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NFL: Ranking 2018 vs. greatest conference championship weekends

By Erik Lambert

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - JANUARY 20: Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs fumbles the ball as he is hit by Kyle Van Noy #53 of the New England Patriots in the second quarter during the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 20, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - JANUARY 20: Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs fumbles the ball as he is hit by Kyle Van Noy #53 of the New England Patriots in the second quarter during the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 20, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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27 Jan 2002 : Isaac Bruce #80 of the St.Louis Rams struggles to protect the ball against pressure by Mike Caldwell #56 of the Philadelphia Eagles during the NFC Championship Game at the Dome at the America’s Center in St.Louis, Missouri. The Rams advance to the Superbowl after winning 29-24. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
27 Jan 2002 : Isaac Bruce #80 of the St.Louis Rams struggles to protect the ball against pressure by Mike Caldwell #56 of the Philadelphia Eagles during the NFC Championship Game at the Dome at the America’s Center in St.Louis, Missouri. The Rams advance to the Superbowl after winning 29-24. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images /

The conference championship weekend wasn’t always the big spectacle it is nowadays for the NFL. In times past, it was more of a reminder.

A reminder which teams were clearly superior to others. From 1970 to 2000, a total of 43 games played for a conference title between the NFC or AFC teams resulted in a scoring gap of 10 points or more the time the game ended. It was a rare occurrence for them to ever be close. Never mind the crazy idea that both games could be close on the same day.

Yet a few times in history this has actually been the case. Looking back over the Super Bowl era as a whole, which years stick out the most? Here are the top five in ascending order and what made them so special.

2001

NFC championship:  St. Louis Rams def. Philadelphia Eagles 29-24

One of the more forgotten classics in title game history. The Rams were trying to reach their second Super Bowl in three years after winning it all in 1999. They were the favorites going into the game but things didn’t start well with the Eagles, led by a young Andy Reid going into halftime with a 17-13 advantage. St. Louis roared back with 16 unanswered points to go up 29-17. It looked like Philadelphia was dead and buried but they soon scored a touchdown to cut the lead to five and had the ball with 2:20 with a chance to win. Unfortunately Donovan McNabb was intercepted on 4th down to close it out.

AFC championship:  New England Patriots def. Pittsburgh Steelers 24-17

Tom Brady‘s storybook career began early this year and had run all the way to the title game thanks to the infamous Tuck Rule from a week prior. It almost came crashing down when he was forced out of action with a knee injury in the second quarter. Even so, Drew Bledsoe led the team to a 21-3 lead by the third quarter. Pittsburgh refused to go quietly though, striking back with two quick touchdowns to cut the gap to four. That’s as close as they got. The Patriots hit a field goal in the 4th quarter and intercepted Kordell Stewart twice to hand them their first AFC title of the Bill Belichick era.

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