One game stands in the way of Super Bowl LV for the Chiefs, Packers, Bills and Buccaneers. Win in their respective conference championship this weekend, and it's on to the final game of the 2020 NFL season. But how will they get it done? How will offensive and defensive coordinators or playcallers exploit matchups and come away with a win?
Let's take a closer look at both conference championship matchups and pick out game-plan keys -- one on offense, one on defense -- that can create edges and a path to the Super Bowl for each of the four teams. Plus, we identify each team's game-breaker who could cause problems for opponents, and we point to the one pivotal matchup to watch in both the NFC and AFC Championship Games that just might play a huge part in who moves on and who goes home.
Let's begin with Sunday's NFC meeting of Tom Brady's Buccaneers and Aaron Rodgers' top-seeded Packers.
(5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at (1) Green Bay Packers
Sunday, 3:05 p.m. ET, Fox | FPI predicts GB (53.2%) by 1
Keys to victory | Game-breakers | Pivotal matchup
How the Buccaneers can beat the Packers
1. Scheme second-level windows for QB Tom Brady
The Bucs are going to get run-game volume with running back Leonard Fournette out of 11 and 12 personnel groupings on Sunday, including a lot of outside zone. But I'm also looking for Tampa Bay to scheme the middle of the field for Brady with leveled reads and Hi-Lo stretch concepts. This is where the Bucs can manipulate Quarters and Cover 2 to open those second-level windows for Brady to throw in-breakers and over routes against a Packers defense that I expect to be more zone-heavy in this matchup.
