same game-manager capabilities we saw last week against Pittsburgh.

It's an interesting dynamic to witness. Can Brady continue to perform at an exceedingly high level when his team needs it the most? If not, can the rest of the Patriots step up? That's not a question we are really asking regarding the Broncos heading into what will likely be the last game between these two first-ballot Hall of Famers.

4. Greg Olsen vs. Kevin Minter and Rashad Johnson  

The one aspect of Arizona's defense that has improved a great deal this season has been its ability to stop tight ends in the passing game. After yielding 1,085 yards and a 65.7 completion percentage to that position in 2014, the Cardinals gave up less than 800 yards and a 59.3 completion percentage this past regular season.

Without much of a threat on the outside (unless you attempt to count Ted Ginn), the Cardinals will set their focus between the hashes.

In this, Arizona has a pretty big advantage. Johnson allowed an incredibly low 61.0 quarterback rating when targeted during the regular year. Meanwhile, the combination of Minter and fellow linebacker Deone Bucannon have the athleticism to go up against tight end Olsen, who put up a career-high 1,108 receiving yards this season.

5. Rob Gronkowski vs. Danny Trevathan and T.J. Ward

If Talib is the key on the outside against Edelman, these two Broncos defenders will have to step it up against tight end Gronkowski, who caught two touchdowns last week against an elite Chiefs defense.

The good news here for Denver is that Trevathan and Ward are more than capable of holding their own. The bad news is that Gronkowski did record six receptions and a touchdown against the Broncos back in Week 12.

For his part, Ward allowed just 20 receptions for less than 200 yards and a touchdown in 12 regular-season games. In fact, he allowed two receptions or less in all but four games.

Denver's defensive scheme under coordinator Wade Phillips is complex. While Ward is essentially a free safety, he likely won't be tasked with playing over the top in center field against Gronk. Instead, the Broncos will mix and match slot corners and both inside linebackers in coverage as well.

While this has been enough to confuse opposing quarterbacks, we already know that Brady is among the best in the history of the game in terms of preparation.

So look for him to challenge Broncos defenders to make plays in single coverage against Gronk. That's where it is going to get interesting.

6. Ryan Harris vs. Chandler Jones

Harris has done a tremendous job stepping into a starting role. He allowed just three sacks from the left tackle position during the regular season. The veteran is also coming off a solid game against Pittsburgh that saw him yield just one quarterback hurry.

Jones entered last week's action coming off an embarrassing incident that saw him have a bad reaction to synthetic marijuana the previous weekend. He responded by playing about 40 percent of the team's snaps, recording one sack in the process.

Jones, a Pro Bowl performer this past regular season, was the Patriots' best defensive player. He tallied 13 sacks and a whopping 41 quarterback hurries.

With an immobile Peyton Manning under center, it will be important for Harris to continue his outstanding performance from a pass-protection aspect. If that happens, the Broncos' limited passing game could have some success.

7. Mike Iupati vs. Kawann Short

This matchup pits the best against the best. It's also a one-on-one duel that could very well play a huge role in the outcome of the NFC Championship game.

Much better in the run game than in pass protection, Iupati earned a Pro Bowl appearance -- the fourth of his career -- in his first season with the Cardinals. He did, however, yield a relatively high three sacks from the guard position.

That has to be somewhat of a concern for a Cardinals team that boasts an immobile Carson Palmer under center. This is only magnified by the fact that Short put up the second-most sacks (12) among 4-3 defensive tackles in the NFL. He also recorded a whopping 46 quarterback hurries from the interior line position.

If Short is able to put pressure on Palmer up the middle, it might force the Cardinals quarterback into some mistakes. After all, he did throw two picks against Green Bay last week.

Check out Vincent’s other work on eDraft.com and follow him on Twitter. His work can also be seen on MSN, Fox Sports and Forbes.

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