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NFL Conference Championship Early Odds, Picks & Predictions (2024)

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The NFL playoff picture only has four teams remaining.

The Kansas City Chiefs will visit the Baltimore Ravens for the AFC Championship, while the Detroit Lions will take a trip to San Francisco to face the 49ers.

Two of these teams will head this year’s Super Bowl for a chance at hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

Here’s an early look at these two matchups and a couple of best bets for these games.

Early NFL Conference Championship Weekend Best Bets

All wagers are 1 unit | Odds courtesy of BetMGM

Kansas City Chiefs @ Baltimore Ravens

It isn’t easy to bet against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in January. All they do is win in this month. However, the Baltimore Ravens have certainly looked like the best team in the AFC this season.

Baltimore didn’t even allow a defensive touchdown against the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional Playoffs while earning a 34-10 win. The only touchdown that Houston scored was a punt return touchdown.

Lamar Jackson added 252 combined yards and four total touchdowns. Baltimore averaged 5.5 yards a carry against Houston and used three different running backs for at least eight carries each.

The Ravens ran the ball 42 times and completed only 16 passes. That’s what they will likely look to do against the Chiefs. Kansas City’s rush defense isn’t nearly as good as their pass defense. Baltimore will want to take advantage, but so will the Chiefs. The Ravens are as equally weak against the run. The only thing that Baltimore was inconsistent with this season was tackling. The Chiefs added at least 26 points in both playoff games and just got 6.5 yards per carry from Isiah Pacheco on 15 attempts.

While both defenses have been tremendous, surprisingly, I’d rather back the Over between two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, especially knowing that the run games should have success on both sides.

Bet: Over 44.5 (-110)

Detroit Lions @ San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers escaped the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Divisional Playoffs, earning a 24-21 win despite being outplayed for most of the game. Deebo Samuel was injured and is questionable to play in the NFC Championship.

On the other hand, the Detroit Lions added a 31-23 win over the Buccaneers after putting together countless successful drives on offense against a very hot Tampa Bay defense coming into the game.

The Lions have struggled defensively throughout the season. That’s no secret. The secondary has been poor, and the tackling has been lacking. But up front, the Lions are strong with a great pass rush and a solid run defense.

Last week, we watched the 49ers struggle without Samuel on the field. But Christian McCaffrey still earned 5.8 yards a carry on 17 attempts, adding two touchdowns. Brock Purdy added a touchdown and didn’t throw an interception on 39 passing attempts.

The Niners will need to limit turnovers to win this game. They’re way more talented than the Lions defensively but can’t make mistakes on the offensive side of the ball that will cost them.

With the Niners at home, I like San Francisco to escape the Lions and cover the -7 with a double-digit win.

Bet: 49ers -7 (-105)

Make sure to check out our other best bets for Wednesday:

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